Search Console is Google’s free tool that shows how Google sees your site: which pages are indexed, which are not and why, and which searches your site appears for. When you see Search Console errors or something looks wrong, the explanation is almost always in there. You just need to know where to look and in what order.
Work from the bottom up. First confirm that the property is verified and that you are looking at the right version of the site. Then check that your own site is not blocking Google. Only after that go into the indexing report and its specific reasons. For each step below I explain how to tell that it is your problem and how to fix it.
Step 1: Search Console verification failed or disappeared
Before you see any data, you have to prove to Google that the site is yours. There are two types of property. A Domain property covers the whole domain, including subdomains, with and without www, on http and https. A URL-prefix property covers only addresses that start with the exact prefix you entered, protocol included.
If the property was showing data and suddenly asks you to verify again, the verification code has probably disappeared from the site. According to Google, verification is valid only as long as the tool can find the verification code where it was placed, and switching themes, an SEO plugin or a DNS provider can delete it without you noticing.
How you re-verify depends on the property type. A Domain property is verified through a DNS record at your domain registrar or DNS provider. A URL-prefix property can be verified in several ways: uploading an HTML file, an HTML tag on the homepage, your Google Analytics tracking code, Google Tag Manager, or a DNS record. Choose a method that does not depend on your theme, so a future redesign will not break verification. One more thing: according to Google, if all verified owners lose access, all users of the property lose access. So it is worth having more than one verified owner.
Step 2: No data, or the data looks partial
According to Google, a new site, or one that was just added to Search Console, can take up to a week before data appears. If time has passed and the Performance report is still empty, Google lists two possible reasons: the site is not yet visible in search, or the property was set up on the wrong address, for example http instead of https in a URL-prefix property.
You can see the address in the property selector at the top, so check exactly what is written there. A property on http://example.com will not show the traffic of https://www.example.com.
If the address is wrong, add a Domain property, which combines all versions, or a URL-prefix property for the address the site actually loads on.
And if the property is correct and the site does appear in search, but the Performance report still shows almost nothing, it may simply be that not enough people are clicking your site in the results yet. Google names this explicitly as a possible explanation for an empty report, and it is a question of content and rankings, not settings.
Step 3: Your site is blocking Google and you did not know
This is the first check when pages are not getting indexed, because it is simple and the damage is large.
- The WordPress setting: under Settings > Reading there is a checkbox called Discourage search engines from indexing this site, and it should be unchecked. According to the WordPress documentation, when it is checked, a
noindex,nofollowtag is added to every page. If the site was built in a staging environment and then moved live, this is the first thing to check. - The noindex tag: in Google’s help pages this reason appears as URL marked ‘noindex’. If the page matters to you, find the setting in your SEO plugin that marks it as noindex and turn it off.
- robots.txt: the reason URL blocked by robots.txt means the file forbids Googlebot from crawling the address. Open
/robots.txtin your browser and look for aDisallowline that matches the path. It is important to know that, according to Google, blocking in robots.txt does not guarantee the page will stay out of the index by other routes. To remove a page from Google, use noindex.
Step 4: Search Console errors in the coverage report and their reasons
The report many people still call the coverage report is now called Page indexing. It splits your pages into those that were indexed and those that were not, and for every page that was not indexed it gives a reason. These are the reasons you will meet most often, with Google’s explanation:
- Page with redirect: an address that redirects to another address, so it will not be indexed itself. This is usually fine, for example an http version that redirects to https. Just make sure the destination itself is indexed.
- Alternate page with proper canonical tag: the page is marked as an alternate of another page and correctly points to the canonical one. You do not need to do anything.
- Duplicate without user-selected canonical: the page is a duplicate of another page and you did not set a canonical, so Google chose the other page on its own. If the choice does not suit you, you can set a clear canonical.
- Not found (404): the page returned a 404 error. If it moved to another address, Google recommends redirecting to it with a 301 redirect.
