You spin up a clean WP install, add Google Site Kit, hit “connect”, and expect Google to pick it up within hours. Then the Search Console coverage stays ghost-white for days or weeks. We’ve seen this movie and the root causes weren’t “Google being slow”.
They were small, compounding setup mistakes.
Below is a field-tested setup that prevents the usual indexing blockers and gives new sites a clean runway. First, the pitfalls; then a zero-drama installation routine you can re-use for every project.
The usual indexing blockers on “fresh” WP sites
1) The “Discourage search engines” landmine
WordPress → Settings → Reading has that checkbox. If it was ever on (staging, migration), some hosts cache it hard. Result: noindex meta lingers, or bots see mixed signals.
2) Conflicting canonicals (www vs non-www, http vs https)
Half-baked redirects, mixed “Site Address” in WP settings, or a CDN set to Force HTTPS while .htaccess tries its own thing. Googlebot sees multiple variants and plays it safe: no index until the canonical story is consistent.
3) Robots.txt that blocks CSS/JS
A “hard no” on /wp-content/ is still common. That’s where your theme CSS/JS lives. If Google can’t fetch render-critical assets, it downgrades trust or delays indexing.
Good default: only disallow /wp-admin/, explicitly allow admin-ajax.php.
4) Sitemaps that return the wrong status
Sitemap URLs that 301/302, return non-200s, or serve the wrong content-type. Also common: multiple plugins outputting multiple sitemaps; Search Console gets a different one than the one advertised in robots.txt.
5) Dual SEO ownership
Running Site Kit and a full SEO plugin is fine—as long as only one controls meta robots, canonical, and sitemap. Two plugins fighting over <head> = mixed directives.
6) “Maintenance mode” and security rules
Security/maintenance plugins or WAF rules that block Googlebot (403, 503, or Bot Fight modes). Looks harmless for users; ruins crawlability.
7) Thin homepage, orphan pages
Fresh sites with a single blank homepage and no internal links don’t give Google a crawl path. Site Kit doesn’t fix architecture.
8) Wrong Search Console property type
Connecting a URL-prefix property when your redirects point elsewhere, or ignoring the Domain property. Google indexes the property you verify; verify the right one.
9) Cache/CDN serving stale headers
Old noindex headers cached at the edge. You fix WP, Google still gets yesterday’s meta.
10) Mixed languages/regions and duplicate paths
Trailing slash rules, duplicate /index.php routes, and regional variants without proper canonicals. All small dilution signals that add up.
A standardised install routine that just works
This is the Sebaf IT new-site playbook for Google-friendliness. Run it top-to-bottom; it’s fast and repeatable.
0) Before you touch WordPress
- Decide the canonical host (pick https + non-www or https + www; doesn’t matter which—be consistent).
- Configure DNS (A/AAAA), issue HTTPS cert at the host, and plan a single redirect chain (one hop max).
1) Clean WordPress baseline
- Install WP. In Settings → General, set WordPress Address and Site Address to the canonical URL (match your redirect plan).
- In Settings → Reading, untick “Discourage search engines”. Save twice.
- In Settings → Permalinks, choose Post name.
- Create basic pages: Home, Blog, Privacy Policy, Contact. Publish them (don’t leave core pages as drafts).
2) Mandatory housekeeping (themes, content, speed)
- Use a lightweight theme (e.g., Astra/Kadence).
- Add at least one real post (300–800 words) with a couple of internal links. No lorem ipsum homepages—Google wants a reason to care.
- Optimise images on upload (WP does basic; you can refine later).
3) Robots.txt (virtual) — keep it simple
- Do not block /wp-content/ or /wp-includes/.
- Minimal safe default:
User-agent: *
Disallow: /wp-admin/
Allow: /wp-admin/admin-ajax.php
Sitemap: https://example.com/sitemap_index.xml(Replace the sitemap line once you know the exact sitemap URL from your SEO plugin.)
4) Choose one SEO brain
Pick exactly one of these to own meta + canonicals + sitemap:
- Rank Math SEO (recommended for clarity and modular control), or
- Yoast SEO (rock-solid, mature defaults).
Configuration (applies to either):
- Enable XML sitemaps. Note the sitemap index URL.
- Set Organisation data (brand name, logo).
- Ensure noindex is off globally; review for media pages and archives.
- Verify the canonical homepage matches your final URL.
5) Install Google Site Kit — with intent
- Connect Search Console inside Site Kit, but then also open Search Console directly to:
- Add the Domain property (example.com) and the canonical URL-prefix property.
- Set preferred canonical in your redirects and WP settings to match.
- In Search Console, submit the sitemap generated by your SEO plugin (not Site Kit).
- Connect Analytics (GA4) and PageSpeed Insights in Site Kit. Skip Tag Manager unless you need it now.
