Metadata — or meta tags — are pieces of code that add context to web pages. Search engine crawlers analyze this information to correctly index and display the web pages. The more accurate your metadata is to the body copy, the higher your chances are of it gaining visibility.

 

What Are the Types of Metadata in SEO? 

Web pages have six important meta tags. 

 

Meta Title

A meta title is a title tag that appears in the HTML code of a web page. It informs search engines and visitors of the page’s topic. The meta title is often used as the clickable headline and can influence click-through rates (CTRs) on organic search results.

 

Meta Description

A meta description is an HTML attribute that summarizes what the page is about. It is displayed in search engine results and when a page is shared on social media. 

Meta descriptions add context to the web pages in search results — which can impact organic click-through rates. The more catchy and relevant a meta description is, the more likely readers will click the link in the SERPs. 

 

Meta Keywords

Meta keywords are words or phrases used to describe the content of a web page to crawlers. These words are used in the HTML code (backend) and are not visible to human visitors on a website. 

Note: Meta keywords no longer count as a ranking factor.

 

Meta Robot Tags

Meta robot tags are instructions for if and how search engines crawl your website. There are three of them: 

 

Meta Viewport

Meta viewport tags control how web pages appear on different screens and devices. Using these tags correctly ensures that your web pages are well-optimized for mobile devices — which also affects organic rankings

 

Meta Charset

Meta Charset is an HTML tag used to define the character encoding used in a web page. In other words, it determines your web page’s text formatting — typically size and font. 

Text formatting issues affect how users and web crawlers access information on your site. If the text is rendered incorrectly, the crawlers might rank the web page lower in the SERPs. 

The two most common meta charset tags are: