# Crawler IP ranges

Category: [Log Files](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/category/log-files/) › [Identifying & managing bots](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/category/log-files/identifying-managing-bots/)

**Crawler IP ranges** are the IP address blocks from which a search engine operator runs its crawlers. Google publishes them as JSON files in CIDR format. To check whether a request really came from Googlebot, you compare the IP address in your log with these lists.

## Which lists exist?

Google splits the ranges by crawler group. The verification documentation lists these files under `developers.google.com/static/crawling/ipranges/`:

- `common-crawlers.json` for common crawlers such as Googlebot
- `special-crawlers.json` for crawlers with a special purpose such as AdsBot
- `user-triggered-fetchers.json` and `user-triggered-fetchers-google.json` for fetches that a user starts
- `user-triggered-agents.json` for user-triggered agents

## The 2026 move

On March 31, 2026, Google announced that the files move from `/search/apis/ipranges/` to `/crawling/ipranges/`, because the ranges apply to more than Search crawlers. The old paths were to stay available for a while and redirect to the new ones within six months. On October 6, 2026, the old `googlebot.json` answered with a 301 redirect to `common-crawlers.json`. Scripts that fetch the files should use the new paths and follow redirects.

## Format

The files contain a creation timestamp and a list of IPv4 and IPv6 prefixes. Ranges change, so a downloaded copy ages. The timestamp shows how current your copy is. The IP addresses in a log file can be personal data (CJEU, judgment of October 19, 2016, C-582/14, Breyer). This is not legal advice.

## Example

A shortened file in the documented structure (placeholder values from the documentation address range):

```json
{
  "creationTime": "2026-10-06T14:47:46.000000",
  "prefixes": [
    {"ipv6Prefix": "2001:db8::/32"},
    {"ipv4Prefix": "192.0.2.0/24"}
  ]
}
```

If the IP address of a request falls inside one of the prefixes, the request comes from Google's infrastructure.

## Common mistakes

- Using lists of single IP addresses copied from blog posts or forum answers. They do not show which crawler group an address belongs to and are not updated.
- Allowlisting a downloaded copy once and never refreshing it.
- Treating every IP from a user-triggered list like Googlebot. Google states that user-triggered fetchers generally ignore robots.txt.
- Matching only `common-crawlers.json`. AdsBot and other special-purpose crawlers are listed in `special-crawlers.json`.
- Matching only IPv4 prefixes. The files contain both `ipv4Prefix` and `ipv6Prefix` entries.

## Alternative to the lists

Google also describes a manual check. A reverse DNS lookup must return a name ending in `googlebot.com`, `google.com` or `googleusercontent.com`, and a forward lookup of that name must return the original IP.

## FAQ

**What are Google's IP ranges?** The prefixes in the JSON files above. They are the lists Google documents for verifying its crawlers.

**How do I identify a Google crawler?** Match the IP against the ranges or use reverse and forward DNS.

*Diagram: Is it really Googlebot?.* Both DNS lookups have to match. For large-scale lookups, Google recommends matching against its published IP lists automatically. Sample values from Google’s documentation.

## Related terms

- [Web crawler](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/web-crawler/index.md)
- [Googlebot](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/googlebot/index.md)
- [Reverse DNS lookup](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/reverse-dns-lookup/index.md)
- [Bot verification](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/bot-verification/index.md)
- [Fake Googlebot](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/fake-googlebot/index.md)
- [User agent](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/user-agent/index.md)

## Sources

- [Verifying Google crawlers and fetchers – Google Crawling Infrastructure](https://developers.google.com/crawling/docs/crawlers-fetchers/verify-google-requests)
- [New location for the Google crawlers' IP range files – Google Search Central Blog (Mar 31, 2026)](https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2026/03/crawler-ip-ranges)
- [Google user-triggered fetchers – Google Search Central](https://developers.google.com/crawling/docs/crawlers-fetchers/google-user-triggered-fetchers)
- [common-crawlers.json – Google (file checked 2026-10-06)](https://developers.google.com/static/crawling/ipranges/common-crawlers.json)
- [Update your Google crawler IP range endpoints – Merj (secondary)](https://merj.com/blog/update-your-google-crawler-ip-range-endpoints)
- [Judgment of the CJEU of 19 October 2016, C-582/14 (Breyer)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:62014CJ0582)

---

Last updated: October 8, 2026
URL: https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/crawler-ip-ranges/