Backlink indexing data: current measurements

Current measurements

The table below is the full set of figures this site publishes. Each one is an average from IndexChex's own weekly measurement on recurring URL sets, current as of October 2026. None of them is a guarantee for any single URL or job.

The measured tool is IndexChex, which also publishes this site. That interest is stated here and on every page so readers can weigh the numbers accordingly. How the four figures fit together is explained on the weekly indexing benchmark page, and what each number does and does not mean is set out in the benchmark methodology.

What this site is for

Most indexing figures in circulation are marketing statements with no date, no definition and no stated basis. This observatory keeps a small number of figures, dates them, defines the metric behind each one and says plainly which details are not published. Where other vendors publish their own rates, those statements are collected with source links on a separate page and labelled as vendor claims, not tests.

How to use the figures

The four numbers answer different questions, so they are best read together rather than one at a time. First crawl time says how quickly a submitted URL reaches Google at all. The two indexation rates say how many of those URLs Google then keeps, on two different clocks: minutes for instant mode, days for standard mode. Checker accuracy says how far the verdicts behind both rates can be trusted.

A practical reading for planning: submit, expect a crawl within minutes, and verify with an index check once the relevant window has passed (about 10 minutes for instant jobs, about day 5 for standard jobs). URLs still missing after that window are worth inspecting for noindex tags, robots.txt blocks, canonicals and thin content before resubmitting. Cost per indexed URL, which is the fairer basis for comparing tools that refund unindexed links, is worked out on each mode page from published IndexChex prices.

What the data cannot show is how your own links will perform. Source sites, page quality and link types vary, and no per-type breakdown has been published. Running a small controlled test is the reliable way to get that answer.

Directory

Benchmarks

• IndexChex weekly indexing benchmark: what is measured, in which modes, at what cadence, and what is left out.
• Instant-mode indexing rate: the 95%+ figure, what drives it and the cost per indexed URL.
• Standard-mode indexing rate: the 85%+ figure for typical links and citations.
• Time to first Googlebot crawl: the gap between submission and the first fetch.
• Index checker accuracy benchmark: how often a check verdict matches reality.

Analysis

• The backlink indexing timeline: from submission to a stable index state.
• Crawl-to-index lag: why a crawled URL is not yet an indexed URL.
• Why indexing rates vary: page quality, host, duplication and directives.
• How to read indexing-rate claims: denominators, windows and bases.
• Vendor-published indexing claims: what other tools state, with sources.

Method

• Benchmark methodology: metric definitions and what is not published.
• How to benchmark an indexer yourself: a reproducible test plan.
• Indexing metrics defined: a reference list of terms used in the data.

Tools

• IndexChex (measured tool): the product behind the numbers.

Reference

• Data license and citation: reuse terms for the published figures.
• Observatory FAQ: short answers on the data.
• About, editorial policy and ownership: who publishes this site and how corrections work.

For definitions of the vocabulary used here, the network also runs a glossary of indexing terms.