--- title: "Excluded by 'noindex' tag: what it means and how to fix it" description: "Google found a noindex rule on your page and skipped it. See when \"Excluded by 'noindex' tag\" is fine, where stray noindex rules hide, and how to remove them." canonical: "https://indexmysite.app/excluded-by-noindex-tag" language: "en" --- # Excluded by noindex tag: find the tag and remove it if the page should rank Your page tells Google not to index it. Often that is on purpose. Here is how to tell intended exclusions from mistakes, where a stray noindex usually hides, and how to get the page back into Google. [Check a page for noindex](#check)[Submit fixed pages](https://app.indexmysite.app/signup) ## What the status means In the Page indexing report, "Excluded by 'noindex' tag" means Google crawled the page, found a noindex rule in a meta tag or an HTTP header, and did not index it. Google crawled the page Google could fetch the page. Access was not the problem, which is how it found the noindex. The page asked to be left out A robots meta tag or an X-Robots-Tag header said noindex, and Google followed it. It is often intended Google says that if you do not want the page indexed, there is nothing to fix. It only matters for pages that should rank. Definition from Google's [Page indexing report help page](https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/7440203). ## Why a page has a noindex tag Some exclusions are deliberate. The rest are usually a setting, a header, or a template that does more than you meant. - You meant to exclude it Thank-you pages, internal search results, account pages, staging copies, and thin tag archives are often marked noindex on purpose. Leave these alone. - A noindex was left over from staging Many teams block search engines on a staging site, then launch with the same setting still on. One leftover rule can exclude the whole site. - A setting in your site builder or SEO settings A "hide from search engines" checkbox, a per-page visibility option, or a rule that adds noindex to certain page types. It is easy to switch on and forget. - An X-Robots-Tag header nobody remembers noindex can also be sent as an HTTP response header from the server, a proxy, or a hosting rule. It does not show up in the page source, only in the response headers. - JavaScript added the tag Scripts can add or change the robots meta tag after the page loads. A script that adds noindex on a slow or failed data request can exclude a good page. - A template-wide mistake A shared layout or a condition in your code puts noindex on every blog post, every product, or every page in a folder, not just the one you meant. ## Check the page for a noindex rule Paste the URL from Search Console. The free checker looks for noindex in the robots meta tags and the X-Robots-Tag header, and checks whether robots.txt blocks Googlebot from the page. Use the free indexability checker at /tools/indexability. Enter a public page address and it reports whether the site lets Google visit the page, whether the page carries a noindex setting or points to another page as the original, and whether the content is thin, repeated, or unclear. It does not tell you whether Google has indexed the page. ## How to remove a noindex tag First decide whether the page belongs in Google. If it does, remove the noindex where it is set, confirm Google can see the change, and submit the URL last. 1. 1 Decide if the page should be in Google If the page is a thank-you page, internal search result, login, or staging copy, the status is correct. Only keep going for pages that should rank. 2. 2 Find where the noindex comes from Search the page source for a robots or googlebot meta tag containing "noindex". Then check the response headers for X-Robots-Tag. Check both, because either one is enough to exclude the page. 3. 3 Remove it at the source Turn off the setting, fix the template, or remove the header rule on the server. If many URLs are affected, look for a shared cause before fixing pages one by one. 4. 4 Do not rely on JavaScript to remove it Google may skip running scripts when it sees noindex in the original HTML. If you want the page indexed, the noindex must not be in the HTML the server sends. 5. 5 Make sure robots.txt does not block the page Google has to crawl the page to see that the noindex is gone. If robots.txt blocks the URL, Google cannot fetch the updated page. 6. 6 Run a live test in URL Inspection In Search Console, inspect the URL and click Test live URL. Under Indexing allowed, it should no longer report noindex. 7. 7 Then submit the URL Request indexing in URL Inspection, or submit the URL with Index My Site so Googlebot crawls the page again and sees it without the noindex. ## When submitting helps, and when it will not Google only notices that the noindex is gone when it crawls the page again. Submitting gets that crawl to happen. It cannot override a noindex that is still there. It helps when - You removed the meta tag or header and the live test shows indexing is allowed - You fixed a template or setting and many pages are now indexable - You launched from staging and removed a site-wide noindex - The page is important and Google rarely visits it It will not help when - The noindex is still in the HTML or the response headers - The noindex is only removed by JavaScript after the page loads - robots.txt blocks the URL, so Google cannot see the change - The page is meant to stay out of Google, like a thank-you or search page When you submit a URL, we check it first and skip redirects, noindex pages, robots.txt blocks, error pages, and pages that point to another page as the original, without charging. Then we help Googlebot discover and crawl it and search Google for the exact URL after 24 hours, again around days 3 and 7 if it is not found yet, with a full report around day 5and final checks around day 14. A URL confirmed as not indexed gets its standard credit back. Google still decides what it indexes. See [Submitting URLs](https://indexmysite.app/docs/submitting-urls) for the details. ## noindex vs robots.txt They do different jobs. noindex controls whether a page appears in search results. robots.txt controls whether Google