My website disappeared from Google after a redesign: how do I fix it?

If your website disappeared from Google after a redesign, the first things to check are broken old page addresses, settings that block indexing and missing content. Ask your web designer to investigate these before assuming you need to rebuild the site again.

A redesign can change more than how your website looks. Google may find that a familiar service page is gone, points somewhere unrelated or now carries an instruction not to appear in search.

What should I check if my website disappeared from Google after a redesign?

Start in Google Search Console, Google's free tool for checking how your website appears in search. If you do not have access, ask your designer to add you as an owner using your own Google account.

Not seeing your business in one search does not prove that Google removed your website. A page can still be indexed, meaning included in Google's search database, while appearing less often or lower in results.

• Open the Performance report and compare dates before and after the redesign. Look at both clicks and impressions, which count appearances in search results.
• Check whether the drop affects the whole website or only certain pages. Start with your homepage and the service pages that previously brought visitors.
• Paste an affected page address into the URL Inspection tool. Read whether Google has indexed that exact address and any reason given for exclusion.
• Keep a simple list with each affected page address, the problem you found and the fix requested.

Check whether your old page addresses still work

Find old page addresses in your previous sitemap, saved links, newsletters or a backup from your designer. Open each one and note where it takes you, rather than checking only the new navigation menu.

An old address should either still show the intended page or permanently redirect to its closest replacement. For example, if /bridal-services became /wedding-hair, the old link should take visitors directly to the new wedding hair page.

• If an old link shows a “page not found” message, ask for a permanent redirect, usually called a 301 redirect, to the matching replacement page.
• If several old service links all land on your homepage, ask your designer to match each one to a relevant service page instead.
• If an important service page was deleted but you still offer that service, ask to restore it or create a useful replacement before redirecting.
• Ask your designer to confirm the actual response codes. A page can display a friendly error message while incorrectly reporting that it loaded successfully.
• Update links in your menus and page text so they point directly to the current addresses, not through old redirects.

Check whether the new website blocks Google

Designers often keep unfinished websites out of search, and those settings can accidentally remain after launch. In URL Inspection, use “Test live URL” to check whether Google can currently access a page and whether indexing is allowed.

The live test does not guarantee that Google will index the page. It helps identify current access problems that may differ from what Google found on its last visit.

• Ask your designer to check public pages for a noindex instruction in the page code or HTTP headers. This tells search engines not to include the page in results.
• Ask them to check robots.txt, the file that controls crawler access. A rule blocking the entire site can stop Google from reading your pages.
• Have both settings checked: allowing crawling does not remove noindex, and a crawling block can prevent Google from seeing that noindex was removed.
• Check that public pages do not require a password, show a maintenance screen or return server errors to Google.
• Ask whether each page's canonical address—the preferred version it identifies—points to the correct live page rather than a test website or unrelated page.
• Remove blocks only from pages meant to be public. Private account pages and other restricted content should stay protected.

Send your web designer a specific repair checklist

Send the affected page addresses with your request so your designer can investigate concrete examples. You can copy the checklist below and ask them to explain what they found and changed.

Also compare your old and new service pages for missing information. A cleaner design can still describe what you offer, whom you help and where you work.

• “Please map the old page addresses to their current equivalents and add permanent redirects where addresses changed. Send me the mapping so I can review the destinations.”
• “Please confirm that our public pages allow crawling and indexing, load successfully and identify the correct preferred page addresses.”
• “Please restore important service descriptions and location details removed during the redesign. For example, replace a vague title such as ‘Services | Studio’ with ‘Wedding Hair Services in Boise, ID’ if that accurately describes the page.”
• “Please update internal links and the XML sitemap, which lists pages for search engines, to use the current public page addresses.”
• “Please submit the updated sitemap in Google Search Console and share the checks you used to verify the repairs.”

Common questions about disappearing from Google after a redesign

These answers can help you separate a technical problem from an ordinary change in search visibility. Fix confirmed problems first rather than changing everything at once.

• Does a redesign automatically remove my website from Google? No. Problems can happen when page addresses, access settings or important content change.
• Will submitting a sitemap fix broken pages? No. A sitemap helps Google discover addresses, but it does not repair broken links or override indexing blocks.
• Should every old page redirect to my homepage? No. Use the closest relevant replacement; an unrelated destination can confuse visitors and may be treated as an error by Google.
• How long will recovery take? There is no dependable deadline. Google needs to revisit and process the changes, and previous search positions are not guaranteed.
• What if my domain name changed too? Follow the related guide, “Why did my website disappear from Google after I changed my domain name?” at /blog/website-disappear-google-changed-domain-name for domain-change checks.

How to tell whether the fixes are working

Retest your saved old links and inspect the repaired pages in Search Console. After fixing a page, you can request indexing for its current address, but a request does not guarantee inclusion or a particular position.

Look for old links reaching the right pages, indexing blocks disappearing and current pages being indexed. Then watch impressions and clicks for those pages over time; technical repairs can be confirmed before search traffic changes.

Where to read more

The Visibility Fix checks all of this for you and walks you through each fix one at a time.

• How do I show up on Google Maps without showing my home address?
• Why is Google still showing my old business address?
• Business brochures: can ChatGPT read my services if they're only in a PDF?

• Google: structured data general guidelines
• Google Search Essentials