How to Submit URL to Google Index with Google Search Console

Last Updated April 22, 2024

How to Submit URL to Google Index with Google Search Console

Having your website indexed by Google is essential for visibility and attracting organic traffic. One effective method to ensure your website’s presence on Google is by submitting a URL to the Google index using Google Search Console. In this post, we will guide you through the process step-by-step, ensuring that your website gets crawled and indexed efficiently.

Google Search Console is a powerful tool that enables website owners to monitor their site’s performance, identify issues, and interact with Google.

By submitting your URLs to the Google index, you can prompt Google’s bots to crawl and index your pages, making them visible in search results. This process is crucial for gaining visibility and driving organic traffic to your website.

Of course before getting started you’ll need to add your site to Google Search Console.

Submitting Individual URLs

To submit a specific URL for indexing, follow these steps:

1. Sign in to Google Search Console: Visit the Google Search Console website and sign in with your Google account.

2. Select your website: If you have multiple websites added to your Search Console account, choose the one that you want to submit a URL for. This is done on the top left of the sidebar.

3. Enter the URL: Type or paste the URL you want to submit into the inspection bar and press Enter. This is located at the top of Google Search Console.

4. Inspect the URL: Google Search Console will now inspect the URL and provide you with information about its indexing status.

5. Request indexing: If the URL is not indexed, you’ll see a message indicating that it’s not currently in the Google index. To submit it for indexing, click on the “Request Indexing” button.

Request Indexing button in Google Search Console

Please note that Google has a quota for submitting individual URLs, and submitting the same URL multiple times won’t expedite the crawling process. Be patient and monitor the progress using either the Index Status report or the URL Inspection tool.

Submitting a Sitemap

If you have a large number of URLs to submit or want to ensure that Google discovers all the pages on your website efficiently, submitting a sitemap is recommended.

Here’s how you can do it:

Create a sitemap: Before submitting a sitemap, you need to create one. A sitemap is an XML file that lists all the URLs on your website. WordPress will do this automatically and can be found via the example.com/wp-sitemap.xml URL.
Verify your website: If you haven’t already done so, verify your website ownership in Google Search Console.
Access the Sitemaps report: In the left-hand sidebar of Google Search Console, click on “Sitemaps” under the “Index” section.
Add your sitemap: Click on the “Add/Test Sitemap” button and enter the URL of your sitemap.
Submit the sitemap: After adding your sitemap, click on the “Submit” button to inform Google about its existence.
Monitor sitemap indexing: Google Search Console will now process your sitemap and provide valuable information about the indexed URLs.

Submitting a sitemap is especially useful when you’ve just launched your website or made significant updates to its structure. Additionally, sitemaps can include metadata about alternate language versions, video, image, or news-specific pages, enhancing the overall indexing process.

Conclusion

Submitting a URL to the Google index with Google Search Console is a crucial step in ensuring your website’s visibility and organic traffic. By following the steps outlined in this post, you can proactively prompt Google to crawl and index your website’s pages. If you have a WordPress website there are plenty of other tips you can do to improve SEO in WordPress.

Remember to be patient during the indexing process and monitor your site’s progress using the available tools in Google Search Console.

How long does it take Google to index a URL after I request indexing?

Google can index a page in minutes, but it can also take days or longer. Requesting indexing tells Google to take a look, but it does not guarantee a fast result.

If your page is new, has few links, or your site is brand new, it usually takes longer. Google needs to find the page, crawl it, and decide if it should be added to the index.

The best next step is to check the URL Inspection tool in Search Console to see the current status. Also make sure the page is live, loads well, and is not blocked by settings like a noindex tag.

Why does Google Search Console say “URL is not on Google” even though my page is published?

This usually means Google has not crawled the page yet, or it crawled it and chose not to index it. Publishing a page does not automatically put it in Google search results.

First, run the URL through the URL Inspection tool and click “Request Indexing.” Then check for common problems like a noindex setting, a blocked robots file, or a login wall that stops Google from seeing the page.

Also look for duplicate content issues. If you have similar pages, Google may pick a different version to index. Using a canonical tag can help Google understand which page is the main one.

Should I submit each page one by one, or submit a sitemap instead?

If you only have a few pages or you just updated one post, submitting a single URL is fine. If you have lots of pages, submitting a sitemap is the better long-term move.

A sitemap helps Google discover your site more efficiently. It is especially helpful for new sites, big sites, or sites that publish often.

For WordPress, your sitemap is often at example.com/wp-sitemap.xml. You can learn more about what it is and why it matters in this XML sitemap guide.

What should I do if I keep hitting the Google “Request Indexing” limit?

Google has a daily quota for manual indexing requests, so it is normal to hit a limit if you submit many pages. Submitting the same URL again and again will not speed things up.

Focus on the pages that matter most first, like your homepage, main category pages, and your best posts. Then submit your sitemap so Google can find the rest over time.

You can also help Google discover pages faster by adding internal links from pages that already get traffic. This is a simple way to improve crawling without using more manual requests.

How can RightBlogger help my posts get indexed and perform better in Google?

RightBlogger can help you publish cleaner, more search-friendly content so Google has more reason to index it. Better content structure, clearer topics, and stronger on-page SEO can improve your chances of ranking after indexing.

If you want a faster writing workflow, the RightBlogger AI Article Writer can help you draft posts with a solid outline and clear sections. That makes it easier to cover a topic fully and reduce thin content.

After publishing, use SEO Reports to spot missing basics like titles, descriptions, and content gaps. Fixing those issues can help Google understand your page and may improve search performance over time.