The meta description summarizes the content of the web page. Google has long claimed that meta descriptions don’t affect rankings, but marketers often don’t understand their function.
Here’s what you should know about meta descriptions from a search engine optimization perspective.
It is not a rating factor
Google does not consider meta descriptions when ranking websites, although they may appear in snippets of organic listings and inform searchers about what the page is about.
Note the example below for a Google search for “practical e-commerce”. The snippet displays the query (“practical e-commerce”) in bold text, which is likely to increase the number of clicks on the listing. Thus, meta descriptions containing popular keywords usually attract more attention – and clicks.
Searching for “practical e-commerce” will generate a snippet using the meta description of the page.
Not always in search results
However, Google usually ignores the meta description of the page and uses the body content in the search fragment. Google confirms this in a post on the “Search Central” blog:
Google primarily uses the content on the page to automatically determine the appropriate snippet. We can also use descriptive information in the meta description element if it describes the page better than other pieces of content.
A search snippet is query dependent – Google tries to generate a snippet relevant to the searcher’s word or phrase. It is impossible to include all potential queries in the meta description, but a few tactics apply:
- Include the page’s primary keyword. Google will likely display a meta description for these queries, giving site owners control over what searchers see for popular terms.
- Use variations of the brand name. Optimize searches for tags with common variances such as one or two words. Each option will appear in bold, leading to a click on the page.
Low priority
Unlike other elements on a page, meta descriptions are not user or rating oriented. In their Search Central post, Google even supports machine-generated versions as long as they are human-centric and relevant to the page:
…programmatic generation of descriptions may be appropriate and is supported. Good descriptions are human-readable and diverse. Page-specific data is a good candidate for programmatic generation. Keep in mind that meta descriptions composed of long strings of keywords do not give users a clear idea of the content of the page and are less likely to be displayed as a snippet.
ChatGPT and Gemini can generate meaningful meta descriptions. Here is my challenge:
My target keyword is (KEYWORD). Here is a copy of my page: (TEXT). Generate a meta description containing my keyword in the first sentence. Make the description engaging – for example, include a call to action.
Other AI-driven tools can also create descriptions.
No ideal length
Countless search engine tools will argue that the meta description is too long or too short. Always ignore them. Google is constantly experimenting with the length and content of search snippets, such as displaying date and rich elements. Most snippets are currently only one sentence (roughly 140 characters), though this will likely change.
Instead of guessing the length, put your best keywords at the beginning of your meta description. This ensures that Google will use it more often and display these queries in bold.