Fetch and Render
The Fetch & Render tool within Google Search Console enables you to test how Google crawls a page on a website, along with how they visually render it on mobile and desktop devices. This enables you to pinpoint and fix any errors which may be occurring. While it is a useful tool, there are some guidelines that should be adhered to.
Google’s guidelines for using the tool are covered within our SEO Office Hours Notes below, along with further advice on the Fetch & Render tool from Google.
Fetch as Google Content Shows a More Limited Page Size than Web Search
Fetch as Google is limited to a couple of hundred KBs, which is lower than the amount accepted by Web search.
Structured Data Testing Tool Doesn’t Render JavaScript
The structured data testing tool doesn’t render JavaScript, so if you are deliving structured markup via JavaScript, you can make the structured data visible on a test page, then use Fetch and Render to confirm it can be processed correctly.
Submit Redirected URLs When Changing URLs
It makes sense to submit both the old and new URLs when you have changed them. Google may increase the crawl rate automatically when it thinks something has changed.
Don’t Deliberately Block Pop-ups for Googlebot
If you have a pop-up which doesn’t show in Fetch and Render, then it probably isn’t seen by Googlebot. But if you are using a technique to block this deliberately then it could be interpreted as cloaking and result in a manual penalty in extreme situations. If Googlebot is able to see the pop-up, it might result in the content on the pop-up being given more weight than the content on the page.
Lazy Loaded Images Won’t Be Indexed
Images loaded via lazy load probably won’t get indexed, particularly if they are not showing up in the Fetch and Render tool.
Use Fetch and Render to Test Overlays
If you have some kind of overlay or pop-up on landing pages, you can check what it looks like to Googlebot using the Fetch and Render tool in Search Console, and check the impact on engagement using web analytics.
Google’s JavaScript Rendering is Incomplete
Google’s rendering of JavaScript HTML pages is ‘incomplete’ so you need to test it very carefully with Fetch and Render.
Fetch & Render Shows Results for a Googlebot and Browser User Agent
The Fetch and Render tool shows you 2 different renders, one for Googlebot which used the Googlebot user agent, and one for users which used a browser user agent. If JS/CSS is disallowed for Googlebot, it may not be able to render all the content in the same way.
Use Fetch & Render to Test JavaScript Sites
JavaScript based sites should be fine now for SEO and you don’t need to worry about it. However there can be some issues you might have with this approach. Fetch and Render in search console is the best way to check this.