Why Site Kit and an SEO plugin? Site Kit handles Google integrations and verification; your SEO plugin owns meta and sitemaps. Lines stay clean.
6) Redirects and headers (one story, one hop)
- In .htaccess (Apache) or server rules (Nginx), implement exactly one 301 pattern:
- http → https
- non-www ↔ www (whichever you chose)
- trailing slash policy (pick one, stick to it)
- Test with curl: the homepage and sitemap must return 200 (no 3xx after first hop), CSS/JS return 200, and canonical <link> points to your chosen host.
7) Crawl sanity checks
- Open Search Console → URL Inspection for / and /sitemap_index.xml. Fetch as Google; confirm:
- “Indexing allowed”
- “Page fetch” OK
- “Crawl allowed?” = Yes
- Rendered HTML shows content (not a blank theme shell).
- Check Coverage/Pages for “Excluded by ‘noindex’” or “Blocked by robots.txt”. Fix immediately if present.
8) Optional, but smart
- Caching/performance: Use one cache plugin from day one (WP Fastest Cache or LiteSpeed Cache on LiteSpeed hosts). Keep default minify off initially to avoid breaking render; turn it on after first indexing pass.
- Image optimisation: Smush, Optimole, or ShortPixel—pick one later; don’t stack.
- Security: A light touch (e.g., WP 2FA or Limit Login Attempts). Avoid “Bot Blocking” modes that can snub Googlebot.
9) First week playbook
- Publish 3–5 pages/posts with internal links.
- Submit the homepage and sitemap in Search Console “Request indexing”.
- Watch Pages → Not indexed for the first signals; fix any “Crawled – currently not indexed” by improving internal links and content detail.
- Check server logs (or analytics) for Googlebot hits; if none in 48–72 hours, re-verify DNS, robots.txt, and redirect homogeneity.
What we changed on sebaf-it.com (patterns worth keeping)
- Consolidated redirects to a single canonical (no “www sometimes”).
- Stopped blocking /wp-content/—CSS/JS must be fetchable.
- One SEO plugin in charge; no mixed sitemaps.
- Sitemaps returning 200 with the correct content-type, explicitly referenced in robots.txt.
- Cleared edge caches after changing meta robots.
- Requested indexing only after content and linking existed (not with a blank shell).
Recommended plugin stack for a “Google-ready” new site
- Google Site Kit — verification + Search Console/Analytics integration.
- Rank Math SEO (or Yoast SEO, pick one) — meta, canonicals, XML sitemaps.
- WP Fastest Cache (or LiteSpeed Cache on LiteSpeed servers) — basic caching after first index wave.
- Health Check & Troubleshooting — quick diagnostics if something feels off.
- Redirection — if you need to map old paths; keep rules tidy, avoid overlaps with server-level redirects.
Principle: Single ownership per concern. One SEO plugin (meta/sitemap), one cache layer, one redirect brain, one analytics integration.
Quick QA checklist (copy/paste)
- Reading setting: Discourage search engines = off (double-saved).
- Canonical: chosen and enforced (https + [www/non-www]), one-hop 301s only.
- SEO plugin: one active, sitemaps enabled, media/archives rules reviewed.
- Robots: /wp-admin/ disallowed; do not disallow /wp-content/; sitemap declared.
- Homepage & sitemap: 200 OK, no extra redirects, correct content-type.
- Site Kit: connected; Search Console Domain + URL-prefix properties verified.
- Sitemap submitted in Search Console (same URL as robots.txt).
- Internal links exist; no “empty” theme demo homepage.
- Cache/CDN purged after changes to meta or robots.
- URL Inspection for / returns “Indexing allowed” and renders real content.
Bottom line
Indexing isn’t luck; it’s signal hygiene. If you keep ownership clean (SEO vs Site Kit), avoid blocking assets, and tell one canonical story from DNS to HTML <head>, Google will crawl and index new WordPress sites quickly—even on day one. Reuse the routine above and you’ll spend less time guessing, more time shipping.
Sources and links
- Google Search Console – About Search Console
https://search.google.com/search-console/about - Google – robots.txt specifications
https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/robots/create-robots-txt - Google – Sitemaps documentation
https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/sitemaps/overview - Google – URL Inspection tool guide
https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/9012289 - Site Kit by Google – Plugin overview
https://sitekit.withgoogle.com/documentation/ - WordPress – Reading settings (Search engine visibility)
https://wordpress.org/documentation/article/settings-reading-screen/ - Rank Math SEO – Getting started (sitemaps & meta)
https://rankmath.com/kb/how-to-setup/ - Yoast SEO – Configuration basics
https://yoast.com/help/configuration-guide-for-yoast-seo/