By Shad Super in Questions —

How Can the Removals Tool Be Used to Temporarily Hide a URL From Google Search Results?

Summary

The Removals Tool in Google Search Console allows webmasters to temporarily hide URLs from Google Search results within a few hours. This can be crucial for sensitive or outdated content that shouldn't appear in search results. Here's a detailed step-by-step guide on how to use the Removals Tool effectively.

Accessing the Removals Tool

To start using the Removals Tool, you need to access Google Search Console. Ensure you have verified ownership of your site:

  1. Log in to Google Search Console.
  2. Select your property (website) from the list of verified properties.
  3. Navigate to the 'Removals' section under the “Index” menu on the left-hand side.

Requesting Temporary URL Removals

Submitting a New Request

Follow these steps to submit a new URL removal request:

  1. Click on the ‘New Request’ button.
  2. Choose the ‘Temporarily Remove URL’ option.
  3. Enter the exact URL you wish to hide. Ensure the URL is accurate, including HTTPS or HTTP and the complete path.
  4. Click ‘Next’ and then ‘Submit’.

Types of Temporary Removal Requests

There are two types of temporary removal requests:

  • Temporary Remove URL: This option hides the URL from Google Search results for about six months and clears the cached copy of the page.
  • Clear Cached URL: This option clears the cached page, but the URL may still appear in search results based on the live page's content.

Monitoring and Managing Requests

You can monitor the status of your removal requests in the Removals Tool. The statuses include:

  • Pending: The request is being processed.
  • Removed: The URL is temporarily hidden from Google Search.
  • Denied: The request failed due to issues such as incorrect URL format.

If needed, you can cancel a removal request by clicking on the 'Cancel' button next to the request in the Removals Tool interface.

Limitations and Considerations

While using the Removals Tool can provide quick relief by temporarily hiding URLs, it’s important to address the underlying content issues. Here are some key considerations:

  • The temporary removal lasts for about six months, but the URL might reappear if the content is still accessible.
  • For more permanent solutions, consider using <meta name="robots" content="noindex"> tags, password protection, or removing the content altogether.

Examining Permanent Removal Methods

Using the <meta name="robots" content="noindex"> Tag

To ensure that a URL remains hidden from search results long-term, use the following meta tag in the HTML <head> section:

<meta name="robots" content="noindex">

This instructs search engines to avoid indexing the page.

Blocking Content via robots.txt

Another method is to update your robots.txt file to block specific content from being crawled:

User-agent: *
Disallow: /path-to-directory-or-page/

Note that this prevents the URL from being crawled, but may not remove it from search results if already indexed.

References