Noindex
Noindex is a rule on a web page, set either as a robots meta tag in the page's code or as a header your server sends, that tells search engines not to list that page. Google says that when its crawler finds the rule, it drops the page from Google Search results entirely, even if other sites link to it.
Source: Google Search Central, Block Search indexing with noindex, checked October 29, 2026
What Noindex means for your business
The rule only works if Google can read it. Google's guide says that if your robots.txt file blocks the page, the crawler never sees the noindex, and the page can still show up in results when other pages link to it. To get a page out, let Google crawl it and leave the noindex on.
The opposite mistake is a noindex nobody meant to leave on. Google notes that site builders like Wix and WordPress may set it on a search engine settings page instead of in the code. That makes it easy to leave on after a redesign without anyone noticing. Search Console's Page Indexing report lists the pages where Google found the rule, and we'd look down that list for any service page or post you meant people to find.
Google lists noindex among the controls for its AI features, and Apple says a noindexed page won't appear in Spotlight or Siri Suggestions. If pages you care about aren't showing up in search at all, finding what's keeping them out is an early job for us.
Last reviewed October 29, 2026. All terms
How AI answers it today
On October 29, 2026, Google's AI Overview cited Google's own guide alongside Wikipedia, Reddit, YouTube and SEO sites. ChatGPT cited nothing, and both warned that a robots.txt block hides the noindex from Google.
Our run through ChatGPT and Google's AI Overview, October 29, 2026. A sample, not what every buyer sees.
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