crawls it. noindex compared with robots.txt | Question | Blocked by robots.txt | Excluded by 'noindex' tag | | --- | --- | --- | | What it controls | Crawling: whether Googlebot may fetch the URL | Indexing: whether Google may show the page in search results | | Where it is set | One robots.txt file at the root of the host, such as example.com/robots.txt | A robots meta tag in the page head, or an X-Robots-Tag HTTP response header | | Can Google see the page? | No. Google does not fetch it, so it cannot read the content or any noindex on it | Yes. Google has to crawl the page to find the noindex | | Can the URL still appear in results? | Yes. If other pages link to it, Google can index the URL without its content, usually with little or no description | No. Once Google sees the noindex, it drops the page from search results | | Use it when | You want to stop Google spending crawls on URLs such as endless filter or parameter pages | You want a page kept out of Google search results | ## Other Page indexing statuses Each reason in the report needs a different fix. Find the one Search Console shows you. [ ### Discovered - currently not indexed Google found the URL but has not crawled it yet. ](https://indexmysite.app/discovered-currently-not-indexed)[ ### Crawled - currently not indexed Google crawled the page and chose not to index it for now. ](https://indexmysite.app/crawled-currently-not-indexed)[ ### Duplicate without user-selected canonical The page does not name a main version, so Google picked another URL as the original. ](https://indexmysite.app/duplicate-without-user-selected-canonical)[ ### Duplicate, Google chose different canonical than user The page names itself as the main version, but Google picked another URL instead. ](https://indexmysite.app/duplicate-google-chose-different-canonical-than-user)[ ### Alternate page with proper canonical tag The page points to another page as the main version, and Google agreed. ](https://indexmysite.app/alternate-page-with-proper-canonical-tag)[ ### Soft 404 The page loads, but Google thinks it looks like an error or empty page. ](https://indexmysite.app/soft-404)[ ### Blocked by robots.txt Your robots.txt file stops Googlebot from crawling the page. ](https://indexmysite.app/blocked-by-robots-txt)[ ### Page with redirect The URL redirects to another page, so Google does not index this URL. ](https://indexmysite.app/page-with-redirect) ## Tools for getting pages indexed [ ### Every Page indexing status What each reason in the report means, whether it needs fixing, and whether submitting helps. ](https://indexmysite.app/page-indexing-report)[ ### Free indexability checker The full checker page, with notes on what each result means and what to do next. ](https://indexmysite.app/tools/indexability)[ ### Indexing API Submit fixed pages from your own code with one API key and track each one until it is indexed. ](https://indexmysite.app/indexing-api)[ ### Automatic indexing Submit pages every time you publish or fix them, from your sitemap, your deploy, or your agent. ](https://indexmysite.app/automatic-indexing) ## Frequently asked questions ### What does "Excluded by 'noindex' tag" mean? When Google tried to index the page, it found a noindex rule and did not index it. Google says that if you do not want the page indexed, there is nothing to fix. If you do want it indexed, you have to remove the noindex. Source: [Google Search Console Help: Page indexing report](https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/7440203) ### Is it a problem? Only if the page should be in Google. For thank-you pages, internal search results, account pages, and staging copies, this status means your setup works. Check the list for pages that should rank, such as product pages, blog posts, and your home page. ### Where can a noindex rule be set? In a robots meta tag in the page head, for example , or a googlebot meta tag that applies only to Google. It can also come from an X-Robots-Tag: noindex HTTP response header, which does not appear in the page source. Google does not support noindex in robots.txt. Source: [Google Search Central: Block Search indexing with noindex](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/block-indexing) ### I removed the noindex. Why is the page still excluded? Google has to crawl the page again to see the change, and that can take a while for pages Google visits rarely. Run a live test in URL Inspection to confirm the noindex is gone, then request indexing. If a script removes the tag, Google may never run it, so take noindex out of the HTML your server sends. Also check that robots.txt does not block the URL, or Google cannot fetch the updated page. Source: [Google Search Central: Block Search indexing with noindex](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/block-indexing) ### Should I use robots.txt or noindex to keep a page out of Google? Use noindex. robots.txt controls crawling, not indexing, and a blocked URL can still appear in results if other pages link to it. Do not combine them on the same page: if robots.txt blocks the URL, Google never sees the noindex. Source: [Google Search Central: Introduction to robots.txt](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/robots/intro) ### What does Index My Site do with a submitted URL? We check the page for redirects, noindex tags, robots.txt blocks, and error pages first. A URL that still has a noindex rule is skipped without charging, so fix it before you submit. Then we help Googlebot discover and crawl the page. We check every URL once after 24 hours. Your full report follows around day 5, with final checks around day 14. If Google has not indexed the URL at the final check, the standard credit comes back. ### What does it cost? Each sent URL costs 1 credit, which is $0.20, or $0.10 on purchases of $1,000 or more. URLs skipped before sending, including pages that still have a noindex rule, are not charged. ## Removed the noindex? Get Google to crawl the page again Submit fixed pages from the web app, the API, the CLI, or your AI agent. Credits start at $25. [Submit fixed pages](https://app.indexmysite.app/signup) [See pricing](https://indexmysite.app/pricing)