What Is IndexNow and How to Use It
Tell Bing and other search engines about new and changed pages instantly instead of waiting for a crawl.
Normally, search engines discover new and updated pages by crawling โ revisiting your site on their own schedule. IndexNow is an open protocol that flips this around: your website notifies participating search engines the moment a page is added, updated or deleted.
Which search engines use IndexNow?
IndexNow is supported by Microsoft Bing and several other search engines, such as Yandex, Seznam and Naver. A URL submitted to one participating engine is shared with the others. Google has tested the protocol but does not use it for indexing; Google relies on sitemaps and crawling.
Because Bing's index also powers other search and AI experiences, faster Bing indexing can reach further than Bing search alone.
How it works
- You create a key โ a random string of letters and numbers.
- You host a text file containing that key on your site, proving you own it.
- When a page changes, your site sends its URL and the key to an IndexNow endpoint.
- Participating search engines receive the notification and prioritise crawling that URL.
Ways to set it up
- CDN or host features: some CDNs and hosting platforms offer automatic IndexNow submission.
- Plugins: many content management systems have plugins that submit URLs on publish.
- Bing Webmaster Tools: you can also submit URLs manually there.
- Custom script: send a simple request listing changed URLs, for example from a daily scheduled job.
Best practices
- Submit only URLs that changed โ new, updated or deleted pages.
- Do not resubmit unchanged pages repeatedly.
- Keep submitting your XML sitemap too; IndexNow complements it rather than replacing it. Build one with the XML sitemap generator.
- Make sure submitted URLs are indexable and canonical.
Check the results
Bing Webmaster Tools shows IndexNow submissions and whether they were received. Compare how quickly new posts appear in Bing before and after setup. Read how to check if a page is indexed.
A worked example
A Canadian news site published around 30 articles a day. Bing often showed stories hours after competitors. After enabling IndexNow in its CMS, new articles were usually crawled by Bing within minutes, and Bing referral traffic for breaking stories rose noticeably.
For crawling on larger sites, see what crawl budget is.
A simple setup plan
- Generate a key โ a random string of 8 to 128 letters, numbers or dashes.
- Save it in a text file named after the key, at the root of your site, containing only the key.
- Check that the file opens in a browser.
- Choose how URLs will be submitted: a plugin, your CDN, or a scheduled script.
- Submit a few recently changed URLs and confirm they appear in Bing Webmaster Tools.
- Send new and updated pages automatically from then on.
Keep the key file in place permanently โ search engines use it to verify every future submission.
Related guides
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Frequently asked questions
Does IndexNow work for Google?
No. Google does not use IndexNow; keep using sitemaps and Search Console for Google.
Does IndexNow guarantee indexing?
No. It speeds up discovery; search engines still decide whether to index a page.
Is IndexNow free?
Yes. It is an open protocol with no cost.
Can I submit deleted pages?
Yes. Submitting removed URLs helps search engines drop them faster.