IndexNow
TL;DR
IndexNow lets you ping search engines the instant you publish or update content — no waiting for the next crawl. Supported by Bing, Yandex, and others.
Explain Simply
Normally, Google and Bing visit your site on their own schedule, like a mail carrier. IndexNow is like calling them and saying 'Hey, I have new mail ready!' so they come pick it up right away.
IndexNow is a protocol that lets websites instantly notify search engines when content changes, instead of waiting for crawl. Supported by Bing, Yandex, Naver. Google hasn't officially adopted it but is experimenting.
Implementation is simple: host a key file at your domain root, then send a POST/GET request to the IndexNow API with the changed URL and your key. Many CMS platforms (WordPress, Wix) have built-in IndexNow support.
IndexNow is particularly valuable for time-sensitive content: news articles, product launches, price changes, and event pages. It also reduces unnecessary crawling — search engines know exactly which pages changed, saving your server resources.
⚡Why It Matters
IndexNow helps new or updated content appear in the index faster — especially important for news, new products, and urgent SEO fixes. Bing reports that IndexNow-enabled sites see content indexed within minutes instead of days.
🔍How AiSEO Checks
AiSEO detects IndexNow key files and meta tags, checks if the /indexnow endpoint is functional.
AiSEO Score Impact
Up to 2 points in the Common Files category (10% of total score)
Fix Difficulty
Editor: N/A | Developer: Easy | AI Agent: Easy