Why Google Omits Results & How to Fix It

Our clients often ask us, “Why does Google omit search results and how can I get my pages re-indexed?”

Do some of your site pages get omitted from Google’s search results? Is this preventing your website from gaining the organic search engine exposure that you deserve on Google?

In order to maximize your search engine rankings you need to have valuable content (web pages) that are recognized by the search engines. Each of those pages has the potential to rank for multiple keyword phrases within the search engines and bring you valuable traffic.

When Google omits your pages from search results then those pages cannot work for you and are inaccessible to potential visitors.

Why Do Your Pages End Up in Google Omitted Results?

One of the main reasons why Google omits certain pages from their search results is to ensure that multiple pages that are similar or mostly the same do not inundate their results. Google only wants to index pages that are most relevant and have the most ranking power.

From a visitor’s perspective, imagine how it would be if you clicked on 10 pages and found that they were all very similar, just variations of the same content; that would be quite boring. If this happened to you each time search results were delivered, most likely you may decide to complete your searches elsewhere.

In many cases it is fairly easy to correct the problem with omitted pages, as they are usually attributed to webmaster / site owner oversights. Omitted results are in no way considered a penalty, but they can be detrimental in the way that they limit your abilities to gain the exposure your website deserves.

Why Omitted Results are Bad for Business

If you’re a business owner, having your web pages omitted from Google’s results, whether due to duplication, low relevance, or how search results are displayed, can quietly sabotage your online growth. Here’s why it matters:

• Less visibility = fewer clicks, leads, and sales. Even if your page is technically ranking, it might be hidden behind a “similar results omitted” link or filtered out by Google’s algorithm. If people never see your content, they won’t engage with it.
• You might be ranking… without being seen. It’s entirely possible to be “on page 1” but still not appear in the visible results due to AI summaries, filtered snippets, or omitted duplicates. This creates a false sense of success. Your SEO reporting looks good, but your traffic doesn’t grow.
• Fixing it can lead to quick SEO wins. In many cases, omitted results can be resolved by improving the quality or uniqueness of your content, enhancing internal linking, or simply telling Google which version of the page to prioritize. These small changes can unlock visibility almost immediately.

If your business relies on being found online(spoiler: most companies today, it does) making sure your pages aren’t hidden from your audience is a critical step in protecting your SEO investment and capturing more qualified traffic.

How Do You Check Omitted Search Results in Google?

One really easy way to check if your pages are being omitted is to use Google’s advanced search operator and check what Google says is being included and being omitted.

Below are the steps to check if your pages are being omitted in Google:

1. Go to https://www.google.com in your browser
2. Type in site:yourdomain.com (replace yourdomain.com with your actual website domain).  Select the search button.
3. When the results show up, look at the top to see the total number of results (something like 1 of 10 of about xxx from mydomain.com)
4. At the bottom of the page is a list of numbers representing 10 results from your site, keep selecting the last number to get to the last set of results Google is showing. If you get to the end of the results and see a message “In order to show you the most relevant results, we have omitted some entries very similar to xxx already displayed. If you like, you can repeat the search with the omitted results included.” This would indicate that you indeed have omitted results.  If you do not see this message then all of your web pages are being indexed properly.

Omitted Results in the Age of AI Overviews

Search results have changed dramatically in recent years (since first publishing this article) and omitted results now go beyond just duplicate, low-quality content or easy to fix technical mistakes.

With the rollout of Google’s AI Overviews, users are often presented with a machine-generated summary of the answer to their query, followed by just a few curated links. In many cases, dozens of relevant pages (including yours) may never appear on the first screen, even if they’re indexed and well-optimized. While this isn’t technically the same as being “omitted,” the effect is similar: your visibility drops because your content is being filtered behind AI-generated content or expandable lists.

In this new environment, Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is becoming more important. GEO focuses on structuring your content in a way that search engines and AI models can easily interpret and surface in summaries, snippets, and enhanced search results. This includes:

• Using clear, conversational language that directly answers common questions.
• Formatting with FAQs, bulleted lists, and well-structured headers.
• Incorporating structured data (schema markup) to help search engines understand your content contextually.

While traditional SEO tactics still matter, optimizing for how AI understands and selects content is the new layer that can give your site an edge and help prevent it from being overlooked.

Easy To Spot Reasons Why Your Pages May Be In Omitted Results

Now that you have determined whether or not you have pages in the Google omitted results, it is time to figure out why your pages are being omitted. Select the text link that allows you to review the omitted results. You will now be presented with all the pages within your website that have been indexed by Google.

