Glossary

Schema (Schema.org)

A vocabulary of structured-data tags that tell search engines what a page is about.

Definition

Schema markup is JSON-LD (or microdata) that you embed in a page to describe its content in a machine-readable way: 'this is an article, by this author, published on this date, about this topic'. Search engines and AI assistants use it to populate rich results and to ground their summaries.

Common schema types include Article, FAQPage, HowTo, BreadcrumbList, Product, Review, Organization, and WebApplication. Use the type that matches the page's actual content; misusing schema (marking up content the user can't see) is penalized.

Example

An FAQ section has matching JSON-LD with each question and answer. Google can show those Q&As as a rich result, and an AI assistant can cite them directly.

Frequently asked questions

Where does schema go?

Usually in a `<script type='application/ld+json'>` tag in the page head or body.

Will schema make my page rank higher?

Not directly, but it makes the page eligible for richer presentation, which improves click-through.