Bing crawled the page but does not show it: "URLs with guideline issues"

Where you see it

In Bing Webmaster Tools, open Site Explorer. The crawl numbers for each folder include Excluded, and the filter list includes "URLs with guideline issues".

What it means

Bing visited the page and did not add it to its results. Bing's help defines Excluded as "URLs with spam violations, low rank etc." It defines "URLs with guideline issues" as pages "violating spam rules, suspended in latest crawl or low ranked due to issues."

Most of the time this is a quality call, not a penalty. Bing's help says it can't select every page, and that pages with copied content, little depth, or quick redirects to other sites don't do well.

Search Console calls a similar case "Crawled - currently not indexed". Bing uses its own words, so search for those in Bing Webmaster Tools.

Common causes

Most likely first.

1. Thin pages: little text, or text that adds nothing to what other pages already say.
2. Near-duplicate pages, such as product variants, tag pages, or filtered lists with the same content.
3. Copied or lightly rewritten content from other sites.
4. Pages made in bulk with no editing, or affiliate pages that only send visitors to stores.
5. Pages that load their main text only with JavaScript, so Bing sees an empty page.
6. A spam problem on the site, such as bought links, hidden text, or malware.

How to tell which cause applies

1. In Site Explorer, apply the filter "URLs with guideline issues". Look for a pattern: one folder, one template, or one kind of page.
2. Open a few of those pages as a visitor. Ask whether each one answers a search better than the pages Bing already shows.
3. Run the Live URL test on one page and open the HTML that Bingbot got. If the main text is missing, Bing can't see it.
4. Check your messages in Bing Webmaster Tools for malware notices.
5. Compare with Search Console. If Google also lists these pages as "Crawled - currently not indexed", the content is the likely cause.

How to fix it

1. Merge pages that say the same thing into one strong page. Redirect the old addresses to it with 301.
2. Add what is missing: real detail, original photos, prices, steps, or answers to the questions people search.
3. Put the main text in the HTML the server sends, not only in JavaScript.
4. Add a noindex rule to pages that should not be in search, and take them out of your sitemap.
5. Remove spam: paid links, hidden text, and any malware. Then ask for a review through Bing Webmaster support.
6. Link to the improved pages from your strong pages. Then click Request indexing in URL Inspection.

When you can ignore it

Ignore it for pages that exist for visitors but not for search, like filtered lists or print versions. Keep them out of your sitemap.

With CrawlCoach

CrawlCoach shows the pages Google left out and why, and for Bing, the pages Bing has not crawled. Bing does not report its quality calls through its API, so CrawlCoach can't list "URLs with guideline issues". The fixes for Google's "Crawled - currently not indexed" pages are often the same ones Bing needs.

Questions

Related guides

• "URL cannot appear on Bing" in Bing
• "Discovered but not crawled" in Bing
• "URLs that are redirecting" in Bing
• "Crawled - currently not indexed" (the Google Search Console reason)
• "Duplicate, Google chose different canonical than user" (the Google Search Console reason)
• "Page indexed without content" (the Google Search Console reason)

Sources

Checked on October 8, 2026. Vendors change their tools and docs, so check the source if something looks different.

• Bing Webmaster Tools help: Site Explorer
• Bing Webmaster Tools help: Why is my site not in the index?
• Bing Webmaster Guidelines
• Bing Webmaster Tools help: URL inspection