IndexNow
Where you see it: Bing Webmaster Tools → IndexNow
IndexNow is an open protocol for telling search engines that a URL was added, changed or deleted, so they don’t wait for a recrawl to notice. Your site sends the URL once and every participating engine gets it: Microsoft Bing, Yandex, Naver, Seznam.cz and Yep, but not Google. The IndexNow page in Bing Webmaster Tools lists what your site submitted and whether Bing then crawled and indexed it.
Switch it on once, through one plugin. Act only when submissions fail.
Bing still finds pages through sitemaps and links, so nothing is broken without it. Bing does recommend IndexNow over its older URL Submission API, and one plugin setting turns it on. Come back when your plugin’s log fills with 403 or 429.
Check the URL Bing Webmaster Tools listed
IndexNow only announces changes; Bing learns the rest of your URLs from your sitemap. Paste its address, such as https://example.com/sitemap_index.xml, to check it is the clean list Bing needs next to IndexNow.
Sitemap report
Enter a sitemap URL to validate it and spot-check the URLs it lists.
Reading the result
- A sample row flagged noindex (“a sitemap should list only indexable URLs”): those URLs shouldn’t go to IndexNow either. Microsoft’s plugin and Rank Math skip noindex pages.
- A sample row reading “Redirects to …”: Bing’s IndexNow report groups these as redirect issues. List and submit the final address.
- robots.txt: Does not list this sitemap. Add a Sitemap: line, which Bing asks for.
- Sitemap has errors: fix the file before tuning IndexNow. IndexNow covers today’s edits, and the sitemap is how Bing catches older pages.
The same tool with its full guide: Sitemap Checker
Why it happens on WordPress
WordPress core sends nothing to IndexNow. A plugin or your CDN does the submitting, and most IndexNow trouble on WordPress comes from how that add-on is set up.
Nothing is submitting at all
Free Yoast SEO has no IndexNow; it is a Yoast SEO Premium feature, on by default there. Rank Math’s Instant Indexing is a module you enable, and in All in One SEO it is an addon for the paid Pro version.
Two integrations announcing the same edit
Yoast Premium, Rank Math, Microsoft’s plugin and Cloudflare Crawler Hints each submit on their own. Enable two and every update goes out twice. IndexNow’s FAQ says each submitted URL counts toward your crawl quota, and 429 is its answer to over-submitting.
A key file Bing can’t open
IndexNow proves the site is yours by fetching a text file named after your key, such as https://example.com/1a2b3c4d.txt, holding that key. Rank Math serves the file on the fly rather than writing it to disk, so a firewall rule that blocks the request hides it, and every submission returns 403.
A key that changed after a reinstall
Microsoft’s plugin makes a fresh key when you deactivate and reactivate it, as does Rank Math’s Change Key button. An old key file left in the web root, or a migrated site serving the previous one, stops matching.
Cloudflare guessing edits from cache misses
Crawler Hints decides a page changed when Cloudflare sees a cache MISS, not when WordPress saves a post. It is one switch for the whole site, skips 4xx and 5xx responses, and keeps running alongside any WordPress plugin you also use.
How to fix it
Pick one integration, prove its key loads, then leave it running.
1. Find out what is already submitting
Check each place IndexNow can be switched on before installing anything.
- Yoast SEO Premium: the IndexNow switch under Yoast SEO → Settings → Site features.
- Rank Math: the Instant Indexing module under Rank Math SEO → Dashboard → Modules.
- SEOPress: SEO → Instant Indexing, “Enable automatic URL submission for IndexNow API” on the Settings tab.
- All in One SEO Pro: IndexNow in the Feature Manager. Cloudflare: Caching → Configuration → Crawler Hints.
2. Keep one and turn the others off
Use your SEO plugin’s IndexNow if it has one. Otherwise install IndexNow from WordPress.org, published by Bing Webmaster Tools; it needs no Bing account. Retire the older Bing URL Submissions plugin: Bing says that API may be deprecated as IndexNow spreads.
3. Open the key file in a browser
Copy the key from your plugin and load https://example.com/your-key.txt in a private window. You should see the key as plain text and nothing else.
- Rank Math: Instant Indexing → IndexNow API Settings has Check Key and Change Key, visible in Advanced Mode. If the check fails, upload a file named after the key, containing only the key, to the web root.
- Microsoft’s plugin: deactivate and reactivate it for a new key.
- Elsewhere: the key is 8 to 128 letters, numbers or hyphens in a UTF-8 file at the root. A file anywhere else on the host must be named in keyLocation.
