Term
Mobile-First Indexing
An indexing mode where Google primarily uses the mobile version of a page for crawling, indexing, and ranking. The default for all sites since July 2024.
Mobile-First Indexing — explained in more detail
Under mobile-first indexing, Googlebot Smartphone crawls and evaluates the mobile version as the primary source. Anything served only on desktop does not flow into index or ranking — even when the query comes from a desktop. Google began the rollout in 2017 and completed it for all remaining sites in mid-2024.
Practical consequence: mobile and desktop must be content-equivalent. Content tucked behind “show more” is fine, but stripping mobile down (less text, missing structure) costs visibility.
Example / In practice
Common pitfalls: differing alt text between mobile and desktop, missing structured data on the mobile variant, blocked mobile rendering resources in robots.txt. Tools: URL Inspection in Search Console shows which variant Google sees. Mobile Usability reports flag layout issues.
Distinction from similar terms
Responsive design is the technical implementation (single HTML, CSS breakpoints) and Google’s recommended approach. Dynamic serving and separate m. URLs still work but are maintenance-heavy and prone to configuration errors — under mobile-first they offer no real upside anymore.
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301 Redirect
A 301 redirect is an HTTP status code permanently redirecting one URL to another — the standard for URL changes, domain moves and site migrations.
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