WordbyWord Solutions

It could be devastating to read this; Page is Crawled but Not Indexed. What could it possibly imply? For beginners and those who are solely operating their websites – you will be too worried getting this kind of status on your Google Search Console. In this article, we will tackle one of the most common issues to see in GSC. Here at WordbyWord Solutions, we will dive on this a bit.

When a page is “crawled but not indexed,” it means that Google’s search engine bots have found and crawled the page, but for some reason, they have decided not to include it in the search index.

Crawling is the process where Googlebot (Google’s web crawler) discovers pages on the internet and scans their content. Indexing, on the other hand, is the process where the scanned pages are added to Google’s database of web pages, making them eligible to appear in search results.

There are several reasons why a page might be crawled but not indexed:

1. Duplicate Content: If the page contains content that is too similar to other pages on your website or elsewhere on the web, Google might decide it doesn’t need to index another version of the same content.
2. Low-Quality Content: Pages with thin, low-quality, or irrelevant content might not be indexed.
3. Technical Issues: Errors in your site’s code, like incorrect canonical tags, noindex directives, or issues with robots.txt, can prevent indexing.
4. Crawl Budget: Larger sites have a crawl budget, a limit on the number of pages Google will crawl in a given period. If your site exceeds this budget, some pages might be crawled but not indexed.
5. Site Structure and Internal Linking: Poor site structure or lack of internal linking can make it harder for Googlebot to efficiently crawl and understand the importance of your pages.
6. Recent Changes: If you’ve recently added or updated a page, Google might take some time before deciding to index it.

How it Affects Website SEO

Having pages that are crawled but not indexed can have several negative impacts on your website’s SEO:

1. Reduced Visibility: If important pages are not indexed, they won’t appear in search results, reducing your site’s visibility and organic traffic.
2. Wasted Resources: Crawl budget is a valuable resource, especially for larger sites. Pages that are crawled but not indexed waste this budget, potentially preventing other important pages from being crawled and indexed.
3. Impaired User Experience: Non-indexed pages might affect user navigation and experience if users can’t find the content they are looking for.
4. Impact on Authority: Pages that are not indexed may not contribute to your site’s overall authority and ranking power.

Why it Needs to be Resolved

Resolving issues with pages that are crawled but not indexed is crucial for maintaining and improving your website’s SEO. Here are the key reasons why:

1. Maximize Organic Reach: Ensuring that all valuable pages are indexed maximizes your site’s potential to reach its target audience through organic search.
2. Efficient Use of Crawl Budget: By resolving these issues, you can make more efficient use of your crawl budget, ensuring that Google’s bots can crawl and index all important pages.
3. Improve User Experience: Indexing all relevant pages improves user experience by making sure users can find the information they need.
4. Boost Site Authority: Indexing more pages can boost your site’s overall authority and relevance in Google’s eyes, positively impacting your rankings.

How to Resolve This Issue

Addressing the issue of pages that are crawled but not indexed involves several steps. Here’s a comprehensive approach:

1. Check Google Search Console: Start by checking the “Coverage” report in Google Search Console. This report provides detailed information on which pages are crawled but not indexed and the reasons why.
2. Improve Content Quality: Ensure that your pages have high-quality, unique, and valuable content. Avoid thin content and duplicate content. Make sure each page provides something of value to the user.
3. Optimize Technical SEO:
   • Canonical Tags: Ensure that your pages have correct canonical tags to indicate the preferred version of a page to Google.
   • Robots.txt and Meta Tags: Check your robots.txt file and meta tags to ensure that there are no directives preventing indexing.
   • Sitemap: Submit an updated and accurate sitemap to Google Search Console. This helps Google understand the structure of your site and discover all pages.
4. Enhance Internal Linking: Improve the internal linking structure of your website. Ensure that important pages are linked from other relevant pages on your site. This helps Googlebot efficiently crawl and understand the hierarchy of your content.
5. Monitor Crawl Budget: Use Google Search Console to monitor your site’s crawl budget. Ensure that your server can handle Googlebot’s requests and that important pages are prioritized for crawling.
6. Address Duplicate Content: Use tools like Copyscape to identify and address duplicate content issues. Make sure each page has unique content that differentiates it from other pages on your site and across the web.
7. Fix Technical Errors: Use tools like Google Search Console and third-party SEO tools to identify and fix technical errors that might prevent indexing, such as server errors, incorrect redirects, and broken links.
8. Request Indexing: In Google Search Console, use the “URL Inspection” tool to request indexing for important pages that are not indexed. This tool allows you to manually request Google to re-crawl and index specific pages.
9. Regular Audits: Conduct regular SEO audits to identify and resolve any issues that might affect indexing. Use tools like Screaming Frog, SEMrush, or Ahrefs to perform comprehensive site audits.
10. Monitor Performance: Continuously monitor the performance of your indexed pages using Google Analytics and Google Search Console. Look for any drops in traffic or changes in ranking that might indicate indexing issues.

Conclusion

Understanding and addressing the issue of pages that are crawled but not indexed is essential for maintaining a healthy and effective SEO strategy. By ensuring that all valuable pages on your site are indexed, you can maximize your organic reach, improve user experience, and boost your site’s overall authority and performance in search results. Regular monitoring, high-quality content, and technical SEO optimizations are key to resolving this issue and maintaining a well-indexed website.

If you need any help for any issues on your page is crawled but not indexed, be sure to contact us!