Google Clarifies Confusion Over Noindex and Canonical Tags
Mueller's Latest Statement Clarifies the Haze by John Dz Diaz
5 min readHighlights
- Google’s John Mueller has finally clarified a long-time confusion relating to using noindex and canonical tags on the same page.
- Mueller earlier explained in 2021, it sounded like both might “maybe” work but his latest said that is not the case.
- While Google has to comply with the noindex rule, rel=canonical is termed as “a strong signal” that it may choose to ignore.
Source: Freepik_Free Vector _ Hand drawn no data illustration
Use of noindex and canonical tags together on the same page has been a cause for great debate among SEO professionals. Since the noindex rule will clearly tell Google to just ignore what is inside that page, a rel=canonical tag has been a very strong signal by which one can point out to Google what is the preferred URL for a page. A question whether it is possible to use it on the same page led to quite complete heated discussions among many people.
Lately, Google’s John Mueller finally clarified the long-standing confusion surrounding both of them. Mueller has earlier stated that it might work to use both “maybe,” but his latest statement gives a clearer answer.
What Are Noindex and Canonical Tags?
Before jumping to Mueller’s clarification, it is essential to understand the purpose of noindex and canonical tags.
Noindex Tag
Primarily, its purpose is to tell Google not to index a given webpage.
The Noindex tag is an instruction issued by Google not to index a given page. This means that the page will not appear in the search results of Google. It is commonly used for preventing pages from being indexed when they are not meant to reach the general public, such as with those ‘stuck’ in the internal company pages or temporary landing pages.
Canonical Tag
It sends a pretty strong signal for the specification of the preferred version of the page. In this context, it tells Google that all the other variations of that URL are the actual canonical. That way, it prevents the trouble with duplicate content issues in addition to helping Google understand what version of the page to index and rank.
Mueller Previous Statement
In a YouTube video published in 2021, Mueller indicated that it could be possible to use noindex and canonical tags on the same page. He said that if links were coming from other places to the page, having the two tags might help Google understand that the page must not be indexed but the canonical URL must be considered. However, he qualified his statement by saying “maybe,” which means that it is impossible to guarantee its effectiveness.
Mueller’s Latest Clarification
In Mueller’s latest clarification, it is now clearer whether or not it is acceptable to have noindex tags and canonical tags on the same page. He said to them to choose one and not the other, saying that if they try to use both it can be puzzling and even won’t produce the results as expected.
Mueller clarifies that links from a noindexed page are crawlable, and it does not mean they are crawled. He urges one to be clear about your preference to Google and not vague. Another point he makes is that at times it is better to focus on having a structured, easy-to-interpret website for search engines than trying to manipulate all these separate pieces of SEO.
Implications of Mueller’s Response
Mueller’s clarification is a big deal for SEO professionals. Ideally, one cannot use noindex with canonicals on the same page. Choosing one either helps Google understand what you want and index pages in the desired manner.
If a page should not be indexed, you are going to use the noindex tag; however, for multiple versions of the same page with different URLs, you’ll be using rel=canonical to designate which is your preferred URL.
The Impact of Mueller’s Clarification on SEO Strategies
However, clearer understanding on the part of both SEO practitioners and even website owners of how noindex and canonical tags interact with each other in order to be used appropriately to optimally enhance a web page’s visibility in the search engines have become very important.
Importance of Clear Signals
Quite simply, one of the more important takeaways in Mueller’s statement is to give clear signals to Google. You will either use a noindex tag or a canonical tag-not both-but clearly tell Google how you want that page treated so as not to confuse the search engine and get the proper version indexed.
Prevention of Duplicate Content Issues
The rel=canonical tag is especially important in avoiding duplicate content problems. Duplication is when the same content appears on a single page or different pages within one website or on multiple websites; it may cause confusion among some search engines and may also result in bad rankings for a website.
Applying the rel=canonical tag will explain to Google what URL you want, then help Google understand that the other versions of the page are duplications, avoiding penalties from search engines and thus improving your rankings.
Optimizing for Search Engines
Aside from applying the noindex and canonical tags, there are other strategies that site owners can use for optimizing their websites for search engines. These include:
- Create great and quality-rich content: Such content is informative, engaging, and relevant to your target audience. This will definitely rank well in search engines.
- Optimize the on-page elements: Such as using relevant keywords in the page title, headings, and content. Also, optimizing images and videos.
- Building backlinks: These are the links from other websites to yours. Building backlinks can help the authority score of your website and rank it in search engines.
- Website Speed Improvement: A faster website load could lead to more visitors and engagement from the users visiting the website. These can also improve the ranks of your website in a search engine.
Google Algorithm
No index and canonical tags can be effective tools but definitely are not a magic bullet for the minute changes Google algorithm is making every day, and it is advisable to know the current best practices regarding SEO.
Not to mention that Google’s algorithm is not infallible. Consequently, a page which you inform Google not to index may turn up in the search results from time to time, but applying all the recommendations given by Mueller and other professionals of SEO will greatly raise the chances for your website to rank high in the search results.
Conclusion
The clarification Mueller shares about noindex and canonical tags is crucial for any understanding of how to manage websites. Basis for owners and SEO experts in what makes a site optimized to search engines and online visibility.
Sources:
- https://www.searchenginejournal.com/canonical-and-noindex-at-same-time/528501/
- https://twitter.com/sejournal/status/1840674193093841036
- https://www.linkedin.com/posts/moh-okasha_google-clarifies-simultaneous-use-of-canonical-activity-7246238151176855553-Zzel
- https://m.facebook.com/100064813777714/posts/971350935035357/
