Google Mobile first index will be ready in a year

SEO admin 2 March 2020 Reading time : 4 minutes

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Within the next 12 months Google will complete the switch of all sites to mobile-first index. The messages received by webmasters in Google Search Console are announcing it, also reporting possible issues with this kind of site indexing based on the mobile version. A theme we have been talking about for almost exactly two years, that is from the moment when – once ended a long experimental phase – the roll-out has officially started, but perhaps there are still aspects to be clarified and information to give on this process: let’s see together the elements not to be underestimated, also from an SEO point of view!

What is Google mobile first index

It was 2016 when Mountain View started testing on “indexing with priority to contents for mobile devices”, which became the system adopted by Googlebot as a priority since July 1st, 2019 for all new websites, meaning with this adjective both those just put online and those just discovered and emerged in Google Search.

Simply put, the Google bot now mostly uses smartphone agent to evaluate the version of content for mobile devices for indexing and ranking purposes, because most users access Google Search via a mobile device.

What we need to know on mobile-first index

There is one thing that needs to be made clear: there is no separate index for mobile devices and desktop sites and Google Search keeps on using only one index. Specifically, the Google system continues to display the most suitable URL for users, whether it is a URL for desktops or mobile devices.

How mobile indexing insertion works

Up until now, not all websites have been enabled for mobile-first indexing, there is no way of knowing exactly when a website will be moved and there is nothing we can do to make the process faster. Moreover, just as we cannot act to force the inclusion of a website in this index, we cannot even request the subsequent exclusion.

It is Google that decides whether a website is ready for mobile-first indexing based on content, links, images and videos, as well as structured data and other metadata. As stated by public voices of the company, the massive use of JavaScript could prevent a website from switching to mobile-first indexing, as well as problematic is the presence of an interstitial covering the home page of the site.

To know if a site is ready for mobile-first index (or if it has switched to the new system) you can check the Search Console, where webmasters can find official communications.

Differences for new sites

As mentioned before, new sites in both meanings are entered by default in the mobile index this rule applies to all sites published online or recognized for the first time by GoogleBot after July 1st, 2019.

In these cases, webmasters do not receive any communication through Search Console of the insertion in the Mobile-First Index.

Best practices according to Google

The page with Google tips for the mobile-first index was last updated on February 12th, 2020, as proof of the continuous and constant interest that the search engine reserves to this aspect. The first indication is of general nature: “Web sites should offer the same experience on mobile and desktop devices”, which in practical terms means

Ensure that Googlebot can access and render the content and resources of the mobile page and desktop page.
Make sure the mobile site contains the same content as the desktop site.
The use of the same meta tag robots in both versions.
The use the same headings in both versions.
Use of the same structured data in both versions.

Google warns that intentionally choosing to offer less content on the mobile version of a page compared to its desktop version may expose the site to a decrease in traffic “when the site is enabled to prioritize indexing of contents for mobile devices”, because “Google cannot get the same amount of information from your page as before” when it used to use the desktop version.

Site’s aspects to take care of

What matters, according to Google, is always trying to ensure the best experience to our users, by following the recommendations and guidelines provided. In addition to these already described, there are other best practices that we can apply to our sites:

Make sure Google can see content loaded in lazy-loading mode.
Use the same metadata on the mobile and desktop site.
Make sure that the ads do not cause a bad experience for the mobile user.
Using a supported image and video format.
Provide high quality images on the mobile site.
Use the same alt-text on the mobile and desktop site.
Avoid the URL of videos and images that change every time the page is loaded onto the mobile site.
Make sure the videos are easy to find and view on the mobile website.

How to manage sites with separate URLs

The Google document dedicates a whole section to the optimization of sites that use the distinct URL mode (also known as m-dot), by providing additional specific tips. In particular, we must:

Make sure the page’s error status is the same on mobile and desktop sites.
Avoid fragment URLs in the mobile site.
Make sure that desktop pages have equivalent mobile pages.
Check mobile and desktop sites in Search Console.
Check hreflang links on distinct URLs.
Make sure the mobile site is able to handle a higher scanning frequency.
Make sure that robot.txt directives work on both sites.

Mobile usability does not mean Mobile-First Indexing

In addition, even a site that does not pass the mobile usability test can be moved to the first mobile index on the contrary, even if the Search Console reports that the site has valid URLs for usability on mobile devices, does not mean that those pages are ready for mobile-first indexing.

In short, it must be understood that the mobile usability is a “completely separate” element from the mobile-first indexing, and therefore even pages not optimized or considered not usable on a mobile device can be enabled for this type of indexing.

As a result, layouts optimised to be mobile-friendly or mobile-responsive are not required for mobile-first indexing, since even pages without mobile versions work on mobile devices and are considered suitable for indexing.