Google's search crawler. It fetches pages so they can be indexed and ranked in Google Search. Intent: search index. Stores your pages so they can show up in search results.

What is the Googlebot user agent?

Requests from Googlebot carry "googlebot" in the User-Agent header (matching is case-insensitive). The full string includes a version number that changes over time; Google's documentation lists the current one. In robots.txt, the token is Googlebot.

How do I block Googlebot in robots.txt?

Add "User-agent: Googlebot" followed by "Disallow: /" to your robots.txt. Blocking Googlebot does not block Google-Extended: each has its own token and its own rule. robots.txt is a request, not a lock: a scraper using Googlebot's name ignores it, which is why verification matters.

How do I spot a fake Googlebot?

Anyone can put "Googlebot" in a User-Agent header. A real Googlebot request comes from an IP whose reverse DNS ends in .googlebot.com or .google.com, and that hostname resolves back to the same IP. If the check fails, the request is a fake Googlebot using Google's name.

Where is Google's Googlebot IP list now?

Google moved its crawler IP lists in April 2026. The common-crawler list (which covers Googlebot) is at https://developers.google.com/static/crawling/ipranges/common-crawlers.json. The old /static/search/apis/ipranges/googlebot.json address is no longer current.

Can I see when Googlebot visits my site?

Yes. HadoSEO logs every Googlebot request by page, checks it against Google's published data, and flags requests that use the name from IPs Google doesn't own. For a one-off look, the free log file analyzer reads a week of your server logs in the browser.

[ search crawler · Google ]

Googlebot: Google's search crawler.

Google's search crawler. It fetches pages so they can be indexed and ranked in Google Search. Its intent is search index: stores your pages so they can show up in search results.

search indexverifiable by reverse DNS

IP ranges last updated Oct 25, 2026

Check a Googlebot IP All AI crawlers

[ technical facts ]

operator: Google
intent: search index
user agent contains: googlebot
robots.txt token: Googlebot
verification: reverse DNSverified
reverse DNS: .googlebot.com, .google.com
official IP list: developers.google.com/static/crawling/ipranges/common-crawlers.json
last updated: Oct 25, 2026
operator docs: developers.google.com/crawling/docs/crawlers-fetchers/google-common-crawlers

[ verify ]

How to verify a real Googlebot request.

Forward-confirmed reverse DNS: the IP's hostname must end in .googlebot.com or .google.com, and that hostname must resolve back to the same IP.

01Check the User-Agent header contains "googlebot" (case-insensitive). That is only a claim: anyone can send it.
02Run a reverse DNS lookup on the IP. The hostname must end in .googlebot.com or .google.com.
03Run a forward lookup on that hostname. It must return the original IP (forward-confirmed reverse DNS).
04Google also publishes an IP list you can check instead: https://developers.google.com/static/crawling/ipranges/common-crawlers.json.

Skip the lookups: the free bot verifier checks one IP against the same registry, and the log file analyzer checks every Googlebot request in a week of access logs. Requests that fail are flagged as spoofed, not hidden.

[ robots.txt ]

Block or allow Googlebot in robots.txt.

Add one of these groups to the robots.txt at your domain root. The token matches case-insensitively. Google runs other crawlers with their own tokens, so a rule for Googlebot leaves Google-Extended (training) untouched.

block Googlebot

User-agent: Googlebot
Disallow: /

allow Googlebot

User-agent: Googlebot
Allow: /

robots.txt only binds crawlers that choose to follow it. A scraper sending Googlebot's user agent from its own servers won't, which is why HadoSEO checks the IP behind every request.

[ questions ]

Googlebot, answered.

[ free scan ]