Why isn't my Bolt.new site showing on Google?

What a published Bolt site sends Google

We checked four public sites on bolt.host on October 8, 2026. All four were React apps built with Vite. Each one sent the same short HTML file for every address: a title, a script, and an empty <div id="root"></div>. The text appears only after JavaScript runs.

Google can run JavaScript, so a page like this can still get indexed. Google's guide says the page first waits in a queue to be rendered, which can take a few seconds or longer. Crawlers that don't run JavaScript see nothing at all. Bolt's help center doesn't describe any pre-rendering for published sites, as of October 8, 2026.

curl -s https://your-site.bolt.host/

Then check what Google renders. In Search Console, inspect the page with URL Inspection, click Test live URL, then View tested page. The Screenshot tab should show your content, not a blank page.

Open robots.txt and sitemap.xml in your browser

On all four sites, /robots.txt and /sitemap.xml returned the app's home page with status 200, because neither file existed. Google then gets a web page where it expects a sitemap, and Search Console shows Sitemap is HTML.

Open both addresses on your site. If you see your home page or HTML code, the file is missing. In a Vite project, files in the public folder are copied to the root of the site, so the two files belong at public/robots.txt and public/sitemap.xml.

Add public/robots.txt that allows all crawlers and points to https://www.example.com/sitemap.xml. Add public/sitemap.xml that lists the full URL of every public page on https://www.example.com. Update the sitemap whenever we add or remove a page.

Put your real domain in both files and publish. Then submit the sitemap in Search Console under Indexing > Sitemaps.

Every address returns 200

The same four sites returned 200 for addresses that don't exist. The app draws its not-found screen, or nothing, with JavaScript. Google can report those addresses as Soft 404.

Google's JavaScript guide gives two fixes for apps like this. Add a noindex robots tag to the not-found screen, or send the visitor to an address that returns a real 404. The first one works on any host, so start there.

Add a catch-all route that shows a not-found page for any address we don't have. On that page only, add <meta name="robots" content="noindex">.

Give each page its own title

In a Vite app, the <title> and description in index.html are the same on every page until the app changes them. Google reads titles and descriptions set with JavaScript, so ask Bolt to set a different pair on each page.

Bolt has a curated SEO/GEO skill that it applies when your prompt is about SEO. Turn it on under the gear icon > Skills before you ask.

Publish it in public, on one address

• In the Publish menu, keep visibility on Public. Bolt says search engines can't find or list a Private site.
• Custom domains need a Pro plan. On Free, the site stays on its bolt.host address.
• Add your other domains as aliases. Bolt forwards visitors from an alias to your primary domain, so Google sees one address.
• Watch your hosting limits. When a site hits them, Bolt stops showing it in public until usage resets, and Google can't reach it either.

When the empty page matters

For an app behind a login, an empty first page costs little. For pages you want found, such as a home page, product pages, or a blog, the text should be in the HTML. Two ways get it there: pre-render each page when the site builds, or use a framework that renders pages on the server. Bolt's docs don't say which of these its hosting supports, so check the result with curl after you publish.

What Search Console will show

These three reasons in Indexing > Pages come straight from how a Bolt site is built.

1. 1Soft 404

   Why it happens

   The Bolt sites we tested answered 200 for any address, then drew a not-found screen with JavaScript.

   The fix

   Add a catch-all not-found page with a noindex robots tag.

2. 2Crawled - currently not indexed

   Why it happens

   Google renders the page, then finds little text of its own, or the same title on every page.

   The fix

   Give each page its own title, description, and real content, and link to it from your menu.

3. 3Page indexed without content

   Why it happens

   If a script fails or loads too slowly for Google, the rendered page is empty.

   The fix

   Run Test live URL and look at the screenshot and the JavaScript console messages under More info. Fix the failing script, or put the text in the HTML.

Where CrawlCoach fits

CrawlCoach shows which pages of your Bolt site Google skipped and why, from Search Console's own data, with the fix for each reason. If the site has no real sitemap, the free report tells you and checks the pages Search Console already knows. On paid plans, CrawlCoach also flags pages people find on Google whose text loads only with JavaScript, which AI crawlers that don't run JavaScript can't read.