What Is a Gateway Page?
A gateway page is a page built solely to rank for a specific search term and then funnel or redirect visitors to a different destination page, rather than offering useful content in its own right.
Why Search Engines Penalize It
Gateway pages (also called doorway pages) exist purely to manipulate search rankings — they add no genuine value for the searcher and are often thin, near-duplicate, or created in bulk to target slight keyword variations. Google’s guidelines explicitly prohibit this pattern, and sites found using it risk manual actions.
How It’s Different from Legitimate Landing Pages
The distinction comes down to intent and content quality. A legitimate landing page provides real, useful content and clear value tied to the search term it targets. A gateway page is essentially a keyword-targeted shell whose only real function is redirecting traffic elsewhere.
