Google Search Essentials

1. Technical requirements: What Google needs from a web page to show it in Google Search.
Google Search technical requirements

bookmark_border

It costs nothing to get your page in search results, no matter what anyone tries to tell you.
As long as your page meets the minimum technical requirements, it's eligible to be indexed
by Google Search:

1. Googlebot isn't blocked.

2. The page works, meaning that Google receives an HTTP 200 (success) status code.

3. The page has indexable content.

Just because a page meets these requirements doesn't mean that a page will be indexed;
indexing isn't guaranteed.
Googlebot isn't blocked (it can find and access the page)
Google only indexes pages on the web that are accessible to the public and which don't
block our crawler, Googlebot, from crawling them. If a page is made private, such as
requiring a log-in to view it, Googlebot will not crawl it. Similarly, if one of the several
mechanisms are used to block Google from indexing, the page will not be indexed.
Check if Googlebot can find and access your page
Pages that are blocked by robots.txt are unlikely to show in Google Search results. To see a
list of pages that are inaccessible to Google (but that you would like to see in Search
results), use both the Page Indexing report and Crawl Stats report in Search Console. Each
report may contain different information about your URLs, so it's a good idea to look at both
reports.
To test a specific page, use the URL Inspection tool.
The page works (it's not an error page)
Google only indexes pages that are served with an HTTP 200 (success) status code. Client
and server error pages aren't indexed. You can check the HTTP status code for a given page
with the URL Inspection tool.
The page has indexable content
Once Googlebot can find and access a working page, Google checks the page for indexable
content. Indexable content means:
 The textual content is in a file type that Google Search supports.
  The content doesn't violate our spam policies.
While blocking Googlebot with a robots.txt file will prevent crawling, a page's URL might still
appear in search results. To instruct Google not to index a page, use noindex and allow Google to
crawl the URL.
2. Spam policies: Spam refers to techniques used to deceive users or manipulate our Search
systems into ranking content highly.
The behaviors and tactics that can lead to lower ranking or being completely omitted from Google
Search results.
Cloaking refers to the practice of presenting different content to users and search engines
with the intent to manipulate search rankings and mislead users.
Doorway abuse is when sites or pages are created to rank for specific, similar search
queries. They lead users to intermediate pages that are not as useful as the final
destination. Examples of doorway abuse include:
a) Having multiple websites with slight variations to the URL and home page to
maximize their reach for any specific query
b) Having multiple domain names or pages targeted at specific regions or cities that
funnel users to one page
c) Generating pages to funnel visitors into the actual usable or relevant portion of a site
d) Creating substantially similar pages that are closer to search results than a clearly
defined, browseable hierarchy
Expired domain abuse is where an expired domain name is purchased and repurposed
primarily to manipulate search rankings by hosting content that provides little to no value to
users.
Illustrative examples include, but are not limited to:
a) Affiliate content on a site previously used by a government agency
b) Commercial medical products being sold on a site previously used by a non-profit
medical charity
c) Casino-related content on a former elementary school site.
Hacked content is any content placed on a site without permission, due to vulnerabilities
in a site's security. Hacked content gives poor search results to our users and can potentially
install malicious content on their machines. Examples of hacking include:
a) Code injection: When hackers gain access to your website, they might try to inject
malicious code into existing pages on your site. This often takes the form of malicious
JavaScript injected directly into the site, or into iframes.
b) Page injection: Sometimes, due to security flaws, hackers are able to add new
pages to your site that contain spammy or malicious content. These pages are often
meant to manipulate search engines or to attempt phishing. Your existing pages
 might not show signs of hacking, but these newly-created pages could harm your
site's visitors or your site's performance in search results.
c) Content injection: Hackers might also try to subtly manipulate existing pages on
your site. Their goal is to add content to your site that search engines can see but
which may be harder for you and your users to spot. This can involve adding hidden
links or hidden text to a page by using CSS or HTML, or it can involve more complex
changes like cloaking.
d) Redirects: Hackers might inject malicious code to your website that redirects some
users to harmful or spammy pages. The kind of redirect sometimes depends on the
referrer, user agent, or device. For example, clicking a URL in Google Search results
could redirect you to a suspicious page, but there is no redirect when you visit the
same URL directly from a browser.
Hidden text or link abuse is the practice of placing content on a page in a way solely to
manipulate search engines and not to be easily viewable by human visitors. Examples of
hidden text or link abuse include:
a) Using white text on a white background
b) Hiding text behind an image
c) Using CSS to position text off-screen
d) Setting the font size or opacity to 0
e) Hiding a link by only linking one small character (for example, a hyphen in the middle
of a paragraph)
f) There are many web design elements today that utilize showing and hiding content
in a dynamic way to improve user experience; these elements don't violate our
policies:
g) Accordion or tabbed content that toggle between hiding and showing additional
content
h) Slideshow or slider that cycles between several images or text paragraphs
i) Tooltip or similar text that displays additional content when users interact with over
an element
j) Text that's only accessible to screen readers and is intended to improve the
experience for those using screen readers.

