Schema markup
Schema markup is a vocabulary of code that labels page content for search engines. It powers rich results like recipes, ratings, FAQs and event listings.
Also known as:
Structured data, Schema.org markup, JSON-LD
What is schema markup?
Schema markup is structured data, written in JSON-LD or microdata, that explicitly labels parts of a page for search engines: this is a recipe, this is the cooking time, this is the average rating. Search engines use that vocabulary to display richer results, like a recipe card with stars and prep time pulled from your page directly into the SERP. The vocabulary is published at Schema.org, a shared standard that Google, Bing, Yahoo and Yandex all support.
Without schema: A plain blue-link result with title and meta description only
With Recipe schema: Stars, calorie count and prep time appear under the title
With FAQPage schema: Three to five expandable questions appear inline below the result
Why does schema markup matter?
Schema markup is the cheapest way to make your SERP listing physically larger and more eye-catching, which directly lifts click-through rate. A recipe with five gold stars and a 30-minute prep time pulls more clicks than a plain link, even from lower ranking positions. Schema also helps voice assistants and AI answer engines parse your content correctly, which is increasingly important as discoverability shifts beyond traditional search.
How do you use schema markup?
Pick the schema types most relevant to your content, like Article, Product, Recipe, Event, FAQPage or HowTo, then implement one type per page.
Validate every implementation with Google's Rich Results Test before launching, since invalid schema produces no rich result and can sometimes trigger manual penalties.
Monitor the rich results report in Google Search Console weekly to confirm your markup is being read and is generating eligible impressions.