- Soft 404: the page shows the visitor a “not found” style message but does not return a 404 code. The fix is to give it real content, or to return a real 404 code. I wrote about the full checks for finding the cause in a separate guide, soft 404 in Search Console.
- Server error (5xx): the server returned a 500-series error when Google requested the page. This is a sign to check your hosting, a crashing plugin or server load.
- Crawled – currently not indexed: Google crawled the page and did not add it to the index. According to Google it may be indexed in the future, and there is no need to submit it for crawling again.
- Discovered – currently not indexed: Google found the page but has not crawled it yet, usually because it estimated that crawling now would overload the site and postponed it.
For the last two reasons there is no button that solves the problem. What to check in that case I covered in the article why my website is not showing on Google. And not every page needs to be indexed. If a page is a duplicate that you set up on purpose, the fact that it appears in the list does not mean something is broken.
Step 5: Checking a single URL with URL Inspection
When one specific page is bothering you, paste its full address into the search bar at the top of the interface. The URL Inspection tool shows whether the address is indexed, which page Google chose as the canonical, and whether anything is blocking it.
The Test live URL button checks the current version of the page, meaning after the fix you made. If the live test is fine, you can click Request Indexing. According to Google there is a daily limit on the number of requests, and repeating the request for the same address will not speed up crawling. Even after the request, Google does not promise that the page will be indexed. It says indexing usually takes about a day, but can take much longer. When you have many pages, Google recommends submitting a sitemap instead of requesting indexing for each page separately.
Step 6: After the fix, Validate Fix
When you have fixed a problem that appears on many pages, open the reason in the Page indexing report and click Validate Fix, and Google rechecks the affected addresses. According to Google, validation usually takes up to two weeks, and in some cases much longer. During the process the status can be Looking good, and at the end Passed or Failed.
Step 7: Manual actions and Security issues
If your traffic suddenly collapsed, there are two reports that are easy to forget and worth opening.
The first is Manual actions. A manual action is a situation where a human reviewer at Google decided that pages on your site do not comply with Google’s spam policies, and according to Google, in that case part of the site or all of it will not be shown in the results. One common reason for a manual action on links is using a PBN network of sites. To get out of it, fix what the report lists and then click Request Review.
The second is Security issues. This report warns about three types of problems: Hacked content, Malware and unwanted software, and Social engineering. If a problem appears there, your site has probably been hacked.
When to stop and call an expert
There are situations where trial and error can only make things worse: the Security issues report shows that the site was hacked, there is a manual action, Server error (5xx) errors keep coming back, or after all the fixes important pages remain in Crawled – currently not indexed. In any of these, it is worth stopping. And if your pages are already indexed and you want them to bring more visits, the article how to increase organic traffic is the natural next step.
Google’s official explanation of every reason in the indexing report is on the report’s help page. And if you tried on your own and it did not work, talk to me and I will handle it.
Frequently asked questions
What is Search Console and why do I need it?
It is a free Google service for site owners. It shows which pages are indexed, which searches your site appears for, how many clicks it gets, and which technical problems Google found. Without it you are guessing. This tool is part of a wider field, and if you are not sure what SEO is in the first place, it is worth starting there.
What is the difference between a Domain property and a URL-prefix property?
A Domain property covers all versions of the domain, with and without www, on http and https, and is verified through a DNS record. A URL-prefix property covers only the exact prefix you entered, and it can also be verified with an HTML file or an HTML tag.
Why does a page show as Crawled – currently not indexed?
Google crawled the page and decided not to add it to the index for now. According to Google it may be indexed in the future, and there is no need to submit it for crawling again.
How many times can I click Request Indexing?
There is a daily limit, and Google does not publish it as a number. Repeating the request for the same address does not speed anything up, so send it once, after you have fixed the problem.
Why did Google Search Console ask me to verify my site again?
Because the verification code is no longer where it was placed, for example after changing a theme, a plugin or a DNS provider. Put the code back, or verify with a different method.
How long does Validate Fix take in Search Console?
According to Google, usually up to two weeks, and sometimes much longer. After you click it, let the process finish before you draw conclusions.