Bing Webmaster Tools

Bing Webmaster Tools is a free Microsoft service that helps website owners, developers, and SEO professionals monitor how their websites are discovered, crawled, indexed, and displayed in Bing search experiences.

It is broadly comparable to Google Search Console (GSC), providing data about search performance, indexing, crawling, sitemaps, and technical SEO issues. Bing Webmaster Tools also includes built-in features for keyword research, backlink analysis, site auditing, IndexNow monitoring, and AI citation reporting.

The service traces its origins to Live Webmaster Center, which Microsoft opened to all webmasters in November 2007. After Bing was introduced in 2009, Microsoft began referring to it as Bing Webmaster Center, and by 2010 the platform was being called Bing Webmaster Tools.

Bing Webmaster Tools primarily reports information about Bing search experiences. Bing technology also contributes to other search and AI services, but the dashboard should not be interpreted as a complete analytics system for every Bing-powered search partner.

How Bing Webmaster Tools Helps Website Owners and Marketers

Bing Webmaster Tools combines search-performance reporting with several tools for diagnosing indexing and SEO problems. For example, a website owner can use Bing Webmaster Tools to find which search queries generate impressions and clicks, why an important URL is not indexed, or whether Bingbot is encountering crawl errors.

Similarly, an SEO professional can compare backlink profiles, research Bing keyword demand, inspect sitemaps, and use Site Scan to uncover technical issues. Publishers can also monitor IndexNow activity and AI citations to review the crawl and index status of submitted URLs and see how content is cited across supported Microsoft AI experiences.

1. Search Performance: The Search Performance report shows how a website performs across supported Bing search experiences. Important metrics include impressions, clicks, average CTR, average position, crawl errors, crawl requests, and indexed pages. Performance can also be analyzed by individual pages and search queries.
2. URL Submission and IndexNow: Individual URLs can be submitted to Bing for discovery. Websites can also implement IndexNow, an open protocol that immediately notifies participating search engines when URLs are added, updated, or deleted. IndexNow can help search engines discover changes faster, but notification does not guarantee immediate crawling or indexing.
3. Sitemap Management: XML sitemaps and other supported sitemap formats can be submitted so Bing can discover important URLs more efficiently. The dashboard can then be used to monitor whether Bing successfully processes the submitted sitemap.
4. URL Inspection and Site Explorer: URL Inspection checks a specific URL for indexing status, crawling issues, SEO problems, and detected markup. Its Live URL option shows what Bingbot receives when fetching the page. Site Explorer provides a broader view of URLs and website structure.
5. Backlink Analysis: The Backlinks section provides information about referring pages, referring domains, linked pages, and anchor text. Bing also provides comparison functionality for examining a site’s backlink profile alongside other websites. Backlink reports should be treated as a representative dataset rather than a complete record of every link on the web.
6. Keyword Research: Unlike Google Search Console, Bing Webmaster Tools includes a dedicated Keyword Research feature. It provides keyword ideas, search-volume statistics, trends, recently relevant terms, and related questions. The figures can be used to compare keyword demand and search trends over time.
7. Site Scan and SEO Reports: Site Scan crawls selected sections of a website and reports common technical SEO problems. Bing also provides automated SEO reports that identify errors, warnings, and recommendations that may deserve attention.
8. AI Performance: Introduced in public preview in February 2026, AI Performance shows how website content is referenced as a source across Microsoft Copilot, Bing’s AI-generated search summaries, and supported partner integrations. Metrics include Total Citations, Grounding Queries, Average Cited Pages, citation activity for individual pages, and citation trends.

How to Set Up Bing Webmaster Tools

A website can either be imported from an existing Google Search Console account or added and verified manually.

Option A: Import From Google Search Console

For websites already verified in Google Search Console, importing is usually the quickest setup method.

1. Go to Bing Webmaster Tools and sign in.
2. Choose the option to import sites from Google Search Console.
3. Sign in to the Google account associated with Search Console and provide the requested permission.
4. Select the verified websites to add.
5. Select Import.

