For many of us, being listed in search engines is important. However, while results in some search engines can appear within 2 – 3 weeks, it is becoming rarer. The average timeframe for initial indexing nowadays is 2 – 3 months. While "paid positions" can get your site listed faster, it requires additional fees to be paid directly to the search engines and directories.

We have outlined below a timeframe for the top search engines below:

1. 0 – 1 week(s) Inktomi, and less recognized search engines.
2. 2 – 4 week(s) Altavista, Infoseek, Google
3. 3 – 5 week(s) Excite, HotBot, Lycos, WebCrawler, Northern Light
4. 6 – 8 week(s) Yahoo!

* Please note, the above figures are subject to change.