Glossary
Structured data
What structured data is and why it has to match what a web page shows.
Updated
Structured data: Structured data is code added to a web page that describes its content in a standard vocabulary, so software can read the facts without guessing. On most sites it is written as JSON-LD using the schema.org vocabulary, and it can say that a page is about a local business, a service, an article or a set of questions and answers. Search engines use it to understand a page and sometimes to show richer results. Google's rule is that the markup must describe what a reader can see on the page, never hidden or different information.
Where it shows up
It sits in the page's HTML, usually in a script tag that readers never see, and tools such as Google's Rich Results Test read it back. On a small business site it typically describes the business itself, its services, the page's breadcrumbs and its common questions.
Google lists structured data that matches the visible text among its best practices for AI features in Search, so the markup and the page should always agree.
Related terms
Start with a written plan
Tell us about the business and what you need. We reply with questions, then a written plan that lists the work and its price, and nothing starts until you have read it.