Beginner
How to add a domain to the dashboard on Semrush
Quick Answer
Adding a domain to Semrush dashboard involves entering the URL on the Home screen to create an SEO Dashboard or project folder, which triggers monitoring and optional Site Audit crawling. Ensure the site is crawlable by whitelisting SemrushBot and fixing DNS/robots.txt issues. Free plans limit to one domain; paid plans allow up to five.
Prerequisites
- Active Semrush account with Site Audit access
- Live domain resolvable via DNS (root, subdomain, or subfolder)
- Site access to edit robots.txt or whitelist SemrushBot
- Optional: Sitemap.xml and hosting support for redirects
1
Access Home Screen and Enter Domain
From the Home screen, enter your website's name or URL (e.g.,
example.com) in the prompt field, then click 'Start now'. This launches your SEO Dashboard as the command center for domain monitoring.2
Create a Project Folder
On the Home screen or Get Started screen, click the 'Create Folder' button for a new domain analysis. Name the folder based on the domain or business (e.g., 'My Site SEO'), and it will be saved for future access.
Tip
Folders organize multiple domains; first folder auto-configures Site Audit.
3
Launch SEO Dashboard
Once the domain is entered, your SEO Dashboard appears automatically. Select the project from the folder list to view domain-specific metrics like traffic and SEO performance widgets.
4
Add Competitor Domains
In the project dashboard, use the upper section or '+ Add more competitors' link to enter competitor domains, subdomains, or URLs for comparison in Traffic & Market dashboards.
Tip
Edit competitor lists anytime via the drop-down without losing your place.
5
Configure Site Audit
Navigate to Site Audit from the left-hand menu. Enter the domain in the scope field, choose to crawl root domain, subdomains, or subfolders (uncheck 'Crawl all subdomains' if needed), set page limits, and click 'Start audit'.
Tip
First folder auto-launches Site Audit; configure manually for others.
6
Access Domain Overview
Go to SEO → Domain Overview in the left sidebar. Enter the domain and click 'Search' for detailed metrics like organic traffic and keywords.
7
Review and Monitor Dashboards
Click any domain in your folder list to access dashboards. Use the left-hand menu for SEO Dashboard, Site Audit results, or full reports via 'View Full Report' buttons.
Tip
Data updates automatically; check widgets for quick snapshots.
8
Adjust Crawler Settings
In Site Audit settings, go to Crawler settings to allow/disallow URLs, remove parameters, bypass robots.txt if needed, or add credentials for password-protected areas.
Tip
Whitelist
SemrushBot user-agent for smooth crawling.Troubleshooting
"Domain could not be resolved by DNS" or "Pages couldn't be crawled (DNS issues)"
Ensure root domain (example.com) matches live version (e.g., www); fix DNS records, set proper redirects (root to www), and verify site is online.
Robots.txt blocks ("Disallow" commands)
Edit robots.txt to allow
SemrushBot; avoid blocking major paths or use crawl settings to bypass.Noindex tags preventing crawl
Remove
<meta name="robots" content="noindex"> tags from pages; rescan after changes.Large landing pages (>2MB) or crawler blocks
Optimize page size, whitelist SemrushBot in server config, or adjust crawl limits in settings.
Free plan domain limit reached
Upgrade to paid plan for up to five domains; each includes one by default with add-on purchases.
Ready to get started with Semrush?
Put this tutorial into practice. Visit Semrush and follow the steps above.
Visit Semrush →