Check if search engines can crawl your website
If Google can't crawl a page, it can't rank it. It doesn't matter how good the content is or how many backlinks it has. The BlogDada website crawler checker shows you, in plain language, whether search engine crawlers can reach a page, whether they are allowed to index it, and what to fix if something is standing in the way.
Enter any public URL, choose a crawler such as Googlebot smartphone, Bingbot or OpenAI's GPTBot, and click Check URL. The tool fetches the page using that crawler's user agent, follows redirects, reads your robots.txt file, looks for noindex instructions in the HTML and HTTP headers, checks your canonical tag, and finds your sitemap. You get one clear verdict at the top and a simple checklist underneath.
It is free, needs no account, and is built for bloggers, SEO professionals, developers and business owners who want a fast answer to the question every site owner eventually asks: "Why isn't this page showing up on Google?"
What is a website crawler?
A website crawler, also called a spider or bot, is a program that search engines use to discover pages on the internet. Google's crawler is called Googlebot, Microsoft's is Bingbot, and AI companies run their own crawlers, such as GPTBot and ClaudeBot. They start from pages they already know, follow the links on those pages, and download each new page they find.
Search engines work in three main stages:
- Crawling: the crawler requests the page from your server and downloads the HTML, along with the CSS, JavaScript and images it needs.
- Rendering: the search engine processes the page, runs JavaScript, and works out what a visitor would actually see.
- Indexing: the search engine decides whether to store the page in its index, the huge database it uses to answer searches.
A problem at any stage stops a page from ranking. The first two problems are the easiest to miss because nothing looks wrong when you open the page in your own browser. A website crawler checker lets you see the page the way a bot does.
How to use the website crawler checker
- Enter a URLPaste the full address of the page you want to test, such as
https://example.com/blog/my-post. If you leave outhttps://, the tool adds it for you. - Choose a crawlerGooglebot smartphone is the best default, because Google now crawls and indexes almost every site with its mobile crawler. Switch to Bingbot or GPTBot to see how other bots are treated.
- Run the checkClick Check URL. In a few seconds the tool fetches the page, your robots.txt file and your sitemap, then builds the report.
- Fix what's flaggedStart with red items, since they stop crawling or indexing completely. Orange items are warnings that can slow down indexing or send ranking signals to the wrong URL.
What the crawler checker tests
Each check in the report maps to a real reason a page might fail to get crawled or indexed.
| Check | What it means | Good result |
|---|---|---|
| HTTP status code | The response your server gives the crawler. | 200 OK |
| Redirect chain | Every hop between the URL you entered and the final page. | No redirects, or a single 301 |
| HTTPS | Whether the page loads securely. | Final URL uses https:// |
| robots.txt | Whether a Disallow rule blocks this crawler from the path. | Allowed |
| Meta robots | Page-level instructions such as noindex or nofollow in the HTML. | No noindex |
| X-Robots-Tag | The same instructions sent in the HTTP header. | No noindex |
| Canonical tag | The URL you tell search engines is the main version. | Points to itself |
| Sitemap | Whether crawlers can find your XML sitemap. | Listed in robots.txt or at /sitemap.xml |
| Response time | How long the server took to answer. | Under 1 second |
| Title, description, text and links | Whether the raw HTML contains content and links a crawler can read. | Present without JavaScript |
Crawlable vs. indexable: why both matter
These two words are often used as if they mean the same thing, but they don't. Crawlable means a search engine is allowed to visit the page and download it. Indexable means it is also allowed to store the page and show it in search results.
A page blocked in robots.txt is not crawlable. Google won't download it, although it can still index the bare URL if other sites link to it. A page with a noindex meta tag is crawlable but not indexable: Google downloads it, sees the instruction, and drops it from results. That's why the tool reports the two separately, and why you should never block a page in robots.txt when you actually want it removed from Google. If the crawler can't fetch the page, it never sees the noindex tag.
Quick rule: to keep a page out of search results, let crawlers in and add noindex. To save crawl budget on pages that don't matter, block them in robots.txt.
Common reasons a page can't be crawled or indexed
Blocked by robots.txt
A single Disallow: / line left over from a staging site can hide an entire website. The checker shows the exact rule that matched, so you know what to change. You can build a clean file with our robots.txt generator.
A noindex tag left on by mistake
WordPress has a setting called "Discourage search engines from indexing this site" that adds noindex to every page. SEO plugins can also add noindex to categories, tags or individual posts. The checker looks in both the HTML and the HTTP headers.
Server errors and wrong status codes
Pages that return 404 (not found), 410 (gone) or 5xx (server error) are dropped from the index over time. Some sites also show a "not found" message while returning 200, known as a soft 404, which confuses search engines.
