Key Takeaways
- What the report shows: the number of indexed and unindexed pages, and for the latter, the reason (error, intentional exclusion, Google's decision).
- Reading instructions: Not all unindexed pages are a problem; redirects, pages intentionally marked as "noindex," and canonical duplicates are normal.
- Issues to be addressed: "Crawled, currently not indexed," "Detected, currently not indexed," "Not found (404)," "Soft 404," "Blocked by robots.txt" if not intended.
- The method: Export, sort pages by reason and severity, correct, and confirm the corrections in the report.
The report Pages of the Google Search Console, the "Indexing" section, answers the fundamental question of SEO: Which pages on my site are in Google's index, and why aren't the others there? It’s often misinterpreted: a large number of “unindexed” pages can cause alarm, even though most are normal exclusions, while the real problems go unnoticed. This article explains the report’s structure, each reason, its severity, and how to fix it.
The Structure of the Report
The top graph shows the trend in indexed (green) and non-indexed (gray) pages over 90 days, along with the number of impressions. Below that is a list of reasons for non-indexing, each with the number of URLs, the source (website or Google), and the trend. A filter allows you to restrict the view to URLs in the sitemap, which isolates the pages you want to index from unwanted URLs. The report updates with a few days’ delay, and the URL lists are capped at 1,000 per reason.
The reasons, their significance, and their severity
| Reason | Meaning | Gravity | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Explored, currently not indexed | Google has crawled the page and chosen not to index it: the content was deemed poor, duplicated, or of little value | High if there are many pages | Enrich the content, make it unique, and add internal links; see internal linking |
| Detected, currently not indexed | Google knows the URL but hasn't crawled it yet (crawl budget, low priority) | Average | Internal links from high-traffic pages, an up-to-date sitemap, patience; if the site is too large, reduce unnecessary URLs |
| Page Not Found (404) | Page Deleted or Incorrect URL | High if the page received traffic or links | 301 redirect to the equivalent page, or leave it as a 404 if it has no value; see HTTP codes |
| Soft 404 | The page returns a 200 status code, but Google considers it empty or “not found” (empty search results, out-of-stock product with no content) | Average | Return a true 404 or 410, or add content |
| Page with a redirect | The URL redirects to another page | Normal | Nothing, except for redirect chains that need to be shortened |
| Excluded by the noindex tag | You have requested that this page not be indexed | Normal if voluntary | Check to make sure that no important pages are set to "noindex" by mistake; see noindex |
| Blocked by the robots.txt file | Exploration is prohibited | Normal if voluntary, high otherwise | Fix the robots.txt file if useful pages are blocked |
| Duplicate page; Google has selected a different canonical page | Google considers the page to be a duplicate and indexes another one | Low to moderate | Verify that the selected canonical URL is correct; otherwise, distinguish between the contents |
| Duplicate page with no canonical URL selected by the user | Duplicate pages without a canonical tag | Average | Add a canonical tag; see duplicate content |
| Another page with a correct canonical tag | The page points to a canonical URL, as expected | Normal | Nothing |
| Blocked due to unauthorized access (403) or another 4xx error | The server is blocking Googlebot | High | Firewall, anti-bot protection, authentication to be fixed |
| Server Error (5xx) | The server failed during the scan | So frequently high | Hosting, resources, plugins |
| URL unknown to Google / not submitted | Sitemap URL that has never been seen, or has been seen but is not in the sitemap | Low | An up-to-date and consistent sitemap |
| Page Indexed Despite Being Blocked by robots.txt | Google indexes the URL without content because of links | Low | Use "noindex" instead of robots.txt to de-index |
The Five-Step Method
- Filter by sitemap URLs so that you only include the pages you want to index. URLs not included in the sitemap (parameters, archives, tags) should often be excluded anyway.
- Export each significant reason (Crawled but not indexed, Detected but not indexed, 404, Soft 404, robots.txt, 403/5xx) in a spreadsheet.
- Cross-reference with the value : past traffic (GA4), inbound links (Links report), page role (service, category, guide). A “crawled, unindexed” service page is a priority; an old news article is not.
- Batch Correct Depending on the cause: content and linking for “crawled but not indexed” pages, redirects for 404 errors, settings for robots.txt and noindex, and server settings for 5xx errors.
- Confirm: Test a few URLs using the URL inspection tool (“Test URL Online,” then “Request Indexing”), and review the reason in the report; the “Confirm Correction” button initiates a follow-up period of two to four weeks. The best time to click is explained in Confirm the correction: When to click.
The "Explored, Currently Unindexed" Case
This is the most concerning and most common issue on content sites: Google has crawled the page but did not deem it worthy of inclusion in the index. Common causes include: short or generic content (product listings without descriptions, 300-word articles, duplicate city pages), content that is very similar to other pages on the site or the web, orphaned or deep-level pages, or a site whose overall quality is deemed low. The fix is editorial: enrich the content with unique information, merge similar pages, link to them from strong pages, and remove pages with no value to concentrate on quality. After corrections are made, reindexing takes anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. This is exactly the work that led to the redesign of these resources; the complete method is in The Comprehensive SEO Audit.
Read the Trends
- A sudden drop in the number of indexed pages indicates a technical issue (accidental use of "noindex," robots.txt, 5xx errors): check it the same day.
- An increase in "unindexed pages" following a large-scale update is normal and will resolve itself within a few weeks if the pages are linked.
- An increase in "crawled but not indexed" pages indicates a quality issue: Google is deindexing low-quality pages.
- If the number of indexed pages is significantly higher than the number of useful pages, this indicates the presence of "spam" URLs (parameters, filters, archives) that should be canonicalized or blocked.
How GreenRed Can Help You
Instead of juggling multiple tools, the Health module on the GreenRed website brings these metrics together in a single dashboard, compares them over time, and shows you which actions to prioritize. You can try it for free—no credit card required—on the page Rates.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many unindexed pages is considered normal?
There is no threshold: a site can have more unindexed pages than indexed ones without any issues, as long as they are redirects, pages intentionally marked as “noindex,” or canonical duplicates. Look at the reasons, filtered by the sitemap: only the pages you want to index but aren’t currently indexed matter.
What should I do if a page is marked as "Crawled, currently not indexed"?
Improve the page: unique and comprehensive content, information not found on other pages, internal links from high-ranking pages, then request indexing via the URL Inspection tool. If the page has no value on its own, merge it with another page or delete it: fewer, higher-quality pages index better.
How long does a reindexing take?
After submitting a request via the URL Inspection tool, it takes anywhere from a few hours to a few days for important pages, and up to several weeks for deep-level pages. The Pages report is updated with a delay of a few days. The validation of a bulk fix is monitored for approximately 28 days.
Should you block a page using robots.txt or set "noindex" to have it removed from the index?
Noindex. The robots.txt file prevents crawling, so Google does not see the noindex tag and may keep the URL indexed even without content if links point to it. To remove a page from the index: leave it crawlable with a noindex tag, then block it once it has been deindexed.