In this guide · 8 sections
Short answer
Go to Search Console, add a Domain property for your domain, copy the TXT record Google gives you into your DNS, and click Verify. Then submit your sitemap URL, add your web developer as a Full user (not an owner) and check Performance and Page indexing monthly.
Domain property or URL-prefix property?
Search Console calls each website a property. Google's property help page offers two kinds for websites:
Domain property
Recommended- Covers http and https, www and every subdomain
- One property for the whole business domain
- Verified only by a DNS record
Best for: Almost every small business that controls its domain.
URL-prefix property
- Covers only one exact address, such as https://www.example.com
- Can be verified by HTML file, meta tag, Google Analytics or Tag Manager
- Useful for tracking one section, such as /blog/
Best for: When you cannot edit DNS, or want a separate view of one section.
Google's help also mentions platform properties for Instagram, TikTok, X and YouTube accounts. They are optional and separate from your website property.
If you do not know who manages your domain's DNS, find out first. Look up where your domain is registered and check your registrar account; if an old agency controls it, our guide to getting website and domain access back covers how to recover it.
Step by step: verify your site in Search Console
These steps follow Google's ownership verification guide. Use a Google account the business controls, ideally a shared admin address rather than one person's personal Gmail.
Open Search Console and add a property
Go to search.google.com/search-console, choose Add property, then Domain. Type your domain without https or www, for example example.com.sg.
Copy the TXT record
Search Console shows a TXT record that starts with google-site-verification=. Copy it. For some registrars Google offers to add it for you after you sign in.
Add the TXT record in your DNS
Sign in to your DNS host (often your registrar or Cloudflare). Add a TXT record with Host or Name set to @ (or left blank, depending on the provider) and the value you copied.
Click Verify
Go back to Search Console and click Verify. If it fails, Google says manually added records can take up to two or three days to be served, so wait a day and try again.
Leave the record in place
Do not delete the TXT record later. Search Console checks it periodically, and removing the token removes your verification.
Google notes that data starts collecting as soon as the property is added, but it takes a few days to appear. Do not worry if the reports look empty on day one.
Submit your sitemap
A sitemap is a file listing the pages you want Google to find. Google's Sitemaps report help says a small site of about 500 pages or fewer, where every page is reachable by links from the homepage, probably does not need one. Most website platforms create one automatically anyway, so submitting it costs nothing.
- Shopify and Wix generate a sitemap at /sitemap.xml.
- WordPress creates /wp-sitemap.xml by default; SEO plugins such as Yoast use /sitemap_index.xml instead.
- Custom sites need a sitemap generated by the developer.
Open the address in your browser first to check it loads. Then in Search Console go to Sitemaps, paste the address into Add a new sitemap and click Submit. Google says you need owner permission to submit; if the status is not Success, click the row to see the error. Submitting means telling Google where the file is; Google then fetches it on its own schedule.
Add users without sharing your password
Never give an agency or freelancer your Google account password. Add them as users instead. Google's permissions help page defines these roles:
| Role | What they can do | Give it to |
|---|---|---|
| Verified owner | Full control; proved ownership with a token such as the DNS record | The business itself |
| Delegated owner | Same rights as an owner, added by an owner without a token | A second senior person in the business |
| Full user | View all data and take some actions | Your SEO agency or web developer |
| Restricted user | View most data | Staff who only need to see reports |
To add someone, go to Settings > Users and permissions > Add user, enter their Google account email and choose the role. A property can have up to 100 non-owner users. When an agency relationship ends, remove them here. Google warns that if all verified owners lose access, every user loses access to the property, so always keep at least one verified owner inside the business.
The three reports worth checking every month
Search Console has many reports. For a small business, a ten-minute monthly look at these three covers most of what matters.
Monthly Search Console check
If a page you care about is not indexed, our guide to crawled but not indexed pages explains the common reasons, and why a website is not showing on Google covers the wider checks. For local searches like a business name or 'near me', your Google Business Profile matters as much as your website; see our Google Business Profile setup guide.
Common Search Console setup problems
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Verification TXT record not found | DNS not yet updated, or record added at the wrong DNS host | Check which nameservers your domain uses; add the record there and wait a day |
| Verified, but data is empty | New property | Wait a few days for data to collect |
| Sitemap status Couldn't fetch | Wrong URL, or sitemap blocked | Open the sitemap URL in a browser and check robots.txt |
| An old agency is the only owner | Agency set it up in its own account | Verify ownership yourself with DNS, then remove their token and access |
| Two properties showing different numbers | Domain and URL-prefix properties overlap | Use the Domain property as your main view |
Do it yourself or get help?
If you can log in to your DNS host, setting up Search Console yourself is a 15-minute job, and it is worth doing even if you never touch SEO otherwise: it is the only place Google tells you directly about indexing and security problems.
If DNS is held by someone else, or the reports show problems you are not sure how to fix, our Speed & SEO Fix (S$390) sets up Search Console and your sitemap, fixes page speed, titles, descriptions and broken links, and leaves access in your name.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Google Search Console is a free tool from Google for website owners. It shows how your site performs in Google Search, which pages are indexed, and any security or manual action problems. You only need a Google account and the ability to verify that you own the website.
Clicking Verify is instant once Google can see your DNS record. Google says manually added DNS records can take up to two or three days to be served, so if verification fails at first, wait a day and try again. Report data then takes a few more days to appear.
A Domain property is the better default for a small business because it covers http and https, www and all subdomains in one place. It needs a DNS record to verify. Use a URL-prefix property if you cannot edit DNS or want a separate view of one part of the site.
Not always. Google says sites of about 500 pages or fewer, with every page reachable through links from the homepage, probably do not need one. Most platforms generate a sitemap automatically, so submitting it in the Sitemaps report takes a minute and helps Google find new pages.
Go to Settings, Users and permissions, then Add user, and enter the agency's Google account email. Choose Full user so they can see all data and take some actions, while ownership stays with your business. Remove them from the same screen when the work ends.