Keyword stuffing refers to the practice of filling a web page with keywords or numbers in
an attempt to manipulate rankings in Google Search results. Often these keywords appear in
a list or group, unnaturally, or out of context.
Examples of keyword stuffing include:
a) Lists of phone numbers without substantial added value
 b) Blocks of text that list cities and regions that a web page is trying to rank for
c) Repeating the same words or phrases so often that it sounds unnatural.

d) For example:
Unlimited app store credit. There are so many sites that claim to offer app store
credit for $0 but they're all fake and always mess up with users looking for unlimited
app store credits. You can get limitless credits for app store right here on this
website. Visit our unlimited app store credit page and get it today

Link spam is the practice of creating links to or from a site primarily for the purpose of
manipulating search rankings. The following are examples of link spam:
a) Buying or selling links for ranking purposes. This includes:
i. Exchanging money for links, or posts that contain links
ii. Exchanging goods or services for links
iii. Sending someone a product in exchange for them writing about it and including a link
b) Excessive link exchanges ("Link to me and I'll link to you") or partner pages
exclusively for the sake of cross-linking
c) Using automated programs or services to create links to your site

Google does understand that buying and selling links is a normal part of the economy of the
web for advertising and sponsorship purposes. It's not a violation of our policies to have
such links as long as they are qualified with a rel="nofollow" or rel="sponsored" attribute
value to the <a> tag.
Machine-generated traffic (also called automated traffic) refers to the practice of
sending automated queries to Google. This includes scraping results for rank-checking
purposes or other types of automated access to Google Search conducted without express
permission. Machine-generated traffic consumes resources and interferes with our ability to
best serve users. Such activities violate our spam policies and the Google Terms of Service.
Malware is any software or mobile application specifically designed to harm a computer, a
mobile device, the software it's running, or its users. Malware exhibits malicious behavior
that can include installing software without user consent and installing harmful software
such as viruses. Site owners sometimes don't realize that their downloadable files are
considered malware, so these binaries might be hosted inadvertently.
Unwanted software is an executable file or mobile application that engages in behavior
that is deceptive, unexpected, or that negatively affects the user's browsing or computing
experience. Examples include software that switches your home page or other browser
settings to ones you don't want, or apps that leak private and personal information without
proper disclosure.
Misleading functionality refers to the practice of intentionally creating sites that trick
users into thinking they would be able to access some content or services but in reality
can't. Examples of misleading functionality include:
a) A site with a fake generator that claims to provide app store credit but doesn't
actually provide the credit
b) A site that claims to provide certain functionality (for example, PDF merge,
countdown timer, online dictionary service), but intentionally leads users to deceptive
ads rather than providing the claimed services
Scaled content abuse is when many pages are generated for the primary purpose of
manipulating search rankings and not helping users. This abusive practice is typically
focused on creating large amounts of unoriginal content that provides little to no value to
users, no matter how it's created.
Examples of scaled content abuse include, but are not limited to:
a) Using generative AI tools or other similar tools to generate many pages without
adding value for users
b) Scraping feeds, search results, or other content to generate many pages (including
through automated transformations like synonymizing, translating, or other
obfuscation techniques), where little value is provided to users
c) Stitching or combining content from different web pages without adding value
d) Creating multiple sites with the intent of hiding the scaled nature of the content
e) Creating many pages where the content makes little or no sense to a reader but
contains search keywords
Site reputation abuse is a tactic where third-party content is published on a host site
mainly because of that host's already-established ranking signals, which it has earned
primarily from its first-party content. The goal of this tactic is for the content to rank better
than it could otherwise on its own.
Third-party content is content that's created by an entity that's separate from the
established host site. Examples of separate entities include users of that site, freelancers,
white-label services, and content created by people not employed directly by the host site.
Having third-party content alone isn't a violation of the site reputation abuse policy; it's only
a violation if the third-party content is published on a host site mainly because of that host
site's already-established ranking signals.
Examples of site reputation abuse include, but are not limited to:
a) An educational site hosting a page about sponsored reviews of payday loans written
by a third-party that distributes the same page to other sites across the web
 b) A medical site hosting a third-party advertising page about "best casinos" that
readers wouldn't expect and that's being placed on the site to rank better due to the
established site's ranking signals
c) A movie review site hosting third-party pages about topics that would be confusing to
users to find on a movie review site (such as "ways to buy followers on social media
sites", the "best fortune teller sites", and the "best essay writing services")
d) A news site hosting coupons provided by a third-party white-label service where the
main reason for publishing the coupons on the news site is to capitalize on the news
site's reputation
e) An established first party site branches out into a new area primarily using freelance
content because this content will rank better on the first-party site than it would have
otherwise
f) If you're hosting pages that violate this policy, learn how to correct this issue.
Examples that are NOT considered site reputation abuse include:
i. Wire service or press release service sites
ii. News publications that have syndicated news content from other news publications
iii. Sites designed to allow user-generated content, such as a forum website or comment
sections
iv. Columns, opinion pieces, articles, and other work of an editorial nature
v. Third-party content (for example, "advertorial" or "native advertising" type pages)
where the purpose is to share content directly to readers (such as through promotion
within the publication itself), rather than hosting the content to manipulate search
rankings
vi. Using affiliate links throughout a page, with links treated appropriately, or embedding
third-party ad units throughout a page
vii. Coupons that are sourced directly from merchants and other businesses that serve
consumers
Sneaky redirecting is the practice of doing this maliciously in order to either show users
and search engines different content or show users unexpected content that does not fulfill
their original needs.
Redirecting is the act of sending a visitor to a different URL than the one they initially
requested.
Examples of sneaky redirects include:
a) Showing search engines one type of content while redirecting users to something
significantly different
b) Showing desktop users a normal page while redirecting mobile users to a completely
different spam domain
 c) While sneaky redirection is a type of spam, there are many legitimate, non-spam
reasons to redirect one URL to another. Examples of legitimate redirects include:
d) Moving your site to a new address
e) Consolidating several pages into one
f) Redirecting users to an internal page once they are logged in

