Definition

IndexNow

Updated Feb 6, 2025

Definition

IndexNow is a protocol that lets you notify participating search engines when URLs change so they can crawl and update them faster.

Plain English

Instead of waiting days or weeks for crawlers, you ping search engines when you publish or update a page.

Why it matters

  • Speeds discovery and refresh for participating engines.
  • Helps when you ship lots of updates (docs, changelogs, product pages).
  • It's not a ranking trick, it's a freshness pipeline.