Google-Extended

Google-Extended is a robots.txt product token that lets site owners control whether Google may use their content to train its Gemini models and to ground answers in Gemini apps. It is not a separate crawler, and Google says it does not affect how a site appears or ranks in Google Search.

Written by Paul Hoda, SEO consultant since 2005. Last updated 8 November 2026.

What Google-Extended is

Google introduced Google-Extended in September 2023, in response to publishers asking for a way to opt out of AI training without leaving search. Unlike Googlebot, it never visits your site under its own name. Crawling is still done by Google’s normal user agents. Google-Extended is simply a label you address in robots.txt to tell Google how the content it has crawled may be used.

What it controls

According to Google’s documentation, Google-Extended controls whether content can be used:

  • To help train future generations of Gemini models.
  • For grounding answers in the Gemini apps and in Gemini models offered to developers through Google Cloud’s Vertex AI.

What it does not control

This is where many site owners get confused. Google has said Google-Extended does not impact a site’s inclusion or ranking in Google Search. It also does not stop your content appearing in AI Overviews or Google AI Mode, because those are part of Search and use content crawled by Googlebot.

If you want to limit how much of a page Google can show in Search features, including AI Overviews, the tools are the standard snippet controls such as the nosnippet rule or the data-nosnippet attribute. These also affect normal search snippets, so use them carefully.

How to use Google-Extended

  1. Open your robots.txt file.
  2. Add a group for the token: User-agent: Google-Extended followed by Disallow: / to opt the whole site out.
  3. To opt out only part of the site, disallow specific folders instead.
  4. Leave your Googlebot rules unchanged so normal search crawling continues.
  5. Save and test the file. Google reads robots.txt regularly, so changes are not instant.

Should you block it?

Blocking Google-Extended costs you nothing in Search rankings, according to Google. The trade-off is that your content will not inform Gemini training or Gemini app answers, which could mean your brand is described less accurately or cited less in those tools. Publishers protecting premium content often block it. Businesses wanting wide AI exposure often leave it allowed. You can also take a middle path by blocking only premium or members’ sections while leaving public marketing pages open.

Common mistakes

  • Blocking Googlebot when you only meant to opt out of AI training. This removes you from Search.
  • Expecting Google-Extended to remove content from AI Overviews.
  • Looking for Google-Extended visits in server logs. As a token rather than a crawler, it will not appear there.

Further reading: Google’s announcement of Google-Extended.

Key Takeaways

  • Google-Extended is a robots.txt token, not a crawler with its own visits.
  • It controls use of your content for Gemini training and Gemini app grounding.
  • Google says blocking it does not affect Search inclusion or rankings.
  • It does not control AI Overviews or AI Mode, which are part of Search.
  • Never block Googlebot by mistake when you only want to opt out of AI training.

Related Terms

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