What does Google say about SEO?

Does the canonical tag really prevent your pages from being indexed?

Martin Splitt Jul 11, 2023 ★★★

Canonicalization examines the website owner's recommendation via the canonical tag and how the URL is linked elsewhere on the web. Shorter URLs are preferable but not mandatory. There is no difference between client-side or server-side rendered appli...

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Links & Backlinks Domain Name

Is Google really seeing your prices in US dollars by default?

John Mueller Jul 11, 2023 ★★

Google crawls predominantly from the United States. If a site changes currency based on user location, Google will primarily see prices in US dollars. To display multiple currencies in search results, you need separate URLs per currency.

Crawl & Indexing E-commerce AI & SEO Domain Name Local Search International SEO

Does the disavow tool really delete toxic backlinks from Google's index?

John Mueller Jul 11, 2023 ★★

The link disavow tool tells Google not to count links for ranking, but it doesn't remove them from the web or from Google's systems. Links from foreign language websites are perfectly acceptable and can be ignored if they're spammy.

AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Links & Backlinks Pagination & Structure Penalties & Spam International SEO

How can you create unique content for identical products without falling into duplicate content traps?

Martin Splitt Jul 11, 2023 ★★

To make a product page unique when sold by multiple vendors, you need to offer your own perspective: a genuine review, a product test, or useful information beyond the manufacturer's text and specifications.

Domain Age & History Content E-commerce AI & SEO

Do you really need to worry about a high volume of 404 errors on your site?

Gary Illyes Jul 11, 2023 ★★★

A large quantity of 404 pages in Google Search Console has no negative effect on the ranking of normal pages with 200 status.

Domain Age & History Search Console

Do Google's quality raters really affect your site's search rankings?

Martin Splitt Jul 11, 2023 ★★★

Quality raters examine individual sites but do not modify rankings in real-time. Google regularly uses their responses to evaluate changes, but they do not directly impact search result rankings.

AI & SEO

How long does Google actually remember old URLs after a site migration?

John Mueller Jul 11, 2023 ★★

Google's systems can remember old URLs for a very long time after a migration. This isn't a problem as long as the old URLs redirect correctly. You generally cannot erase them from Google's memory; they disappear progressively over time.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name Redirects

Is mobile-first indexing really the standard for every website on the web?

John Mueller Jul 11, 2023 ★★★

Almost all websites are now crawled and indexed with their mobile version. To verify, check the crawl statistics in Search Console. If the smartphone Googlebot is the most common crawler type, it's confirmed.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Mobile SEO Search Console

Is the .ai domain really being treated as a gTLD by Google?

Gary Illyes Jul 11, 2023 ★★

Since early June 2023, Google treats the .ai domain as a gTLD (generic top-level domain) in Google Search, not as a ccTLD for Anguilla. It can therefore be used for a global presence.

AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name International SEO

Why does Google treat hreflang and canonical tags as two completely separate mechanisms?

Martin Splitt Jul 11, 2023 ★★★

With hreflang, you tell Google that pages are identical but in different languages or regions. Canonicalization then selects the main URL in the index. Other URLs can appear in search results depending on the user's language and region.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO Domain Name International SEO

Should you really verify each subdomain separately in Search Console?

John Mueller Jul 11, 2023 ★★

Subdomains and subdirectories can be verified separately in Search Console. If the main domain is verified, you can add these sub-sections without additional verification. Data can take a few days to appear.

AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name Search Console

Should you really mark every affiliate link with rel=nofollow or rel=sponsored?

John Mueller Jul 11, 2023 ★★★

Affiliate sites are acceptable. There is no special structured data to signal that a site is affiliate-based. Affiliate links must be marked with rel=nofollow or rel=sponsored so that search engines know these are affiliate links.

AI & SEO Links & Backlinks Pagination & Structure

Does cutting your indexed pages really boost SEO, or is it just a myth?

John Mueller Jul 11, 2023 ★★★

For large sites, reducing indexable pages from 8 to 2 million doesn't guarantee improvement. You need to focus on genuinely improving overall site quality, not just cutting page count. Check the crawl budget guide for large sites.

Domain Age & History Crawl & Indexing

Is Google really switching from FID to INP in Core Web Vitals — and should you worry?

John Mueller Jul 05, 2023 ★★★

Interaction to Next Paint (INP) will become a core component of Core Web Vitals and replace First Input Delay (FID) in March 2024. INP data is already available in Search Console to enable preparation.

AI & SEO Web Performance Search Console

Are Core Web Vitals Really Not Enough to Guarantee a Good User Experience?

John Mueller Jul 05, 2023 ★★★

Excellent page experience involves much more than Core Web Vitals alone. While good experience aligns with what ranking systems seek to reward, many other elements are involved. A holistic approach is recommended.

Domain Age & History Web Performance

Should you really stop using the ping endpoint to submit your sitemaps?

John Mueller Jul 05, 2023 ★★

Google announced the upcoming deprecation of the ping endpoint for sitemaps, scheduled for the end of 2023, because the data received was not particularly useful. Sitemaps can still be submitted via Search Console and robots.txt.

Crawl & Indexing AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Search Console

Is Google's new spam report really a game-changer for SEOs?

John Mueller Jul 05, 2023 ★★

The spam report has been redesigned and anti-spam policies in Search Essentials (formerly Webmaster Guidelines) have been updated to make it easier to report problematic search results.

Domain Age & History AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Penalties & Spam Search Console

Should you rethink your domain strategy now that .ai has become a generic ccTLD?

John Mueller Jul 05, 2023 ★

Google has changed how it treats the .ai top-level domain in Google Search. It is now considered a generic country code top-level domain (generic ccTLD).

AI & SEO JavaScript & Technical SEO Domain Name International SEO

Do Core Web Vitals Really Impact Your Content's Search Rankings?

John Mueller Jul 05, 2023 ★★★

Google has clarified how Core Web Vitals are used in its helpful content ranking system. It is recommended to consult the blog and documentation for all the details.

Content AI & SEO PDF & Files Web Performance

Is mobile-friendliness really no longer a Google ranking factor?

John Mueller Jul 05, 2023 ★★★

Google is removing mobile-friendliness as a ranking factor because most sites are now mobile-optimized. The mobile usability report and mobile-friendly testing tool will be removed from Search Console by the end of 2023.

AI & SEO Mobile SEO Search Console