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Google Search Essentials
The Google Search Essentials make up the core parts of what makes your web-based content (web pages, images, videos, or other publicly-available material that Google finds on the web) eligible to appear and perform well on Google Search:
Technical requirements: What Google needs from a web page to show it in Google Search.
Spam policies: The behaviors and tactics that can lead to lower ranking or being completely omitted from Google Search results.
Key best practices: The main things that can help improve how your site appears in Google Search results.
It doesn't cost any money to appear in Google Search results, no matter what anyone tries to tell you. It's important to note that just because a page meets all of these requirements and best practices, doesn't mean that Google will crawl, index, or serve its content. Learn more about How Search Works.
Technical requirements
The technical requirements cover the bare minimum that Google Search needs from a web page in order to show it in search results. There are actually very few technical things you need to do to a web page; most sites pass the technical requirements without even realizing it.
Spam policies
The spam policies detail the behaviors and tactics that can lead to a page or an entire site being ranked lower or completely omitted from Google Search. Sites that focus on providing the best content and experience for people and uphold the spirit of our principles are more likely to do well in Google Search results.
Key best practices
While there are many things you can do to improve your site's SEO, there are a few core practices that can have the most impact on your web content's ranking and appearance on Google Search:
Use words that people would use to look for your content, and place those words in prominent locations on the page, such as the title and main heading of a page, and other descriptive locations such as alt text and link text.
Make your links crawlable so that Google can find other pages on your site via the links on your page.
Tell people about your site. Be active in communities where you can tell like-minded people about your services and products that you mention on your site.
If you have other content, such as images, videos, structured data, and JavaScript, make sure you're following those specific best practices so that we can understand those parts of your page too.
Enhance how your site appears on Google Search by enabling features that make sense for your site.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-02-04 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eGoogle Search Essentials help your web content become eligible to appear and perform well on Google Search.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThese essentials comprise technical requirements, spam policies, and key best practices for content creation and optimization.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eFollowing these guidelines doesn't guarantee indexing or serving of content, but it increases the chances of your website appearing in search results.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eWhile Google Search appearance is free, focusing on providing quality content and user experience is crucial for better ranking.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eTechnical requirements are basic and most websites meet them unknowingly, while spam policies outline behaviors to avoid for better search performance.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],["Google Search Essentials outline how web content can appear and perform well in Google Search. Key actions include meeting technical requirements, adhering to spam policies, and following best practices. Best practices include creating helpful content, using relevant keywords, ensuring links are crawlable, promoting the site, and optimizing various content types like images and videos. Controlling what appears on Google Search, and enhancing the site's visual elements, are also recommended. Appearing in Google Search results is free.\n"],null,["Google Search Essentials\n\n\nThe Google Search Essentials make up the core parts of what makes your web-based content\n(web pages, images, videos, or other publicly-available material that Google finds on the web)\neligible to appear and perform well on Google Search:\n\n- **Technical requirements**: What Google needs from a web page to show it in Google Search.\n- **Spam policies**: The behaviors and tactics that can lead to lower ranking or being completely omitted from Google Search results.\n- **Key best practices**: The main things that can help improve how your site appears in Google Search results.\n\n\nIt doesn't cost any money to appear in Google Search results, no matter what anyone tries to tell you.\nIt's important to note that just because a page meets all of these requirements and\nbest practices, doesn't mean that Google will crawl, index, or serve its content. Learn more\nabout [How Search Works](/search/docs/fundamentals/how-search-works).\n\nTechnical requirements\n\n\nThe [technical requirements](/search/docs/essentials/technical) cover the bare\nminimum that Google Search needs from a web page in order to show it in search results. There\nare actually very few technical things you need to do to a web page; most sites pass the\ntechnical requirements without even realizing it.\n\nSpam policies\n\nThe [spam policies](/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies) detail the behaviors\nand tactics that can lead to a page or an entire site being ranked lower or completely omitted\nfrom Google Search. Sites that focus on providing the best content and experience for people\nand uphold the spirit of our principles are more likely to do well in Google Search results.\n\nKey best practices\n\n\nWhile there are many things you can do to [improve your site's SEO](/search/docs),\nthere are a few core practices that can have the most impact on your web content's ranking and\nappearance on Google Search:\n\n- [Create helpful, reliable, people-first content](/search/docs/fundamentals/creating-helpful-content).\n- Use words that people would use to look for your content, and place those words in prominent locations on the page, such as the [title and main heading](/search/docs/appearance/title-link#page-titles) of a page, and other descriptive locations such as [alt text](/search/docs/appearance/google-images#use-descriptive-alt-text) and link text.\n- [Make your links crawlable](/search/docs/crawling-indexing/links-crawlable#crawlable-links) so that Google can find other pages on your site via the links on your page.\n- Tell people about your site. Be active in communities where you can tell like-minded people about your services and products that you mention on your site.\n- If you have other content, such as [images](/search/docs/appearance/google-images), [videos](/search/docs/appearance/video), [structured data](/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/intro-structured-data), and [JavaScript](/search/docs/crawling-indexing/javascript/javascript-seo-basics), make sure you're following those specific best practices so that we can understand those parts of your page too.\n- Enhance [how your site appears](/search/docs/appearance/visual-elements-gallery) on Google Search by enabling features that make sense for your site.\n- If you have content that shouldn't be found in search results or you want to opt out entirely, use the appropriate method for [controlling how your content appears in Google Search](/search/docs/crawling-indexing/control-what-you-share)."]]
