You published a page, waited, and it still does not appear when you search for it. Or you opened Search Console and found a long list of your pages under a heading that says they are not indexed, with reasons written in Google’s own shorthand. Some of those reasons are harmless. A few mean something on your site is quietly hiding pages you need.
This article explains what to do about a page not indexed by Google: what each common status in the page indexing report is telling you, how to inspect a single page, and when the right move is simply to wait. The most frustrating status of all, crawled currently not indexed, gets its own section, because it is the one owners ask about most.
Page not indexed by Google? Confirm it first
Searching Google for your page title is not a reliable test, because a page can be indexed and still rank too low to find. Use the URL Inspection tool in Search Console instead. Paste the full address of the page into the search bar at the top. The result tells you whether the URL is on Google, and if not, why.
If the result says the page is on Google, the problem is ranking, not indexing, and the fixes are about content and competition. If it says the page is not on Google, read the reason and the details underneath, then match it to the sections below.
The inspection also lets you test the live version of the page. This shows whether Google can fetch it right now, which is useful after you have fixed something, because the main report may still show the old state for a while.
Statuses that need action
Excluded by ‘noindex’ tag
The page carries an instruction telling Google not to index it. That is correct for thank-you pages and private areas, and wrong for anything you want people to find. On WordPress, the usual causes are an SEO plugin setting on the individual page, a setting that noindexes a whole content type, or the site-wide reading option that discourages search engines. Our existing guide to how noindex works in WordPress shows where each lives, so you can reverse it.
Blocked by robots.txt
Your robots.txt file tells Google not to crawl that address. If the page should be indexed, remove or narrow the rule. Note the related warning “Indexed, though blocked by robots.txt”, which means Google indexed the address from links without reading the page. If you want such a page out of results, allowing crawling and adding noindex is the reliable route.
Not found (404)
The address returns a missing-page error. If the page was moved or renamed, redirect the old address to the new one. If it was deleted on purpose and has no replacement, a 404 is the right answer and you can leave it.
Soft 404
The page loads normally, but Google thinks it looks like an error or an empty page. Common causes are category pages with no posts, product pages saying “out of stock” with nothing else, or pages with very little content. Either add real content or let the address return a proper 404 or redirect.
Server error (5xx)
Google tried to fetch the page and your server failed. If it happened once during an outage it may clear on its own. If it keeps appearing, the hosting, a plugin or a security rule may be blocking or crashing on Google’s requests, and it needs investigating.
Statuses that are usually normal
Page with redirect
The address redirects somewhere else, so Google indexes the destination instead. This is expected for old addresses you have redirected on purpose.
Alternate page with proper canonical tag
The page points to another address as its main version, and Google has accepted that. This is normal for things like tracking-parameter versions of a page.
Duplicate without user-selected canonical, and Google chose different canonical than user
Google found pages it considers duplicates and picked one to index. The first status means you did not specify a preference; the second means you did, but Google disagreed. Check that the page Google chose is the one you would want. If it is not, make the pages more clearly distinct or set canonicals consistently. Our explainer on canonical URLs in WordPress covers this in more depth.
Crawled currently not indexed: what it means
This status means Google visited the page, read it, and decided not to add it to the index, at least for now. There is no error to fix. It is a judgment that the page is not worth storing yet.
That judgment can come from several directions:
- The page adds little that is new. It closely resembles other pages on your site or elsewhere, or says little beyond a heading and a few lines.
- The page seems unimportant within the site. Few or no internal links point to it, so Google has little reason to think it matters.
- The site as a whole has not earned much trust yet. New sites and sites with many thin pages often see this status more widely.
- Timing. Sometimes Google simply has not got round to indexing a page it plans to include.
What to do about it:
- Read the page honestly as a searcher would. Does it answer something better or differently from what already ranks? If not, improve it substantially or merge it with a related page.
- Add links to it from relevant, well-visited pages on your own site, with descriptive link text.
- Make sure it is in your sitemap and not marked as a duplicate of something else.
- Once you have made a real improvement, request indexing in the URL Inspection tool, once.
- Then wait. Repeated requests do not change the outcome.
If many pages on the site carry this status, look at the site as a whole. Pruning or merging weak pages often helps the remaining ones.
Discovered currently not indexed
This similar-sounding status means Google knows the address exists but has not crawled it yet. On a small site it is usually a matter of time or weak internal linking. On a site with a very large number of low-value addresses, it can mean Google is rationing its visits. Linking to the page from important pages and keeping the sitemap clean usually helps.
When to wait and when to act
Indexing is not instant. A brand new page on a small site may take a while to be crawled and assessed. Acting too early can lead to needless changes. As a rough guide:
| Situation | Sensible response |
|---|---|
| New page, no errors, status “Discovered” or not yet known | Check it is linked and in the sitemap, then give it time |
| Noindex, robots.txt block, 404 or server error on a page you need | Fix the cause now, then test the live URL |
| “Crawled currently not indexed” on a thin or near-duplicate page | Improve, merge or remove the page; do not just resubmit it |
| “Crawled currently not indexed” on a strong, unique page | Strengthen internal links, request indexing once, and wait |
| Many key pages suddenly dropping out of the index | Look for a site-wide change: a plugin update, theme change or new setting |
After fixing a problem, you can use the validate fix option on the issue in the page indexing report. Google will recheck the affected pages over time and update the report.
Preventing indexing problems in future
Most indexing trouble on small sites comes from changes made without checking afterwards. After installing or updating an SEO plugin, changing theme or redesigning, spot-check a few key pages with URL Inspection. Keep the sitemap limited to pages you want found; our guide on sending your WordPress sitemap to Google covers setting it up properly. And glance at the page indexing report monthly for new reasons appearing.
Indexing is one item on a longer list. Our checklist of technical SEO basics covers the rest, and the full guide to small business SEO explains what comes after pages are indexed. For the bigger picture across all marketing channels, see our digital marketing hub.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my home page indexed but none of my other pages?
Often the inner pages are not linked properly from the home page or menu, are marked noindex by a plugin setting, or were only recently published. Inspect one of the missing pages to see the exact reason, then check whether the same cause applies to the others before changing anything.
Should I delete pages that are not indexed?
Not automatically. Pages left out for normal reasons, such as redirects or deliberate duplicates, need no action. Weak pages that Google declined to index may be better merged into a stronger page with a redirect, but delete only after checking that they have no visitors or useful links.
Will Google index a page just because I submitted it?
No. Requesting indexing asks Google to crawl the page sooner, but Google still decides whether the page is worth including. A strong, unique, well-linked page is far more likely to be indexed than one that is simply resubmitted many times.
If a batch of important pages is missing from Google and you cannot find the cause, our SEO services include working through the indexing report on your WordPress site and fixing what is behind each status.
Next in this series: SEO for a New Website: The First Weeks After Launch
