> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://waybackrevive.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# SEO Friendliness of Your Restored Website Explained

> Restored sites include original URLs, title tags, meta descriptions, and a sitemap. Learn what's covered, what isn't guaranteed, and what to do after launch.

Wayback Revive follows SEO-friendly practices throughout the restoration process. Your restored site is built to be indexable and structurally sound from day one — but there are realistic limits to what restoration can achieve, and some actions are your responsibility after launch.

## What's included in every restoration

* **Original page URLs** — we preserve your existing URL structure wherever the archive allows, so existing bookmarks and any surviving backlinks continue to point to the right pages
* **Title tags and meta descriptions** — recovered from the archived HTML and applied to each page
* **Clean HTML structure** — semantic markup with properly nested headings, which search engines use to understand page hierarchy
* **XML sitemap** — generated for your domain and ready to submit to search consoles

## SEO limitations to be aware of

<Warning>
  Restoration does not guarantee search ranking recovery. Rankings depend on many factors outside the scope of website restoration.
</Warning>

* **Rankings are not guaranteed** — search engines treat a restored site as a new or returning site. Previous ranking positions are not reinstated automatically.
* **Reindexing takes time** — even after your sitemap is submitted, it may take weeks for search engines to crawl and index all pages.
* **Lost backlinks may affect results** — backlinks pointing to your old domain that were removed during your site's downtime cannot be recovered through restoration alone.

## Best practices after your site goes live

<Steps>
  <Step title="Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console">
    Log in to [Google Search Console](https://search.google.com/search-console), add your property, and submit the sitemap URL (typically `https://yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml`). This tells Google your site is live and ready to crawl.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Check and configure redirects">
    If any URLs changed during restoration, set up 301 redirects from the old paths to the new ones. This passes any remaining link equity and prevents 404 errors for returning visitors.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Review and update meta content">
    Archived title tags and meta descriptions may be outdated or missing for some pages. Review them and update as needed using your CMS or HTML files.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add fresh content where possible">
    Search engines favour sites that show signs of activity. Publishing new or updated content after launch helps signal that your site is active.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Note>
  If you chose the WordPress delivery format, you can manage title tags, meta descriptions, and sitemaps using a plugin such as Yoast SEO or Rank Math.
</Note>