Is My Page Worth Ranking?
Free tool · Built on the trial record
Is my page worth ranking?
The DOJ v. Google antitrust trial put Google's own descriptions of how ranking works on the public record. Three pillars: what the page says about itself, what the web says about it, and what users do with it. This tool checks your page against the first one the way Google's own system does, and names every miss.
The three pillars, and which this tool covers
In documents and testimony made public during the trial, Google described three pillars of ranking in its own words. Each maps to a check, and this page is honest about which are built.
Body
"What the document says about itself."
Google's system is QBST, Query-based Salient Terms: words and pairs of words that should appear prominently on pages relevant to a query. That's the check above. It measures prominence, not keyword density, because that's what the system does.
Anchors
"What the web says about the document."
The composition of the link text pointing at a page: brand name, generic, or keyword-stuffed. Composition rather than count. Needs a backlink export to check, outside the scope of this tool.
User-interactions
"What users say about the document."
Google's systems here are described in the trial record as memorization systems trained on historical click and query data. Attention on a result, reformulations, and session-level behavior are named in the same testimony, none of it is visible from outside Google, and no tool can honestly claim otherwise.
Where this comes from
The findings of fact from United States v. Google LLC, the search antitrust case decided by Judge Amit Mehta, include some of the first official, verifiable descriptions of internal Google ranking systems, drawn from testimony and exhibits during the trial. QBST and NavBoost are both named directly. This tool checks your page against the QBST description only; it does not and cannot verify anything about how Google's live systems currently weight it.
What Is This Page Ranking Checker?
The findings of fact from United States v. Google LLC, the search antitrust case decided by Judge Amit Mehta, put some of Google's own descriptions of how ranking works on the public record. Google described three pillars: what the page says about itself, what the web says about it, and what users do with it.
This tool checks your page against the first pillar the way Google's own system does. Enter your page and the exact search you want it to rank for, and it checks for QBST, Query-based Salient Terms, the words and pairs of words that should appear prominently on pages relevant to that query, and shows you exactly where each one does or doesn't appear.
What This Page Ranking Checker Checks
- Salient terms and pairs: Extracts the key terms and word pairs from your target query.
- Prominence by location: Checks whether each term appears in the title, H1, opening paragraph, a heading, the body copy, or only the footer, weighted from 10 (title) down to 1 (footer), since where a term appears matters more than how many times.
- Full phrase match: Checks whether your exact target query appears anywhere on the page as a complete phrase.
- Prominence score: A percentage score based on how well your salient terms are placed, not on keyword density or count.
- Buried terms: Flags terms that are present but only in low-weight locations like the body copy or footer, so you can see what's technically there but not pulling its weight.
- Do this: A specific list of terms to move into higher-prominence locations.
- What this cannot tell you: An explicit list of what the tool doesn't check, shown alongside the results rather than hidden.
What This Tool Does Not Do
- Only checks the first of the three pillars, what the page says about itself (QBST prominence); it does not check anchor text composition or user-interaction signals, since those require data this tool doesn't have access to
- Does not measure keyword density or count, only where terms appear
- Does not guarantee Google rankings, predict an exact ranking position, or determine whether Google will index your page
- Does not replace competitor research, backlink analysis, technical SEO audits, or real user and conversion data
- A high score does not guarantee traffic, rankings, or conversions
- Search results depend on many factors, including relevance, competition, authority, technical accessibility, location, personalization, and changes to search systems
Why Check If Your Page Is Worth Ranking?
A page can target the right keyword and still fall short because the content does not fully satisfy the search intent or place the terms that matter where Google's own system is documented to look for them.
Before spending more time promoting or building links to a page, it can be useful to review whether the page itself has the salient-term prominence this one documented mechanism rewards.
- Identify weaknesses in your page's term prominence
- Review content before publishing
- Find specific terms that are buried instead of prominent
- Check whether your exact target phrase appears anywhere on the page
- Prioritize which terms to move and where
How to Use the Page Ranking Checker
- Enter your page URL.
- Enter the exact search you want it to rank for.
- Run the check. The tool extracts salient terms and pairs from your query and scans your page for where each one appears.
- Review the prominence score, the full-phrase check, and where each term and pair actually sits on the page.
- Work through the Do this list: move buried terms out of the footer or deep body copy and into the title, H1, opening paragraph, or a heading.
- Recheck the page after making changes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does "worth ranking" mean here?
It refers to whether a page places its salient terms with the prominence Google's own QBST system is documented to reward for a given query. It is not a guarantee that the page will rank.
What is QBST?
Query-based Salient Terms, a Google ranking mechanism described in the findings of fact from United States v. Google LLC. It refers to words and word pairs that should appear prominently on pages relevant to a query.
Can this tool predict my Google ranking?
No. It checks one documented pillar of ranking, term prominence, and identifies page-level strengths and weaknesses. It does not predict an exact Google ranking.
Does this check backlinks or user behavior too?
No. Google's own trial testimony describes two other pillars, anchor text composition and user-interaction signals, but both need data this tool doesn't have access to, so only the page-content (QBST) pillar is checked here.
Should I improve the page before building backlinks?
Reviewing and improving term prominence first can help ensure the page provides a strong destination before you invest in promotion. The right SEO process still depends on the website and competitive landscape.
Does a high score guarantee rankings?
No. Rankings depend on many external and page-level factors, and no page score, including this one, can guarantee a specific search position.