Robots.txt is a text file located on a website's server that provides instructions to web crawlers or search engine bots about which pages or sections of a website should or should not be crawled or indexed. It plays a crucial role in search engine optimization (SEO) by helping website owners control how search engines access and display their site's content in search results.
Hence, using robots.txt best practices improves your rankings in the search engine results page (SERP) and brings several benefits to your website's SEO performance. Let’s learn how -
- It provides you with greater control over crawler access
- It prevents duplicate content issues
- It can ensure that your key pages are crawled and indexed more regularly
- It protects sensitive data and provides a layer of security
- It improves website load speed
In conclusion, Robots.txt is a simple but powerful file. Use it wisely, and it can have a positive impact on SEO. Properly configuring this file can help improve your site's search engine visibility and ranking while protecting sensitive information and optimizing the crawl budget.