Meta description
Definition
The short summary shown under your title in search results. Not a ranking factor, but it wins or loses the click.
Updated 2 min read
In depth
A meta description is the short summary, roughly 150 to 160 characters, that appears under your page's title in search results. It isn't a direct ranking factor, but a compelling one earns more clicks, and click-through rate matters.
In HTML it's a single tag in the page's <head>:
<meta name="description" content="A quick, compelling summary of the page.">
What a good meta description does
Treat it like ad copy for a free ad:
- Say plainly what the page delivers.
- Include the target term, Google bolds words that match the search.
- End with a reason to click.
- Write a unique one for every page, never reuse a template across the site.
Aim to satisfy the search intent behind the query in one tight sentence.
Why Google sometimes ignores it
Google frequently rewrites the snippet, pulling a sentence from your page instead of your description, when that better matches a specific query. This is normal and documented in Google's snippet guidance. You're not writing one description for one query; you're giving Google strong raw material for many. Write a good one and it's used most of the time.
Writing them at scale
Most sites have hundreds of pages and blank or duplicate descriptions on most of them, which a quick SEO audit will surface fast. Start with your highest-traffic pages, then work down. Clear, benefit-led descriptions also help AI Overviews summarize your page accurately.
Edward writes a tailored title and meta description for every page it publishes, so the snippet works as hard as the article. Try a free audit to see which of your pages are leaving clicks on the table.
Related terms
Search intent
The real goal behind a search, what the person actually wants. Matching it is the most important thing a page can do.
SEO audit
A top-to-bottom health check of your site that finds what's holding it back in search, ranked by impact.
AI Overviews
Google's AI-generated answer summaries at the top of results, citing the pages they pull from.