Is adding meta data to the 404 page in Webflow a safer and better method for no indexing compared to disallowing the 404 page?

Using metadata to instruct search engines not to index your 404 page is safer and more effective in Webflow than disallowing the page via robots.txt.

1. Why Meta Tags Are Preferred for 404 Pages

• Adding a noindex meta tag explicitly tells search engines not to include the page in their index, even if it’s accessible and linked internally.
• Proper 404 pages should return a HTTP 404 status code and include a <meta name="robots" content="noindex"> tag.
• This ensures the crawler understands the page is intentionally shown because the URL doesn’t exist for the user, and it shouldn’t be indexed.

2. Why You Should Avoid Disallowing via robots.txt

• Using Disallow: in robots.txt prevents search engines from crawling the page, but they may still index the URL if they find links pointing to it (without seeing the page content).
• This can lead to “soft 404” issues or stale indexed pages, especially on high-visibility sites.
• With no crawl access, search engines can’t see the real 404 status or the intended metadata.

3. How to Add Meta Tags to the 404 Page in Webflow

• Go to the Pages panel in the Webflow Designer.
• Scroll to the Utility Pages section and select the 404 page.
• Open Page Settings (click gear icon next to the 404 page).
• In the Custom Code section under Inside Head Tag, add:
  <meta name="robots" content="noindex, nofollow">
• Click Save and publish your site.

4. Benefits of This Approach

• Ensures correct SEO behavior without blocking needed access for bots to evaluate the status.
• Maintains crawlability, allowing search engines to confirm the page returns a valid 404 status.
• Reduces risk of erroneously indexed broken URLs.

Summary

Adding a noindex meta tag to the 404 page in Webflow is safer and more effective than disallowing it via robots.txt. It ensures proper SEO handling while maintaining crawl access for bots to verify the page's 404 status.