Why isn't my website showing up on Google?

Your website is usually missing from Google for one of a few reasons: it is too new to be indexed, Google has been told not to index it, it has no content matching what people search, or it has a technical block. The fastest first check is to search 'site:yourdomain.com.au' in Google, which shows whether any of your pages are indexed at all.

It is a stressful thing to discover, but the cause is nearly always one of a short list, and most are quick to fix. Let us work through them.

How do I check if my website is on Google at all?

Search 'site:' followed by your domain, with no space, like site:yourbusiness.com.au. If pages appear, you are indexed and the issue is ranking, not indexing. If nothing appears, Google has not indexed your site and that is the problem to solve first.

Tip: If the site: search returns nothing, fix indexing before touching anything else, because no amount of content or design will rank a page Google cannot see.

For a fuller view, connect your site to Google Search Console, which tells you exactly which pages are indexed and why others are not.

Why is a brand new website not showing up?

A new website often takes days to a few weeks to appear because Google has to discover and crawl it first. This is normal and not a fault. You can speed it up by submitting your sitemap in Google Search Console and requesting indexing for your key pages.

Note: A brand new site simply waiting to be crawled is the most common and least worrying cause, and submitting your sitemap usually shortens the wait to days.

What technical issues stop a site from being indexed?

The most common technical blocks are a noindex tag left on after launch, a robots file blocking crawlers, or the site still being set to private. Developers often add these during a build and forget to remove them at go live.

• A noindex meta tag telling Google to skip the page.
• A robots file rule blocking Google's crawler.
• A 'discourage search engines' setting left switched on.
• Pages with almost no text for Google to read.
• A slow or broken site Google struggles to crawl.

Why does my site show for my business name but nothing else?

If you appear when someone types your business name but not for your services, your site is indexed but not yet ranking for competitive searches. That is an SEO issue, not an indexing one, and it comes down to content, relevance and trust. Our local SEO guide and how to rank for your suburb both walk through fixing it.

Best practice: Once you are indexed, treat missing rankings as a content and relevance problem rather than a technical one, and build pages that answer what your customers actually search.

If the site itself is the weak link, a rebuild may be the better path, which is what our websites service is built for.

The short version: check indexing with a 'site:' search first, clear any technical blocks left over from your build, then focus on content and relevance if you are indexed but not ranking.

Frequently asked questions

How long does Google take to index a new site?

Usually a few days to a few weeks. Submitting a sitemap and requesting indexing in Google Search Console can shorten the wait considerably.

Why did my site disappear from Google?

A sudden drop often points to an accidental noindex tag after an update, a manual penalty, or a major technical error. Check Search Console for messages and indexing status first.

Do I need to pay Google to show up?

No, appearing in the normal search results is free. Paying only applies to Google Ads, which is separate from earning your place in the organic listings.

Is a site search accurate?

It is a quick guide rather than a precise count, but if nothing shows up at all, that reliably tells you the site is not indexed.

Not sure why you are invisible? Take the free business health check and we will pinpoint it.