Query: what it is, what it means and types of queries
The word you'll see in Google, in your data and in Search Console, explained without jargon
A query is a request for information made to a system, such as a search engine or a database. In SEO, the query is what a person types into Google to find something, for example, “how to create a newsletter”.
In plain English, it is simply another word for a question. It’s widely used in digital marketing, programming and data analysis.
What does query mean?
Query means “inquiry”, “question” or “request”. In computing and marketing, it’s almost always used in the sense of a request for information.
Depending on the context, a query can be:
| Context | What the query is | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Search engines (SEO) | The words a person types into Google | “best email marketing software” |
| Databases | An instruction to retrieve or change data | “SELECT name FROM customers WHERE city = ‘Madrid'” |
| Excel and Power BI | Power Query, the tool for importing and transforming data | Combining several sales sheets into one table |
| URL | The part after the “?” sign (query string) | “?utm_source=newsletter” |
| Search Console | The report on the searches you appear for | “Queries” in the Performance report |
Is it queries or querys?
The correct form is queries. In English, words ending in a consonant + “y” form the plural by changing the “y” to “ies”: query, queries, like company, companies.
“Querys” is a very common spelling mistake. If you’d rather avoid the jargon, write search and searches.
| Form | Correct? |
|---|---|
| A query, the query | Yes (singular) |
| The queries | Yes (plural) |
| The querys | No |
| The searches | Yes, if you’d rather avoid the jargon |
What is a query in SEO?
In SEO, a query or search query is the exact text a person types or says into a search engine. It can be a word, a phrase or a full question.
Google interprets each query to understand what that person needs and shows the results that best answer it.
That need is called search intent.
Query and keyword are not the same
| Query | Keyword |
|---|---|
| What the user types, exactly as they type it | The term you choose to rank your page for |
| It can have typos or variations: “querys meaning” | It’s a clean version: “query” |
| There are millions of different ones | It groups many similar queries |
| You see it in Google Search Console | You choose it in your keyword research |
For example, the queries “how to send an email campaign”, “send email campaign free” and “how do you send an email campaign” can be grouped under the keyword “how to send an email campaign”.
Types of queries by search intent
| Type | What the person is looking for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Informational | Learn something or answer a question | “what is a newsletter” |
| Navigational | Go to a specific website | “mailrelay login” |
| Commercial | Compare options before deciding | “best email marketing tools” |
| Transactional | Do something now: buy, sign up, download | “create free email marketing account” |
Long, specific queries, such as “newsletter template for restaurants”, are called long-tail queries. They get fewer searches, but they tend to be closer to conversion. We explain this in our entry on long tail.
How to see your website’s queries
Google Search Console shows the queries your website appears for in the Performance report, under the Queries tab. For each one you’ll see:
- Impressions: how many times you appeared in the results.
- Clicks: how many people visited your website.
- CTR: the percentage of impressions that resulted in a click.
- Average position: where you usually appear in the results.
With this data you can spot opportunities.
A query with many impressions and few clicks usually means your page’s title or description doesn’t match what people are looking for.
To find new queries, you can use tools such as Google Keyword Planner, Semrush or Ahrefs. You’ll find the full process in our entry on keyword research.
Do you know what your customers are asking?
Turn their questions into useful newsletters and send them to each segment with Mailrelay.
How to optimize your content for queries
- Answer the query in the first few lines. If someone searches for “what is a newsletter”, the definition should come first.
- Use your readers’ words. Include the variations and real questions you see in Search Console.
- Write a title and description that match the search. They’re what people see before clicking.
- Organize the content with clear headings, so Google and people can find each answer.
- Add an FAQ section with the most common questions on the topic.
Queries in email marketing
Queries also help you with your email campaigns. Here are three uses:
- Ideas for your newsletter. The queries that bring people to your website tell you what questions your customers have. Answer the most common ones in your emails.
- Segmentation. When you filter your contacts, for example, “customers in Madrid who opened the last email”, you’re running a query on your database. We explain this in our entry on segmentation in email marketing.
- Measurement. The links in your emails can include parameters in the query string so you can see in Google Analytics which campaign each visit comes from. These are UTM parameters.
How Mailrelay helps you
With Mailrelay, you create segments of your contacts based on their data and behavior, and send each group the message that matters to them.
You design your newsletters with the drag-and-drop editor and, after each send, you can see each campaign’s opens and clicks in the statistics.
The free account lets you send up to 80,000 emails a month to 20,000 contacts, with chat, ticket and phone support.
Send your newsletters with Mailrelay
Up to 80,000 emails a month to 20,000 contacts with the free account, with chat, ticket and phone support.
Frequently asked questions about queries
What is a query? It’s a request for information made to a search engine, a database or another system.
What does query mean? It means “inquiry”. Depending on the context, it can also mean “question” or “request”.
Is it queries or querys? It’s queries, because that’s the English plural of query. “Querys” is incorrect. If you’d rather avoid the jargon, you can say “searches”.
What is a query in SEO? It’s the text a person types into a search engine. Google interprets it to show the results that best match their intent.
What’s the difference between a query and a keyword? The query is what the user types, exactly as they type it. The keyword is the term you choose to rank a page for, and it groups many similar queries.