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Bing Webmaster Tools

Tier: Core/Free | Type: Integration + User-Facing UI

!!! tip "Key Insight" Bing powers Microsoft Copilot search results and holds meaningful traffic share in certain verticals (legal, finance, enterprise). This integration surfaces Bing-specific search data that Google-only reporting completely misses — including queries, crawl health, keywords, and link data from Microsoft's index.

Overview

The Bing Webmaster Tools integration connects each customer's Bing account to AlmaSEO via a per-customer API key. It provides a 9-tab dashboard with Bing-branded visual identity (blue-purple gradient palette, Segoe UI typography) that is visually distinct from the Google Search Console panel.

Tabs and what they show:

Tab What It Shows
Overview KPI cards (clicks, impressions, CTR, avg position) + top search queries + top pages
Crawl Stats Pages indexed, pages crawled, crawl errors, inbound links, crawl settings, recently fetched URLs
Crawl Issues URLs with HTTP errors (301s, 404s, 500s) sorted by inbound link impact + blocked URLs
URL Tools URL Inspector (index status, discovery date, document size, anchors) + URL Directory Explorer (child pages under a parent)
Keywords Related Keywords Finder (enter a keyword, get Bing's related terms) + Query Traffic Over Time (daily trend for a query)
Query Analysis Pages Ranking for a Query (which pages rank for a specific query) + Queries by Page (which queries drive traffic to a specific page)
Links Inbound link counts, pages with links table, Inbound Links for a URL drill-down, connected pages count
Sitemaps Daily/monthly URL submission quotas, submitted sitemaps table with processing status, per-sitemap details
Site Config Country/region targeting, site roles & access, site migration history, URL query parameters, page preview blocks, deep link blocks

How to Connect

  1. Create or sign in to Bing Webmaster Tools.
  2. Add your site and verify ownership using one of Bing's methods (DNS record, meta tag, or CNAME). Bing can only return data for verified sites.
  3. Copy your API key from Settings > API Access. One key works for all sites in your Bing account.
  4. Paste the key in AlmaSEO: go to your site's Client Profile, click Bing Webmaster in the sidebar, and paste the key in the connect form.

AlmaSEO validates the key by calling Bing's GetUserSites endpoint and confirms your site URL appears as verified. If the site isn't verified, connection is blocked with a clear error message.

!!! warning "Site must be verified" Bing's API returns NotAuthorized for unverified sites. If you see this error, complete the verification process in Bing Webmaster Tools first. The site must show IsVerified: true in your Bing account.

Credential Storage

  • API keys are Fernet-encrypted and stored in the same google_oauth_tokens table used for Google services, with service_type = 'bing_webmaster'.
  • Keys are per-user, per-site, and decrypted only at request time.
  • No OAuth flow — Bing uses static API keys that don't expire.
  • Users can disconnect and reconnect at any time.

API Coverage

The integration implements all 34 read-only tools from the Bing Webmaster API:

Search Performance (4 tools)

  • GetUserSites — validate API key, list verified sites
  • GetRankAndTrafficStats — daily clicks/impressions
  • GetQueryStats — top queries with clicks, impressions, CTR, position
  • GetPageStats — top pages by search performance

Crawl Health (6 tools)

  • GetCrawlStats — daily crawl volume, indexed pages, errors, status codes
  • GetCrawlIssues — URLs with HTTP errors
  • GetCrawlSettings — current crawl rate configuration
  • GetUrlInfo — index status for a specific URL
  • GetFetchedUrls — URLs Bing has fetched
  • GetFetchedUrlDetails — detailed fetch info per URL

Keywords (6 tools)

  • GetKeyword — performance for a single keyword
  • GetKeywordStats — historical keyword trends by country/language
  • GetRelatedKeywords — related search terms
  • GetQueryPageStats — which pages rank for a query
  • GetPageQueryStats — which queries drive traffic to a page
  • GetQueryTrafficStats — click/impression trend over time

Links (3 tools)

  • GetLinkCounts — inbound link summary
  • GetUrlLinks — inbound links to a specific URL
  • GetConnectedPages — pages linking to the site

Sitemaps & Feeds (4 tools)

  • GetFeeds — submitted sitemaps and processing status
  • GetFeedDetails — detailed info per sitemap
  • GetUrlSubmissionQuota — daily/monthly submission limits
  • GetContentSubmissionQuota — content submission limits

Site Configuration (8 tools)

  • GetBlockedUrls — URLs blocked from crawling
  • GetDeepLinkBlocks — deep link blocks
  • GetQueryParameters — URL normalization parameters
  • GetCountryRegionSettings — geo-targeting configuration
  • GetActivePagePreviewBlocks — rich snippet blocks
  • GetSiteMoves — site migration history
  • GetSiteRoles — users with access
  • GetChildrenUrlInfo — child URLs under a parent

Excluded (write/destructive tools): AddSite, RemoveSite, SubmitUrl, SubmitContent, SubmitSitemap, RemoveFeed, AddBlockedUrl, and all other Add*/Remove*/Submit*/Update* endpoints are intentionally not implemented.

Cost & Tracking

  • Bing's API is free — no per-call charges.
  • All API calls are logged to the usage_events table with vendor = 'bing' and cost_cents = 0 for volume visibility and abuse detection.
  • Bing calls appear in the admin cost dashboard alongside OpenAI, SerpAPI, and DataForSEO usage.

Bing API Key Scope

The Bing API key is account-scoped, not site-scoped. One key grants access to all sites verified under that Bing Webmaster account. AlmaSEO mitigates this by:

  1. Validating on connect that the specific AlmaSEO site URL is verified in Bing.
  2. Passing the specific siteUrl parameter on every API call so Bing only returns data for that site.
  3. Never enumerating or exposing other sites the key has access to.

Data Handling

  • All data is fetched live from the Bing API on each tab visit. No data is cached or stored in the AlmaSEO database.
  • Each tab lazy-loads — API calls only fire when the user clicks into that tab, keeping the Overview tab fast.
  • Bing returns per-query per-date rows — the client aggregates these across dates before displaying.
  • Bing's OData date format (/Date(epoch)/) is automatically parsed to YYYY-MM-DD.

Requirements

  • Integration: Bing Webmaster Tools API (ssl.bing.com/webmaster/api.svc/json)
  • Credential: Per-customer Bing API key (obtained from Bing Webmaster Tools settings)
  • Site verification: Site must be added and verified in Bing Webmaster Tools
  • No AI dependency: This feature does not use any AI models

Comparison with Google Search Console

Aspect Google Search Console Bing Webmaster Tools
Auth method OAuth 2.0 (redirect flow) Static API key (paste in dashboard)
Token refresh Automatic via refresh_token Not needed (keys don't expire)
Data window Up to 16 months Varies by endpoint (typically 6 months)
API cost Free Free
UI identity Standard AlmaSEO card styling Bing-branded gradient palette
Inner navigation Sections within one scroll 9 separate pill tabs

Target Audience

Agencies, DIY Business Owners, Freelancers — anyone who wants visibility into Bing/Copilot search performance alongside their Google data.