Webflow pages not indexed: causes and fixes
Webflow sites often lose CMS pages that have too little text. The webflow.io test address can also compete with your real site.
The three most common reasons on Webflow
Crawled - currently not indexed
Why it happens: CMS pages built from a short template, such as a name, a photo, and two fields, look almost the same to Google.
The fix: Add a text field to the collection and write real content for the items you want found. Link items to each other with reference fields.
Duplicate, Google chose different canonical than user
Why it happens: If Google can see your webflow.io test address, it may pick it over your real domain.
The fix: Turn on Disable Webflow subdomain indexing in Site settings > SEO, and set your custom domain as the default domain.
Page with redirect
Why it happens: When you rename a page, Webflow sends the old address to the new one. Google keeps the old address on its list for a while.
The fix: This is normal. Make sure your sitemap lists only the new addresses, and point your links straight at them.
Where your sitemap is
Webflow can make your sitemap at /sitemap.xml. Turn it on in Site settings > SEO > Auto-generate sitemap. Each page and CMS collection can leave the sitemap in its own settings.
Settings that hide pages on Webflow
- Per-page Sitemap indexing set to off in page settings.
- Password-protected pages and the site-wide password option.
- Custom code in Site settings > Custom code that adds a
noindexmeta tag.
To tell Bing about changes too, see IndexNow on Webflow.
Questions
Does Webflow submit my sitemap to Google?
No. Webflow builds it, but you submit it once in Search Console. After that, Google rechecks it on its own.
Should I index CMS collection template pages?
Yes, for items with real content that people search for. Leave near-empty items out of the sitemap.