Search Console validation: what Started, Looking good, Passed, and Failed mean
Validate fix asks Google to check again the pages with one issue. Here is what each state means, why validation fails, and what to do next.
By Bruno Amorim · ·
In Search Console, open Indexing > Pages and click a reason, such as "Crawled - currently not indexed". After you fix the pages, click Validate fix. Google then checks again the pages it knows have that issue, not your whole site. It emails you as validation goes on.
Validation is optional. Google's help says it updates the counts whenever it crawls a page, whether you validate or not. Validation gives you a log of each page and an email when it ends.
What each validation state means
The state shows in the reason's details page, and in the Validation row of its Details table.
| State | What it means |
|---|---|
| Not started | One or more pages with this issue have never been in a validation request.Fix the pages. Then click Validate fix. |
| Started | You started validation, and Google has not found the issue again yet.Wait. Don't click Validate fix again until it passes or fails. |
| Looking good | Each page Google has checked so far is fixed.Nothing. Google keeps checking the rest and emails you. |
| Passed | All known pages with the issue are fixed, or no longer available to Google.Nothing more for this issue. |
| Failed | After you clicked Validate fix, Google still found the issue on some pages.Open See details, fix the pages marked Failed, and click Start new validation. |
| N/A | Google found the issue fixed on all pages without a validation request.Nothing more for this issue. |
Page states in the validation log
Click See details to open the log. Each page has its own state for this issue:
- Pending: Waiting to be checked. The last time Google looked, the page had the issue.
- Passed: Google checked the page, and the issue is gone.
- Failed: Google checked the page, and the issue is still there.
- Other: Google could not reach the page any more, for example it was removed. Google counts this the same as Passed.
How validation works
- When you click Validate fix, Search Console checks a few pages right away.
- If one of them still has the issue, validation ends there, and the state does not change.
- If not, the state becomes Started. Google works through the list of known pages with the issue.
- Each fixed page is marked Passed. After the first one, the state becomes Looking good.
- If Google finds a page that still has the issue, the state becomes Failed and validation ends.
- When all the pages on the list are fixed, the state becomes Passed.
How long validation takes
Google's help says validation typically takes up to about two weeks, and in some cases much longer. You get an email when it passes or fails.
To speed it up, Google suggests a smaller set: submit a sitemap with only your most important pages, filter the report by that sitemap, then click Validate fix. Validation then covers only the pages in that sitemap.
Why validation fails
- Pages still have the issue. Google's help says that if you missed a fix, validation stops when Google finds a single page that still has it.
- The fix did not change Google's decision. For reasons such as Crawled - currently not indexed, there is no setting to switch off. Google decides whether the page is worth indexing, and a recheck often ends the same way.
- New pages with the same issue showed up. Google counts pages it finds in normal crawling during validation as more cases of the issue.
- You clicked Validate fix before the fix was live. Google checks a few pages right away.
- The issue is how the page should be. A redirect you want to keep, a copy that points to a main page, or a page you keep off Google on purpose won't pass, because the page is working as you set it up.
Which of your pages still keep the issue? Find out for free.
Get my free reportWhat to do after validation failed
- Open the reason in Indexing > Pages and click See details next to the validation.
- Look at the pages marked Failed. Inspect one with URL Inspection to see why it still has the issue.
- Fix those pages. Also check that the fix is live on the pages marked Pending.
- Click Start new validation. Google checks the Pending and Failed pages again, plus new pages with the issue. Pages marked Passed or Other are not checked again.
- Wait for that round to end before you start another one.
Validation for the most common reasons
For some reasons, validation fails often, even after real work. Here is why, and what to do instead.
"Crawled - currently not indexed"
Google read these pages and chose to leave them out. Google's help says there is no need to resubmit them. Validation asks Google to look again, and unless the pages changed a lot, Google often decides the same way. One page still left out fails the round.
What to do instead:
- Improve the pages that matter most: add useful content of your own, and link to them from pages already on Google.
- Merge or remove weak pages, and take them out of your sitemap.
- Validate a small set. Put the improved pages in their own sitemap and filter the report by it.
"Discovered - currently not indexed"
Google has not crawled these pages yet. Google's help says this often happens when crawling more would overload the site, so Google put the visit off. Validation queues the pages to be crawled again, but Google still crawls at a pace your site can handle. A large set can take a long time.
Validation passed does not mean indexed. It means the pages no longer have this reason. Google crawled them, and they moved to another status. Some may now say Crawled - currently not indexed.
What to do instead:
- Link to the pages from pages already on Google.
- Take weak pages out of your sitemap, so Google spends its visits on the ones you want.
- Make your server faster.
- After validation passes, check where the pages went in Indexing > Pages.
"Page with redirect"
This is usually not an error. The address redirects, so Google looks at the target page instead. Validation checks whether the address still redirects. A redirect you mean to keep still does, so validation fails.
What to do instead:
- Don't validate redirects you want to keep.
- Use the final addresses in your sitemap and internal links.
- Validate only if you removed redirects by mistake and the old addresses load again.
"Duplicate without user-selected canonical"
Google sees these pages as copies of another page, and they name no main page. Validation fails while Google still sees a copy with no canonical.
A page that moves to another reason counts as fixed for this one. If you add a canonical that points to the main page, and Google agrees, the page moves to Alternate page with proper canonical tag. That passes for this issue.
What to do instead:
- Add a
rel="canonical"tag on each copy that points to the main page. - If a page should stand on its own, make it clearly different.
- Use only main addresses in your sitemap.
Read the full guide: Duplicate without user-selected canonical
"Soft 404"
Google sees pages that load but look empty or like an error. Validation fails while they still look that way to Google, for example empty category pages or sold-out products with little else on them.
A real 404 or 410 counts as fixed for this issue. Google's help says a page no longer available to Google is marked Other, which counts as Passed.
What to do instead:
- If the page should exist, add real content. Then check the screenshot in Test live URL.
- If it should not exist, return
404or410, or redirect it to a close match. - Then validate.
With CrawlCoach
Search Console checks a whole issue at once, and one page can fail it. CrawlCoach follows each page. On paid plans, when CrawlCoach sees that a missing page changed, or you open Search Console for it from CrawlCoach, it checks that page with Google every day for 14 days. The page shows under Waiting for Google until Google adds it. Google makes the final call on what it indexes.
Questions
What does "Validation failed" mean in Search Console?
After you clicked Validate fix, Google still found the issue on some pages. Open See details to see which pages failed, fix them, and click Start new validation.
How long does Search Console validation take?
Google's help says it typically takes up to about two weeks, and in some cases much longer. Google emails you when it passes or fails.
Validation started weeks ago and nothing changed. Is it stuck?
Usually not. Google checks the pages at its own pace. Don't click Validate fix again while it runs. Google's help asks you to wait until a round ends.
Do I have to click Validate fix?
No. Google updates the report when it crawls the pages, whether you validate or not. Validation adds a log and an email.
Validation passed, but the pages are still not on Google. Why?
Passed means the pages no longer have that reason. They can move to another reason that keeps them off Google. Check Indexing > Pages for their new reason.
Sources
Checked on October 8, 2026. Google can change its tools and wording after that date.
See which pages still keep the issue
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