Successfully imported properties are verified automatically in Bing Webmaster Tools, so another verification tag or DNS record is normally unnecessary. Bing can also import the property’s submitted sitemaps and periodically confirm that Search Console ownership remains valid.

Importing a property does not import Google’s Search Console performance data into Bing. It primarily simplifies site verification and initial setup.

Option B: Add and Verify the Site Manually

If the website is not being imported from Search Console:

1. Sign in to Bing Webmaster Tools.
2. Choose Add a site, enter the website URL, and add the property.
3. Select one of the ownership-verification methods Bing provides.
4. Complete the verification and return to Bing Webmaster Tools.

Bing currently supports several verification methods:

• DNS Auto Verification: Available through supported DNS providers using Domain Connect.
• XML File: Download the supplied BingSiteAuth.xml file and place it in the site’s root directory.
• HTML Meta Tag: Add Bing’s verification meta tag to the <head> section of the homepage.
• CNAME Record: Add the supplied CNAME information through the domain’s DNS provider.

After a newly verified site is added, Bing says reporting data usually begins appearing within about 48 hours.

Metrics and Reports to Monitor in Bing Webmaster Tools

Bing Webmaster Tools contains several reports, but most website owners do not need to monitor every available metric with the same frequency. The most useful recurring checks usually relate to search visibility, crawling and indexing, technical SEO issues, backlinks, and AI citations.

The newer AI Performance report adds another layer by showing how content is cited across supported Microsoft AI experiences. Together, these reports help distinguish between visibility problems, indexing problems, technical issues, and changes in how content is being surfaced in both traditional and AI-assisted search. Microsoft expanded AI Performance in June 2026 with additional insights including Intents, Topics, Citation Share, and comparison features.

The Search Performance report is particularly useful because an impression can come from different Bing experiences, including traditional web results and supported Search features.

AI Performance should be interpreted separately from traditional rankings. An AI citation indicates that a website was shown as a source in a supported AI-generated answer; it does not indicate a conventional ranking position or authority score.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Bing Webmaster Tools completely free to use?

Yes. Bing Webmaster Tools is free for website owners and authorized users. No Microsoft Advertising campaign or paid subscription is required.

Can Bing Webmaster Tools import sites from Google Search Console?

Yes, verified Google Search Console properties can be imported into Bing Webmaster Tools, simplifying ownership verification and sitemap setup. Google’s search-performance metrics are not transferred into Bing’s reports.

What is IndexNow and how does it speed up indexing?

IndexNow is a protocol that allows websites to notify participating search engines when a URL is created, changed, or deleted. This can help search engines discover updates sooner instead of waiting until their crawlers independently revisit the URL. It does not guarantee that a submitted page will be crawled or indexed immediately.

Does Bing Webmaster Tools report performance data for Google, DuckDuckGo, or Yahoo?

It does not provide Google Search performance data. Bing technology contributes to other search services, including Yahoo and DuckDuckGo, but Bing Webmaster Tools should not be treated as a separate analytics dashboard for each partner. Its AI Performance report additionally covers supported Microsoft AI experiences and select partner integrations.

Is it possible to find keyword search volumes directly inside the dashboard?

Yes, Bing Webmaster Tools’ Keyword Research tool provides search-volume statistics, trends, related questions, and keyword ideas. These figures can be used to compare keyword demand and trends across the available filters and time periods.

Why is the website showing in Google but missing from Bing?

Google and Bing crawl and index websites independently, so inclusion in Google does not guarantee inclusion in Bing. Use Bing’s URL Inspection tool to check indexing status, robots.txt restrictions, HTTP responses, canonicalization, crawl problems, and other SEO issues. Submitting an XML sitemap and implementing IndexNow can also help Bing discover important URLs.

How is Bing Webmaster Tools different from Google Search Console?

Both tools report search performance, crawling, indexing, and website issues for their respective search engines. Bing Webmaster Tools additionally provides convenient built-in features such as Keyword Research, Site Scan, backlink comparison, IndexNow reporting, and AI Performance, while Google Search Console provides Google’s own first-party Search performance and indexing data.