What a meta description does
The meta description is a line in a page’s code, written for the search result. Google has said for years that it is not a ranking factor. Its job is to give a person a reason to click.
Google may show your description, or it may build its own snippet from the page text, depending on what the visitor searched for. A good description is used more often, because it answers the question better than a random sentence from the page.
How long should it be?
Aim for about 120 to 155 characters. On desktop, Google shows roughly 920 pixels of a description; on mobile the lines are shorter. Anything beyond that is cut. As with titles, the limit is width, so the exact number of characters varies.
TipFront-load it. Say the useful thing in the first 100 characters, and treat the rest as a bonus.
How to write one that earns the click
- Say what the visitor gets, in plain words: “Compare…”, “Plan…”, “Check…”, “Book…”.
- Include the words someone would search for. Google highlights matching words in the snippet, which makes the result easier to scan.
- Add one reason to choose this page: who it is for, what is free, what is included.
- Finish on a verb. A light call to action works, an exclamation mark does not.
- Write a different one for every page. A sitewide description tells nobody anything.
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Why Google often shows something else
Google replaces the description when it thinks another passage matches the query better, when the description is missing, or when it is the same on many pages. That is normal. It does not mean the description was wasted: writing it forces you to decide what the page offers, and Google uses it when it fits.
Common mistakes
- The same description on every page, or none at all.
- A list of keywords instead of a sentence.
- A description far over the limit, where the useful part is cut.
- Promising something the page does not deliver, which gets the click and loses the visitor.
Write and preview yours
Our meta tag generator shows your description as a Google result and as a shared link while you type, with the pixel width measured. The checker reads any live page and flags descriptions that are missing, too long or duplicated.
Every site we build in our web design and development service gets its own title and description for each page. To talk about a project, get in touch.
Quick answers
Is the meta description a ranking factor?
No. Google has said so for years. It affects how often people click your result, which is a reason to write it carefully.
What happens if I do not write a meta description?
Google builds a snippet from the page text. That is fine for some pages, but a description you wrote is usually clearer.
How long should a meta description be?
Around 120 to 155 characters, with the most important words first. Longer descriptions are cut by pixel width.
