Yesterday, Google, on its Google Search Central YouTube channel, released the latest of the #AskGooglebot series of videos. This video series consists of a number of short videos where Google’s John Mueller answers one specific question having to do with webmasters’ concerns.
For this particular video, the question was:
“All of my URLs are indexed and when I check in Google one by one, the total # of URLs is 180. But in Google SERP, only 28 URLs show. Why is that?”
So, basically, even though the original question didn’t mention the search: operator, Mueller answered as though it did (which I guess means that he supposes that the person asking this knows about the search: operator).
“The short answer to this question is that a site: query is not meant to be complete, nor used for diagnostics purposes.”
But, let’s take a step back for a second…
Search Operators: What They Are
Why did I type the word site immediately followed by a colon (:)?
That’s because site: is something known as a search operator.
A search operator is basically a filtration command added to a search query that tells Google to return results that only meet the criteria defined by that operator.
I know that’s probably a bit of a techy definition, so I think this short video might better convey what I mean.
You can use more than one operator per search query.
Alright, now that you (hopefully) know what a search operator is, let me get back to Mueller’s response.
Part of what he went on to say was, “While using this query [site:] limits the results to a specific website, it’s not meant to be a comprehensive collection of all of the pages from that website.”
A More Accurate Alternative: Google Search Console
Mueller went on to say that if a person wanted to know how many pages (or URLs) Google has indexed, the Search Console would be a better choice. (Yes, it may be faster to do a quick site: query, but as he said, Console’s a better option.)
Is Indexing an Issue for You?
If it is, this tweet may be of interest. It’s basically an announcement pertaining to support for indexing issues.
Before you can receive free updates, link building strategies or SEO tips you need to confirm your email right now.
(It’s easy)
Just go to your inbox, open the confirmation email from the SIA, and click the link.
And that’s it!
PS: If you don’t see a confirmation email, please check your spam/junk or promotions folders. Sometimes the confirmation message ends up there by mistake.
Obtenez nos 7 études S.I.A. les plus controversées qui feront trembler la tête même les SEO les plus avancés d’incrédulité.
De plus, nous vous alerterons lorsque nous publierons de nouveaux tests au public.
Obtenga nuestros 7 estudios S.I.A. más controvertidos que harán que incluso el SEO más avanzado sacuda la cabeza con incredulidad.
Además, le avisaremos cuando publiquemos nuevas pruebas al público.
Get Our Most 7 Controversial S.I.A. Studies That Will Make Even the Most Advanced SEO Shake Their Head in Disbelief.
Plus we will alert you when we publish new tests to the public.