Thin affiliation is the practice of publishing content with product affiliate links where the
product descriptions and reviews are copied directly from the original merchant without any
original content or added value.
Affiliate pages can be considered thin if they are a part of a program that distributes its
content across a network of affiliates without providing additional value. These sites often
appear to be cookie-cutter sites or templates with the same or similar content replicated
within the same site or across multiple domains or languages. If a Search results page
returned several of these sites, all with the same content, thin affiliate pages would create a
frustrating user experience.
Not every site that participates in an affiliate program is a thin affiliate. Good affiliate sites
add value by offering meaningful content or features.
Examples of good affiliate pages include offering additional information about price, original
product reviews, rigorous testing and ratings, navigation of products or categories, and
product comparisons.

User-generated spam is spammy content added to a site by users through a channel

intended for user content. Often site owners are unaware of the spammy content. Examples
of spammy user-generated content include:
a) Spammy accounts on hosting services that anyone can register for
b) Spammy posts on forum threads
c) Comment spam on blogs
d) Spammy files uploaded to file hosting platforms

Legal removals
When we receive a high volume of valid copyright removal requests involving a given
site, we are able to use that to demote other content from the site in our results. This way, if
there is other infringing content, people are less likely to encounter it versus the original
content. We apply similar demotion signals to complaints involving defamation, counterfeit
goods, and court-ordered removals. In the case of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), we
always remove such content when it is identified and we demote all content from sites with
a high proportion of CSAM content.
 Personal information removals
If we process a high volume of personal information removals involving a site
with exploitative removal practices, we demote other content from the site in our
results. We also look to see if the same pattern of behavior is happening with other sites
and, if so, apply demotions to content on those sites. We may apply similar demotion
practices for sites that receive a high volume of removals of content involving doxxing
content, explicit personal imagery created or shared without consent, or explicit non-
consensual fake content.
Policy circumvention
If a site continues to engage in actions intended to bypass our spam policies or content
policies for Google Search, we may take appropriate action which may include restricting or
removing eligibility for some of our search features (for example, Top Stories, Discover) and
taking broader action in Google Search (for example, removing more sections of a site from
Search results). Circumvention includes but is not limited to:
a) Using existing or creating new subdomains, subdirectories, or sites with the intention of
continuing to violate our policies
b) Using other methods intended to continue distributing content or engaging in a behavior
that aims to violate our policies
c) Scam and fraud
d) Scam and fraud come in many forms, including but not limited to impersonating an
official business or service through imposter sites, intentionally displaying false
information about a business or service, or otherwise attracting users to a site on false
pretenses. Using automated systems, Google seeks to identify pages with scammy or
fraudulent content and prevent them from showing up in Google Search results.
Examples of online scams and fraud include:
e) Impersonating a well-known business or service provider to trick users into paying
money to the wrong party
f) Creating deceptive sites pretending to provide official customer support on behalf of a
legitimate business or provide fake contact information of such business

3. Key best practices:

The main things that can help improve how your site appears in Google Search results.
1. Create helpful, reliable, people-first content.
2. Use words that people would use to look for your content, and place those words in
prominent locations on the page, such as the title and main heading of a page, and
other descriptive locations such as alt text and link text.
3. Make your links crawlable so that Google can find other pages on your site via the
links on your page.
4. Tell people about your site. Be active in communities where you can tell like-minded
people about your services and products that you mention on your site.
5. If you have other content, such as images, videos, structured data, and JavaScript,
make sure you're following those specific best practices so that we can understand
those parts of your page too.
6. Enhance how your site appears on Google Search by enabling features that make
sense for your site.
7. If you have content that shouldn't be found in search results or you want to opt out
entirely, use the appropriate method for controlling how your content appears in
Google Search.