SEO

Mobile-First Indexing

Quick definition

Mobile-first indexing is Google's practice of primarily using the mobile version of a site's content for indexing and ranking.

Since 2023, mobile-first indexing applies to all new and most existing sites. The mobile version is what Googlebot crawls and ranks.

Why Mobile-First Indexing matters

If your mobile site hides content, navigation, or structured data that's present on desktop, you'll lose ranking signals attached to that content.

How Mobile-First Indexing works in practice

Ensure parity between desktop and mobile: same content, same internal links, same structured data, same metadata. Use responsive design rather than separate mobile templates.

Best practices

  • Match content and metadata across mobile and desktop.
  • Don't hide important content on mobile.
  • Test mobile rendering in Search Console's URL Inspection.
  • Use responsive design over m-dot subdomains.

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