A general description of a website’s indexing status; formerly the name of Google’s index diagnosis report in Search Console.
Index coverage describes how a website’s URLs are represented in a search engine’s index. It can be used generally when discussing indexed and non-indexed content. Index Coverage was also the name used for a Search Console report in earlier documentation; current page-level reporting is presented as Page indexing.
When someone says coverage is low, ask what set of pages they mean. Comparing indexed URLs with every generated address can be misleading if that inventory includes duplicates, redirects or pages intentionally kept out of search. A useful assessment focuses on the pages intended to be discoverable as search results.
Coverage is not the same as performance. An indexed page may receive few impressions, and an excluded duplicate may be represented through a selected canonical page. Keep indexing status, search visibility and customer outcomes distinct when diagnosing a problem.
Takeaway: Agree on the intended page set before using a coverage percentage or success target. Clarify historical report names so an old screenshot does not become instructions for the current interface.
Example
A website generates many filter URLs but has a smaller set of useful public category pages. Counting every filter combination as a page that must be indexed could make coverage appear deficient even when the intended categories are present. The inventory needs an explicit inclusion rule.
What to check
Record the source and date of indexing evidence and inspect important exceptions individually. Avoid pursuing complete indexing of every URL simply to improve a headline number. Use current report terminology in new operational instructions.
For more detail, see Page indexing report.