Long redirect chains
Every redirect adds delay and a chance for something to break. Googlebot follows up to ten hops, but best practice is to link directly to the final URL. The checker lists every step in the chain.
Canonical pointing somewhere else
If a page's canonical tag points to a different URL, you're telling Google to index that other URL instead. That's correct for duplicates, but a common mistake on paginated pages, filtered pages and posts copied from templates.
Firewalls and bot protection
Security plugins, CDNs and hosting firewalls sometimes block crawlers or show them a challenge page. If the checker gets a 403 for Googlebot but a 200 for a normal browser, your security settings are the likely cause.
Content that only appears with JavaScript
If the raw HTML contains almost no text, your content is probably loaded by JavaScript. Google can render JavaScript, but it happens later and not always completely, and many other crawlers don't render it at all.
How to improve your website's crawlability
- Submit an XML sitemap in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools, and list it in robots.txt. Create one with our free XML sitemap generator.
- Link to important pages internally. Crawlers find pages through links. Pages with no internal links, known as orphan pages, are often never discovered.
- Keep URLs clean and consistent. Pick one version of your domain (with or without www, always https) and redirect the others to it.
- Fix broken links and errors so crawlers don't waste time on dead ends.
- Improve server speed. Fast responses let search engines crawl more pages in the same time, which helps large sites get new content indexed sooner.
- Render key content in HTML. Make sure headings, main text and links exist in the page source, not just after JavaScript runs.
- Re-check after every change. Theme updates, plugin changes and migrations are the most common moments for crawl settings to break.
Crawler checker vs. Google Search Console
Google Search Console's URL Inspection tool is the most authoritative source for how Google sees your page, but it only works for sites you have verified, and it checks one URL at a time with Google's own queue. A website crawler checker gives you an instant answer for any site, including competitors and client sites you haven't been given access to yet, and it can test other crawlers such as Bingbot and GPTBot too.
The best approach is to use both. Use this tool for quick checks and troubleshooting, then confirm important fixes with URL Inspection and request indexing there.
Who should use a website crawler checker?
Bloggers and content creators
When a new post doesn't appear on Google after a few weeks, a quick crawl check tells you whether the problem is technical or simply a matter of time and quality. It is also the fastest way to catch a theme or SEO plugin update that quietly added noindex to your posts.
SEO professionals and agencies
Before an audit or a client call, run the key pages through the checker to spot crawl blockers in seconds. Because it works on any public URL, you can check prospects, competitors and client sites before you've been given Search Console access.
Developers and site owners
After a migration, a redesign or a switch to a new framework, test the homepage, a category page and a few important articles. Confirm that staging rules didn't reach production, that redirects point to the right place, and that content still exists in the HTML.
Online stores
Product and category pages are where the revenue is. Make sure filters and sorting options aren't creating canonical conflicts and that your security or bot-protection service isn't turning Googlebot away at checkout time.
Frequently asked questions
Is this website crawler checker free?
Yes. The BlogDada website crawler checker is free, needs no sign-up, and you can test as many URLs as you like within a fair-use limit.
What is the difference between crawlable and indexable?
Crawlable means a search engine is allowed to visit and download the page. Indexable means it is also allowed to store the page and show it in search results. A page can be crawlable but not indexable if it has a noindex tag.
Does this tool show exactly what Google sees?
It fetches the page with Googlebot's user agent and applies Google's robots.txt rules, which is very close. Some sites treat verified Googlebot IP addresses differently, so for a definitive answer also use the URL Inspection tool in Google Search Console.
Why does my page say blocked by robots.txt?
A Disallow rule in your robots.txt file matches the page path for the crawler you selected. The report shows the exact rule. Remove or change it, or add a more specific Allow rule.
Why is my page not indexed if it is crawlable?
Common reasons are a noindex tag, a canonical pointing to another URL, thin or duplicate content, or the page simply being new. Search engines also choose not to index every page they crawl.
Can I check pages that require a login?
No. Search engine crawlers cannot log in, so this tool can only check public pages. Pages behind a login are not crawlable by definition.
Does the tool run JavaScript?
No. It reads the raw HTML the server returns. If the report shows very little text, your content may depend on JavaScript, which search engines render later and less reliably.
How often should I check my website?
Check important pages after launches, redesigns, plugin updates, migrations and robots.txt changes, and do a quick check of your key pages every month.
Test your pages now
Crawling is the first step of SEO, and it's the one that fails silently. A few seconds with the BlogDada website crawler checker can explain months of missing traffic. Go back to the tool, enter your most important URL, and make sure search engines can reach it.