Below are the steps to take to locate the reason why pages are being omitted:

1. Look at the title tag
2. Look at the text snippet / description provided
3. Look at the URL

After you have looked at these areas determine if you see any similarities between them.  Here are the most common, fairly quick fix problems that cause web pages to be omitted from Google’s results that typically come up in our SEO Site Audits:

• Title Tag replicated across multiple pages
• Meta Description tag replicated across multiple pages
• Title Tag has no meaning (is not relevant) to the content within the page
• Meta Description tag does not accurately represent the content within the page
• Multiple pages within the site have the same (or similar) duplicate content
• Multiple pages have minimal content within them to be considered unique
• Pay Per Click landing pages have accidentally been indexed
• Low quality pages have been indexed
• Content within the site has multiple URL’s

Bigger SEO Problems Causing Omitted Results

1. Duplicate, Thin or AI-Generated Content

Duplicate content is one of the most common reasons Google omits pages from its search results so we will spend the most time on this big potentially big problem. Many assume it only applies to word-for-word plagiarism, but that’s not the case. Google may filter out or deprioritize pages that are too similar in structure, topic, or keyword intent, even if the content itself isn’t exactly the same.

Duplicate ≠ Identical

Pages with the same layout, repeated meta descriptions, similar headlines, or overlapping keyword targets can be flagged as “too similar” to one another. This often happens when:

• You create multiple location pages with only minor differences.
• You publish AI-generated content with minimal human input or originality.
• You syndicate articles across partner sites without proper attribution or canonicalization.
• You write several blog posts that cover the same topic from slightly different angles.

If Google thinks multiple pages serve the same purpose, it may choose just one to show in results and omit the others.

How You Can Manage Duplicate Content Proactively

Fortunately, there are tools and techniques that help you control how your similar content is treated:

• Canonical tags – Tell Google which version of a page is the “preferred” one to rank, especially if you have variations or syndications.
• Noindex tags – Prevent certain pages from being indexed at all (like thank-you pages, archives, or thin content).
• URL parameters – Ensure that dynamic URLs (e.g. ?sort=price) don’t create duplicate versions of the same content.

When used correctly, these tools can help preserve your content’s visibility while reducing confusion in how Google processes it.

Watch Out for Low-Value or AI-Generated Content

With the rise of auto-generated content tools, many websites are unknowingly publishing large volumes of low-value or repetitive content. Google’s Helpful Content System is designed to detect and devalue pages that:

• Lack original insight or human perspective.
• Exist only to target a keyword without providing real value.
• Appear mass-produced, templated, or overly generic.

2. Internal Linking and Authority Signals are Lacking

One of the most overlooked reasons pages get omitted from search results is that Google doesn’t see them as important (or even necessary) compared to other pages on your site. This often comes down to weak internal linking and a lack of authority signals.

If a page isn’t linked to from other parts of your site, search engines may consider it less valuable or even orphaned. To strengthen your internal SEO and reduce omitted results, you should:

• Link to key pages from your main navigation or high-traffic content.
• Use descriptive anchor text that signals what the page is about.
• Structure your site logically, with topic clusters that support related content.
• Avoid burying pages deep in your site where crawlers (and users) may not find them easily.

In addition to internal links, external links (backlinks) also impact whether a page is deemed worthy of appearing in results. If your page lacks inbound links or only receives links from low-quality sources, it may struggle to compete—even if the content is decent.

• Focus on earning backlinks from reputable websites in your industry or region.
• Submit your site to relevant directories or citation sources if you’re a local business.
• Avoid spammy link-building practices that can hurt your site’s overall trust.

Improving both your internal and external linking sends strong signals to Google that your content is trustworthy, well-connected, and worth showing in search results—instead of hiding it behind an “omitted results” message.

3. Technical Accuracy Is Subpar

Sometimes, it’s not the content itself that’s the problem. It’s more about how Google interprets or prioritizes it. If your website has multiple similar pages, outdated content, or technical inconsistencies, Google’s algorithm may choose to hide certain versions in the search results to avoid redundancy. When multiple pages cover similar content, Google picks the one it believes is most helpful—and may omit the rest from visible search results, even if they’re technically indexed.

Even if these pages aren’t duplicates in the strictest sense, they can still be filtered or omitted if Google believes they don’t contribute anything new.

• Page authority – Is one version better linked to or referenced than others?
• Performance – Which page loads faster or provides a better user experience?
• Freshness – Has the content been recently updated or is it outdated?

Be use to use tools like Google Search Console and URL Inspection Tool to diagnose crawl issues including what is indexed, when it was last crawled, and if it’s eligible to appear in search results.

How to Stop Google from Omitting Results

If you have spotted the possible reasons why your pages are falling into the Google omitted results, you need to take the time to correct these areas in order to begin gaining better exposure.  Below are a few tips on how to correct these problematic areas:

• Ensure that each page within your website has a unique title tag
• Ensure that each page within your website has a unique meta description tag
• Ensure that you have not replicated a large portion of your page content across many pages within your website (duplicate content)
• Ensure that your Pay Per Click landing pages are marked “Noindex” or placed within a folder that is disallowed / excluded via the robots.txt file.

Ensure that all pages within your website are created with good quality content…any pages that are created for the visitors and are not good representations of what your site’s theme and content is about should be removed via the “Noindex” or via the robots.txt file

Still Stuck in Google’s Omitted Results?

If after this tutorial you still need assistance in getting your web pages indexed and ranking well you can fill out this Contact Form and have our SEO consultants take a look at your website. You can also contact us at 1-888-262-6687 or send us a message.