How to check if a page is on Google

To check whether a page is on Google, paste its full address into the search bar at the top of Google Search Console. That runs the URL Inspection tool, which says whether the page is indexed, when Google last read it, and what stopped it if it is not. It is more reliable than searching Google with site:.

How do you use URL Inspection?

1. Open Search Console for your site.
2. Paste the page's full address, including https://, into the bar at the top.
3. Read the verdict.

"URL is on Google" means the page is indexed and eligible to appear. Google's help notes that this is not a promise that it will appear for any particular search. "URL is not on Google" comes with a reason, such as a noindex tag (a line that tells Google to leave the page out) or a redirect.

What do the "not indexed" reasons mean?

The Page indexing report lists every page Google knows about but has not indexed, grouped by reason. Two are common on new sites, and Google's help page explains both:

• Discovered, currently not indexed. Google knows the address but has not read the page yet, usually because it rescheduled the visit. On a new site this often clears on its own.
• Crawled, currently not indexed. Google read the page and chose not to index it for now. Google says there is no need to resubmit it. Ask whether the page repeats another one, or answers its question too thinly to be worth showing.

Google also says not to expect every page to be indexed: duplicates and pages without much useful content are often left out.

Should you use a site: search?

Only for a rough look. Typing site:yourdomain.com into Google lists some of your indexed pages, but Google says the site: operator does not necessarily return everything indexed. A page missing from a site: search may still be indexed. Check it with URL Inspection.

How do you ask Google to index a page?

In URL Inspection, choose Request indexing. Google adds the page to its queue. Three things to know, all from Google's guide to recrawling:

• Crawling can take from a few days to a few weeks.
• There is a daily limit on requests, and asking again for the same page does not speed it up.
• For many pages, submit a sitemap instead.

A request does not guarantee indexing. If a page stays out, the reason is usually on the page, and the ranking evidence lists what to check first.