Question

Link question.  Does a backlink that is indexed in Google but not cached have SEO value?Link question. Does a backlink that is indexed in Google but not cached have SEO value? Found a few instances of this happening.  

Answer 1

"Since Information Retrieval and Indexing work independently" Computer science has just been turned on its ear. The "index" is the database that the information retrieval algorithms that comprise the search engine work with. They have nothing else. As for the caching, that's not a reliable indicator of indexing status.  

Answer 2

No more or less than if the page was cached. (I phrase it that way because the mere existence of a link doesn't necessarily mean it has any value). Thankspically pages are set to no-cache if they change frequently or something along those lines. (There are other reasons, of course, but. ) A no-cache page just means "don't make a cached version of this page visible to users.  

Answer 3

This would imply that a link has to be indexed to pass value. Since Information Retrieval and Indexing work independently that is a considerably strong position to take on the matter.  

Answer 4

This would also depend if ranking calculations are done on the live version of the index or the cached index, and as already mentioned, the link may or may not have value anyway. There was a twitter thread I think recently about whether links added to older articles ("Niche Edits" as they tend to be labelled by sellers) were of any benefit, and how long they took to get picked up (if at all) by the SE's.  

Answer 5

Good answers all. Danke!  

Answer 6

Imhe and knowledge, if the url is indexed, cached or not, links in there should be taken into account. That’s why gaggle used to deindex pbns?  

Answer 7

If it’s not cached, it won’t be indexed.