---
title: One ranking snapshot tells you very little about one page
description: Two runs of the same 53 queries gave the same overall pattern, while individual results moved and 51 new domains appeared.
url: https://tanujsharma.xyz/notes/one-ranking-snapshot-tells-you-little
author: Tanuj Sharma
published: 2026-10-22
---

# One ranking snapshot tells you very little about one page

I ran the same 53 queries through DeepSeek’s search API twice, a few days apart.

The overall picture barely changed. Tier 3 and 4 sources held 82% of top-10 positions, against 83% the first time. The share of top results with a date went from 79% to 80%.

The individual results did change. The long tail moved, and a similar number of results came from 51 more domains than before.

So the pattern is stable, but any single ranking isn’t. If you check once, see your page at position 4 and then at 9, that may tell you nothing about the page.

So the study now re-runs the same queries every month and compares six numbers between runs: authority tier, queries where a site appears, top-10 positions, average rerank score, pages with a date and pages the fetcher can read. A change only counts if it holds across runs.

## Related

- Research: [What DeepSeek’s search API reveals about authority in AI search.](https://tanujsharma.xyz/research/deepseek-search-api-authority)
- Research: [How AI referral traffic behaves differently from traditional search.](https://tanujsharma.xyz/research/ai-referral-traffic-vs-search)
- Note: [In AI search, authority decides who reaches the first page](https://tanujsharma.xyz/notes/authority-is-a-gate-in-ai-search)
- Note: [Give every page a date machines can read](https://tanujsharma.xyz/notes/put-a-date-on-every-page)