4. Read the codes in your plugin’s log
Rank Math’s History tab and the recent submissions list in Microsoft’s plugin show the code returned for each URL. The table below translates them.
5. Narrow what gets submitted
Send only URLs you want in search: not attachment pages, thin tag archives, cart or checkout pages. In Rank Math pick the post types under Auto-Submit Post Types; in Microsoft’s plugin add paths such as /tag/ to its exclusions, which take wildcards.
6. Verify the site to see the report
IndexNow works without an account, but Bing shows the IndexNow report only for a verified site. Importing from Google Search Console verifies your sites in one step.
What each IndexNow response means on WordPress
IndexNow’s documentation says a 200 only confirms the engine received the URL. Crawling and indexing are decided afterwards, by each engine.
| Code | What IndexNow says | Usual WordPress cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200 | URL submitted | Working | Nothing |
| 202 | Received, key validation pending | A new key | Test the key file if it never turns into 200 |
| 403 | Key not valid: file missing or key not in it | Key file blocked, deleted or replaced | Load the file; change the key |
| 422 | URL not on this host | URLs on a different host from the key, such as www and non-www mixed | Use one host for WordPress Address and Site Address in Settings → General |
| 429 | Too many requests | Two integrations, or a bulk edit | Keep one; pause auto-submit during bulk edits |
Check the fix in Bing Webmaster Tools
There is no Validate button here. Follow one URL from your plugin to Bing’s report.
- Update a post, then find it in your plugin’s log with a 200 or 202.
- In Bing Webmaster Tools, open IndexNow. The URL should be among recently submitted URLs, with its source: a CMS plugin, Cloudflare or manual.
- Select it for crawl status, index status and first indexed time. A “Late submission” flag means Bing indexed it through another channel first, such as your sitemap.
- Check the list of important URLs Bing indexed in the last seven days without IndexNow. Those are pages your setup missed.
Bing states that IndexNow doesn’t guarantee a crawl or a place in the index. It gets a changed URL seen sooner; the page still has to earn indexing.
Can RankHive fix this?
No. RankHive doesn’t submit to IndexNow, hold a key or read Bing Webmaster Tools, so IndexNow stays with your SEO plugin, Microsoft’s plugin or Cloudflare.
What it writes, once you approve
- A Sitemap: line in the robots.txt WordPress generates, so Bing finds your sitemap. A physical robots.txt file in the site root replaces that output.
- Changes to posts and pages. Whether your IndexNow plugin announces them depends on that plugin; check its log.
What it can’t do here
- Submit URLs to IndexNow or ping any search engine.
- Create or change an IndexNow key file.
- Read the IndexNow report or any other Bing Webmaster Tools data.
- Turn IndexNow on in your SEO plugin, or change Cloudflare settings.
- Generate, edit or submit your XML sitemap.
Every change is drafted next to the current value and waits for your approval. Each one written is logged in the Change Log, with Revert.
Check the rest of your site while you’re here
The free site check reads your public pages for titles, meta descriptions, headings, canonical tags and schema, and shows what needs fixing. If you sign up, RankHive reads your Google Search Console data every week, drafts the fixes, and writes the ones you approve to WordPress. Nothing changes on your site until you say yes.
Related issues
- URL cannot appear on BingAct if pages you want in Bing show it. A new site may only need time.
- Title too longFix the template first, then titles on pages that get visits.
- Sitemap could not be readFix it if the file is broken; give a new submission a few days.
- Discovered – currently not indexedGive new posts time; act when posts you care about stay stuck.
Common questions
Does Google use IndexNow?
No. Google isn’t on indexnow.org’s list of participating engines, and Yoast’s IndexNow explainer says the same. For Google, rely on your sitemap in Search Console and Request indexing in URL Inspection.
Do I need Bing Webmaster Tools to use IndexNow?
No. The key file proves ownership, and a submission to any IndexNow endpoint is shared with every participating engine. You need a verified site only to see what Bing did with the URLs.
Does IndexNow replace my XML sitemap?
No. IndexNow announces changes as they happen and isn’t meant for older ones. Bing still reads your sitemap to find every URL.
Why does my IndexNow log say 403?
Because Bing couldn’t confirm your key. The file named after it is missing, blocked or holds a different key. Open it in a browser; if the key doesn’t show, regenerate it or upload the file to the site root.
Should deleted or redirected pages be submitted?
Yes. IndexNow’s FAQ asks for redirected URLs and pages that now return 404 or 410. Yoast Premium, SEOPress and AIOSEO send a notice when you delete a post.
Sources
Checked against these pages on .