Why Does Bing Matter for AI Search, and What Is IndexNow?

By Bill Stilwell · Last reviewed October 16, 2026

The short answer

Microsoft Copilot answers are grounded in Bing search results, so being indexed in Bing matters for artificial intelligence (AI) search, not just for Bing users. Set up Bing Webmaster Tools, submit your sitemap, and turn on IndexNow. IndexNow is a free way to tell Bing and other participating search engines the moment you add, change, or delete a page. Google is not a listed participant.

What this means

Bing Webmaster Tools is Microsoft’s free dashboard for site owners. It shows whether Bing has indexed your pages and, since February 2026, includes an AI Performance report in public preview that shows how often your pages are cited in Copilot and Bing’s AI answers.

IndexNow is an open protocol. Instead of waiting for a search engine to come back and notice a change, your site sends a quick message saying “this page changed.” IndexNow.org lists Microsoft Bing, Naver, Seznam.cz, Yandex, and Yep as participating engines. A submission to one is shared with the others.

Say a cleaning company adds a new “move-out cleaning” page. With IndexNow on, their site pings Bing as soon as the page is published. Without it, Bing finds the page whenever it next crawls the site.

Why it matters

If Bing hasn’t indexed a page, Copilot can’t easily cite it. Many small business owners set up Google Search Console and never touch Bing.

IndexNow also helps when facts change. If you update your hours or prices, the change can reach Bing faster, which means fewer old facts in AI answers.

Who this applies to

Every business with a website. It matters more if your site changes often, like a business that posts jobs, specials, or new project pages.

How to do it

Sign up for Bing Webmaster Tools, add your site, and verify that you own it.
Submit your Extensible Markup Language (XML) sitemap in Bing Webmaster Tools (see 19.5.8 XML Sitemaps).
Check that Bingbot isn’t blocked in robots.txt or by your host (see 19.13.2 AI Crawler Access).
Turn on IndexNow. The easy way is a plugin or platform setting. Bing’s IndexNow page lists support in tools like Yoast, Rank Math, AIOSEO, SEOPress, the IndexNow plugin, and Cloudflare’s Crawler Hints, plus several site platforms.
If you set it up by hand, IndexNow’s documentation says to create a key of 8 to 128 letters, numbers, or dashes, save it as a text file named with the key at the root of your site, and then send your changed web addresses (URLs) to a participating search engine.
Check your submissions in Bing Webmaster Tools under IndexNow.
Look at the AI Performance report each month to see which pages get cited (see 19.13.6 Tracking Traffic from AI Tools).
Claim your Bing Places listing too. That’s your local listing on Bing Maps (see 14.11.1 Bing Places for Business).

What proof to keep

Screenshot of your verified site in Bing Webmaster Tools
Screenshot of the submitted sitemap and its status
Screenshot of the IndexNow submission history
A note of which plugin or setting sends IndexNow pings

Store these in your website records folder.

Common mistakes

Skipping Bing because “nobody uses it.” Copilot answers are grounded in Bing.
Expecting IndexNow to help with Google. Google isn’t a listed participant. Keep using your sitemap and Search Console for Google.
Pinging pages that didn’t change. IndexNow is for real additions, changes, and deletions.
Running two IndexNow tools at once. A plugin plus a content delivery network (CDN) setting can send duplicate pings. Pick one.
Never logging in again. Set a monthly reminder to check indexing and the AI Performance report.

When to get help from a pro

A web developer: if your platform has no IndexNow plugin and you need it set up by hand. Questions to ask:

Which tool will send IndexNow pings, and where is the key file?
How will I see that submissions are working?

Bill’s note

[Bill: add a short story or lesson here. For example, a client site that was missing from Bing for months, or what you saw the first time you checked the AI Performance report.]

If you’d rather have this done for you, SiteSmarty sets up Bing Webmaster Tools, IndexNow, and Bing Places for local businesses.

How I did this for SiteSmarty

[Date I did this:]
[What I actually did, step by step: how I added SiteSmarty to Bing Webmaster Tools and which IndexNow method I used]
[What it cost and how long it took:]
[What surprised me or what I’d do differently:]
[Screenshot or photo to add, with private info blurred: Bing Webmaster Tools with sitemap, IndexNow history, and AI Performance]
[Result so far:]

Questions people ask

What is IndexNow? A free, open way for your site to tell participating search engines right away when a page is added, changed, or deleted.

Does Google use IndexNow? Google isn’t listed as a participant on IndexNow.org. Use your sitemap and Search Console for Google.

How do I set up Bing Webmaster Tools? Sign in, add your site, verify it, and submit your sitemap.

How do I see if Copilot cites my website? Bing Webmaster Tools has an AI Performance report, in public preview, that shows citations in Copilot and Bing AI answers.

Does my website platform support IndexNow? Many do through a plugin or setting. Bing’s IndexNow page lists supported tools.

Audit check

Question: Is the site verified in Bing Webmaster Tools, with a sitemap submitted and IndexNow sending real page changes?
Pass looks like: Site verified. Sitemap accepted. IndexNow submissions showing in Bing Webmaster Tools. Bingbot not blocked. AI Performance checked monthly.
Fail looks like: No Bing Webmaster Tools account. Sitemap errors. No IndexNow, or duplicate tools pinging. Bingbot blocked by a firewall.
Evidence to collect: Bing Webmaster Tools screenshots of verification, sitemap status, IndexNow history, and the AI Performance report.

Where this fits

Do this first: 19.5.8 XML Sitemaps, 19.13.2 AI Crawler Access

Do this next: 19.13.4 Brand and Entity Signals for AI

Sources

IndexNow.org, home page (checked October 16, 2026)
IndexNow.org, "Documentation" (checked October 16, 2026)
IndexNow.org, "FAQ" (checked October 16, 2026)
Bing, "How to add IndexNow to your website" (checked October 16, 2026)
Bing Webmaster Blog, "Introducing AI Performance in Bing Webmaster Tools Public Preview" (February 10, 2026) (checked October 16, 2026)

This page explains general rules and Bill's own experience. It is not legal, tax, or insurance advice. Talk to a qualified professional about your situation.