Read the rank grid
How do I read the rank grid and switch between its views?
The grid is a square of 49 measuring points around your business on the Overview map. Each point is one Google Maps search for the selected keyword, run from that spot, and its colour and shape show where you came out: green for the top 3, amber for 4 to 9, red for 10 and below, with a star for first place and a flag for 15th or worse. You read it by choosing a keyword in Added Keywords, choosing a month along the bottom, and selecting a point to see who ranked there. A single "we rank #4" hides the shape of your coverage, and the grid is what shows it.
Key facts
| Where it lives | Marketing → SEO → Overview, once the location has a keyword with a finished report |
| One point | One Google Maps search from that coordinate, for one keyword: your rank from 1 to 20, or 20+ if you were not in the top 20 |
| Colours | Green for ranks 1–3, amber for 4–9, red for 10 and below (including 20+). A point that could not be measured is grey with a dash |
| Shapes | A star for rank 1, a flag for rank 15 or worse (including 20+), a rounded square for everything between |
| Which data | Aggregated Grid Report (best rank at each point across all keywords) or one keyword |
| Which month | The chips along the bottom of the map, one per month of history |
| What a point shows | Select one with a single keyword chosen to open the Grid point details panel |
Why this matters
You can rank first outside your front door and be invisible a mile away. The grid shows where that line falls and which businesses sit on the other side of it. Switch keyword or month to ask the same question again without leaving the page.
Steps
Open Marketing → SEO, choose a client and a single location, and stay on Overview. The map is the full-width area under the four cards, with the Added Keywords list on top of it.
Choose what to look at in Added Keywords.
- Aggregated Grid Report shows the best rank found at each point across every keyword. It answers "how visible am I here at all".
- A single keyword answers "how visible am I here for this search". Diagnose with a single keyword and report progress with the aggregate.
The list opens expanded, showing Avg. rank, Vs prev period, Top 3 coverage, Date added and History for each keyword. Selecting a row folds it into a narrow column and reveals the map. Search the list with the magnifier, narrow it with Filters (average-rank band, movement, date added) and reorder it with the sort button: Best rank first, Worst rank first, Biggest gains first or Biggest drops first.
Read the figures at the top of the map: Top 3 and Top 10 are the share of measured points where you ranked that high, and Avg Rank is the average across measured points, shown as 20+ when it is beyond 20. Points that could not be measured are left out of all three, so a partly measured grid never claims coverage it does not have.
Read each point by its colour and shape. A star is first place, green squares are in the top 3, amber is 4 to 9, and red is 10 and below. A flag marks 15th or worse, including 20+, which means Synup searched and you were not in the top 20. A grey dash means the point was not measured. Grid points over water are measured but hidden and left out of the figures unless the location's water setting counts them.
Choose a month with the chips along the bottom of the map. The map, the figures above it and the keyword list all move to that month. Earlier months have a three-dot menu with What's changed since and Split view; see see how my rankings changed.
Select Show Competition to pin the businesses that rank on the grid. Each pin is labelled with that business's best rank, for example Name · best #2. It needs a single keyword; with Aggregated Grid Report the map says Select a single keyword to see its competitors. Show Map Labels adds road names to the map.
With a single keyword chosen, select any point to open Grid point details on the right. See the next section.
What the point panel shows
The panel has two tabs.
- Top 20 lists the businesses ranked at that point, with rating, reviews, category and address. Your own row is marked You. The header names the place, for example Near a landmark or 3 mi northeast of your business, and says You rank #n, You rank 20+ or Your business isn't in the top 20 here. Each business also shows Grid avg, its average rank across the whole grid, and its distance from you and from the point. Arrows step to the previous or next point.
- Sydekick insight reads that one point. It compares you with the business ranked just above you (or, if you lead, the runner-up) on primary category, whether the name matches the search, distance, reviews and rating, marking each You lead, They lead, Even or Unknown. It separates findings you can fix from those that are Not in your control, such as distance. The comparison is computed from your ranking data; the written explanation is generated and may be unavailable, in which case the panel says so. You can ask a question about the point in the Ask Sydekick about this point box.
Compare with another point lets you pick a second point and shows both top 20 lists side by side, with how each business moved from A to B, or whether it is Same, Out or New.
In the aggregated view, selecting a point does not open this panel, because that cell is a blend of keywords: the map says Select a keyword in the Added keywords panel to see this point's results.
Split view
Split View puts two months of the same keyword side by side, each with its own month card. Pan and zoom are linked, so you can look at the same streets in both. It needs a single keyword with at least two months of reports, and it is unavailable on a narrow screen or while the keyword's first grid is still being checked. Its hints say Split view needs at least two months of reports, Split view needs a wider screen and Split view opens once this keyword's grid has finished. A button between the halves, such as What changed from Aug to Nov, opens the same comparison as What's changed since.
What you'll see when it's done
- A grid whose colours and shapes show where you win and lose for the keyword and month you chose
- Top 3, Top 10 and Avg Rank figures that match the grid
- For any point, a ranked list of who is there and a point-level read from Sydekick
Watch out for
- A grid full of 20+ is a real answer. It means you are not reaching the top 20 anywhere measured. The Competitors and Next steps rows are where you find out why.
- Grey means not measured. A point that could not be measured is not a ranking, and a grid with many grey points deserves less trust in its percentages.
- 10–20 and 20+ share a colour. The shape and the label tell them apart: a flag and 20+ mean you were not found, a square with a number means you were.
- Removing a keyword is permanent. The three-dot menu on a keyword row has Remove keyword, which deletes its grid reports and rank history for this location and cannot be undone.
- The map follows the keyword and month you chose, but the four cards above it describe the whole location.
Questions people ask
Where did Grid Points, Both and Heatmap go?
The Overview map has a single view now: coloured markers on the map. The heatmap and the Both option are gone from this page, as are the colour legend and the Water points checkbox. The band names live on in the keyword list filters.
Why does this grid have 49 points?
New keywords are checked on a 7 × 7 grid. You control how far apart the points sit with Distance between points when you add a keyword; see add keywords.
What is the difference between Top 3 and Avg Rank?
Top 3 is the share of points where you ranked in the top three. Avg Rank is the mean rank across points, where 20+ counts as 21. A grid can have a good top 3 share and a poor average if you win in one pocket and are absent elsewhere.