New Feature in Google Webmaster Tools will Tell If Your Pages are Indexed

New Feature in Google Webmaster Tools

Google trends keep changing with the users’ search behavior. So, SEO experts must keep a track with these updates. The changes in search algorithms and indexing patterns are made by Google to provide its users with the most accurate results.

Many a times, SEO managers do not get to know what is up with their websites, whether their webpages are getting indexed or not.

However, now all these questions are answered by a recent step taken by Google webmaster. Just a month ago, Google published a new feature to its web master tools, called Index Status.

New Google Webmaster Tool: Index Status

Index Status can be found under the ‘Health’ section of Google webmaster tools account. This tool will provide SEO managers with graphical indexing reports. The basic status report will only generate data for the total indexed value while the advanced tab of index status will show detailed information.

Total Indexed URLs: The total number of URLs which can be crawled to appear in search results. Crawled URLs are greater in number than total indexed URLs because Total indexed does not include duplicate URLs, non-canonical URLs or the ones with meta-noindexed tag.

URLs blocked by robot.txt file: Many a times, Google tries to crawl some URLs but the access is denied or blocked due to their robot.txt files.

Non-selected or removed URLs: Google Webmaster Tools may not choose some URLs for indexing due to many reasons for this like duplicate or similar content or URLs are getting redirected to other pages etc. Google apply filters to refine search results. These filters remove pages due to legal reasons or due to manual spam action.

Understanding Google Webmaster Index Status Report

  1. A steady pattern in the graphic index report signifies there is regular progress in the number of crawled and indexed pages. It is a good sign which indicates that your website/URLs are getting accessed by Google regularly.
  2. Steady_google_index_statusVariations in graphic index report with drops and rise means that there are some issues with the site. If there is drop in number of indexed URLs, it indicates that there is some problem with Google accessing your website or the server is down or there is traffic overload.
  3. google-index-statusYou may also notice variations if you have made changes in your site such as added content or changed URL structure etc. However, if you notice sudden spikes, check for any technical or security issue.

The new feature of Index Status in Google Webmaster will enable the users to assess and identify indexing trends, and they can also be able to quickly resolve any issue related to indexation.