How to stop removed URLs from popping back up in Google SERPs?

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VEXNOX3

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The problem is, after the temporary removal period ends, the URL sometimes pops right back into the search results, even though the page is a completely dead 404 or 410 now. It feels like Google’s cache takes ages to actually drop the dead link permanently.
 
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VEXNOX3 said:
The problem is, after the temporary removal period ends, the URL sometimes pops right back into the search results, even though the page is a completely dead 404 or 410 now. It feels like Google’s cache takes ages to actually drop the dead link permanently.
Click to expand...
This is something I have faced before. the page URL is blocked via the google search console removal tool, but it is not actually removed by google. I will be receiving 404/410 error on this page nd I will block all internal links to it.
 
VEXNOX3 said:
The problem is, after the temporary removal period ends, the URL sometimes pops right back into the search results, even though the page is a completely dead 404 or 410 now. It feels like Google’s cache takes ages to actually drop the dead link permanently.
Click to expand...
I have experienced such an issue on one of my websites. the solution of taking out that URL from the google search console will not solve the issue for long. the best practice would be to give the URL a 404 or 410 status nd to find any links pointing towards that URL on your website.
 
If the URL is genuinely returning a 404 or 410, Google should eventually drop it without needing repeated removal requests.

Try check that the status code is consistent, remove any internal links pointing to it, and update or remove the sitemap entry.

Also check for backlinks or redirects that might keep Google revisiting the URL.
 
VEXNOX3 said:
The problem is, after the temporary removal period ends, the URL sometimes pops right back into the search results, even though the page is a completely dead 404 or 410 now. It feels like Google’s cache takes ages to actually drop the dead link permanently.
Click to expand...
nevertheless, this removal tool will only make the URL invisible temporarily. this is not an actual removal from the index. I would also see to it that there are no internal links, sitemap links, and old backlinks linking to the same URL since google could still find it via other sources. If google always displays 410, then just leave it for some time.
 
A 410 response should make it clear that the page is permanently gone, but Google still needs to recrawl it.
 
I would also check the exact URL variant that is showing in the results. A trailing slash, a parameter, or the http version can return something different from the version you tested, and that is enough for Google to keep it around. Server logs are useful here too, because they show whether Googlebot actually fetched the 410 or only saw the cached version. Once the right variant is consistently returning 410 and nothing on the site links to it, it usually just needs another crawl cycle to drop.
 
VEXNOX3 said:
The problem is, after the temporary removal period ends, the URL sometimes pops right back into the search results, even though the page is a completely dead 404 or 410 now. It feels like Google’s cache takes ages to actually drop the dead link permanently.
Click to expand...
It just hides the URL for around 6 months because the site has not been deindexed. After 6 months, the URL appears in search engine results.

Solution:

Check robots.txt if the page is being blocked and is not accessible to Google bots to fetch the 404 page.
Ensure it is not soft 404 or redirect to homepage.
Take out the URL from the site map and remove it internally.
Try Google Search Console Test live URL tool to know what Google sees on the URL.
If some URL is still problematic, then put up a no-index live page temporarily and make it a 404 or 410 after some time.
 
You don't need to keep submitting temporary removals. If the URL is permanently gone, make sure it consistently returns a proper 404 or 410 status code and isn't being redirected to an irrelevant page.

Also check your sitemap, internal links, and canonical tags to make sure the URL isn't still being referenced somewhere. Google needs to recrawl the URL and process the status change.

The removal tool only hides it temporarily, so the permanent solution is fixing the signals on your website and allowing Google to recrawl it.
 
If URLs keep appearing in Google SERPs after removal, I'd first check why Google is still indexing them. Make sure unwanted pages return a proper 404 or 410 status, or use a noindex tag if the pages still need to remain accessible. Also check for internal links, duplicate URL variations, and sitemap entries pointing to those pages. The Search Console removal tool is only temporary, so fixing the underlying indexing issue is important.
 
The GSC removal only hides a URL for about six months. They come back because Google keeps finding them through external links, an old sitemap or internal links. Make sure the 410 is real (not a 200 page that says not found), pull them from the sitemap and internal links, and don't block them in robots.txt or Googlebot never sees the 410. If they have external links, a 301 to a close page is sometimes easier.
 
VEXNOX3 said:
The problem is, after the temporary removal period ends, the URL sometimes pops right back into the search results, even though the page is a completely dead 404 or 410 now. It feels like Google’s cache takes ages to actually drop the dead link permanently.
Click to expand...
You need to make sure they return a proper 404 or 410 status code and remove any internal links pointing to them.
Did you inspect these URLs in Google Search Console?
 
been there lol, 404 alone didn't cut it for me. 410 plus removing internal links finally got them to drop tbh
 
If the site uses a CDN, compare the HTTP status returned by the origin server and the CDN for the affected URLs. A stale cached 200 response could explain why a removed page still appears accessible. If the responses differ, check the cache rules and purge the outdated response.
 
VEXNOX3 said:
The problem is, after the temporary removal period ends, the URL sometimes pops right back into the search results, even though the page is a completely dead 404 or 410 now. It feels like Google’s cache takes ages to actually drop the dead link permanently.
Click to expand...
this could be true of CDN caches as well, especially when you have got different HTTP code for the same URL from both the CDN edge nd origin server. there have been instances where the old HTTP code gets cached and keeps coming even when you remove the URL or make change on the server-side. I want to check my cache status to purge the URLs and see if there is any difference that way. do you test your responses via cloudflare or do the same from the origin as well?
 
Use 410 instead of 404 if the pages are permanently gone. Also make sure those URLs are removed from your sitemap.
 
The key is to make sure the URLs consistently return a proper410 or 404 remove them from your sitemap and internal links and allow Google to crawl them again. The temporary removal tool only hides them for a while; it doesn't remove them permanently.
 
If the page is permanently gone, I'd keep the 404 or 410 status, remove all internal links pointing to it, and update the sitemap. Also check for backlinks or redirects that might be bringing the URL back.
 
VEXNOX3 said:
The problem is, after the temporary removal period ends, the URL sometimes pops right back into the search results, even though the page is a completely dead 404 or 410 now. It feels like Google’s cache takes ages to actually drop the dead link permanently.
Click to expand...
I think the most important thing would be to ensure that the Google bot can have regular access to the 404 or 410 status code temporary removals only conceal URLs for a certain period of time so this cannot be used as an alternative to deindexation i would also check the internal linking and sitemap
 
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