Gone are the days when search engines operated on a rudimentary level, where practices like cramming keywords and accumulating a multitude of backlinks had a visibly direct impact on rankings. Moreover, there was only one algorithm to contend with.
Over the past 25 years, SEO has evolved into an increasingly intricate and intricate field.
Ranking factors diverge based on the industry and the specific keyword. Rankings for Your Money or Your Life (YMYL) content are managed differently from the way transactional e-commerce queries are ranked, and local search operates on a distinct set of rules.
One certainty prevails in the realm of SEO: the more you learn, the more you realize how much you have yet to learn.
There isn’t an official blueprint or checklist of Google’s ranking factors that one can simply adhere to. Nonetheless, what we do comprehend is that there are particular factors or signals that Google deems important when it comes to ranking web pages.
Google 200 Ranking Factors Myth
Before we go into a discussion of important ranking factors and signals, let’s address the legendary catalogue of 200 ranking factors that Google is said to use. If you conduct a Google search for “ranking factors,” you’ll notice numerous titles in the search engine results pages (SERP) that reference the “200 ranking factors” from prominent blogs.
The number 200 likely had its origins as a public relations strategy by Google, aiming to depict its algorithm as intricate and multifaceted. This notion gained traction and became ingrained in the collective understanding of the topic. The sole documented mention of “200” can be traced back to a presentation by Matt Cutts at PubCon in 2009.
As we mentioned earlier, Google’s approach to ranking has undergone substantial evolution over the past 25 years, reaching a point where there are now several factors and machine learning overlays, possibly numbering in the thousands.
What Yandex Says About Ranking Factors
The Yandex ranking factors leak from January 2023 unveiled that Yandex uses approximately 690 ranking factors, more or less. At that time, this revelation provided a glimpse into the methodology of a prominent search engine regarding the usage of factors and signals for ranking.
During a direct conversation, Dan Taylor, a specialist in Russian search engines, highlighted the common factors between Yandex and Google in how they endeavour to index and rank websites:
“They both rely on the same data points, including on-page content, links, meta-data, mobile-friendliness, and user interactions such as SERP clicks and user behaviour.”
He continued, stating, “Both search engines also integrate AI into various aspects of their ranking systems, such as Vega. However, they diverge in how they assign weight to certain signals, such as backlinks and user engagement with SERP results, and some of these signals are more susceptible to manipulation compared to Google.”
Taylor posits that, theoretically, web pages can be optimized for both search engines in a similar manner without compromising performance. This implies that the insights from the Yandex leak may provide valuable guidance for ranking on Google.
The Factors, Systems, And Signals
Whenever there is an update to Google’s documentation or when notable figures like Gary Illyes, John Mueller, or Danny Sullivan make comments, SEO professionals become deeply engrossed in deciphering their significance.
This presents a challenge both for Google and the SEO industry as a whole, as SEO experts often delve too profoundly into the minutiae, losing sight of what truly matters. Few aspects receive as much scrutiny as ranking factors. SEO professionals are increasingly fixated on dissecting the semantic distinctions among factors, systems, and signals.
For instance, when the documentation was modified to remove page experience from the Systems section, Google felt compelled to release the following statement on X: “Ranking Systems are distinct from Ranking Signals (systems typically use signals). Some items on that page related to page experience were categorized as Systems, but they were, in fact, Signals. They should not have been included on the systems page. Removing them did not imply a disregard for page experience aspects. Rather, they were not ranking Systems but rather signals used by other systems.
It has become evident that page experience remains a ranking factor (as indicated below).
Digging into the intricacies, Google maintains two official pages that pertain to ranking factors:
A guide to Google Search ranking systems:
“Google uses automated ranking systems that look at many factors and signals about hundreds of billions of web pages and other content in our Search index to present the most relevant, useful results, all in a fraction of a second.”
How Search Works:
“To give you the most useful information, Search algorithms look at many factors and signals, including the words of your query, relevance and usability of pages, expertise of sources, and your location and settings. The weight applied to each factor varies depending on the nature of your query.”
During an Ask Me Anything session at PubCon in September 2023, Gary Illyes addressed the distinctions between factors, signals, and systems, stating, The primary distinction is primarily a matter of terminology.
The simplest way to differentiate between a system and a signal is to describe Google’s ranking systems as the layers of machine learning applied to fine-tune search results. Ranking signals exert an influence on these systems and the overall ranking process.
In a private message, SEO expert Ammon Johns offered further clarification, stating, “Not all elements classified as signals are necessarily used within a particular system. Many items labelled as signals by Google may not be relevant to a specific query, or their importance may vary compared to another query. For instance, even Google’s most renowned signal, PageRank, is not used in Local Search at all.
The Google “How Search Works” page discusses the “key elements that influence which results are delivered for your query.
The main elements outlined on this page can be summarized as follows:
- Meaning
- Relevance
- Quality
- Usability
- Context
If you grasp the foundational approach that Google adopts, you’ll recognize that getting bogged down in semantics is of minimal importance. Using a common-sense approach aligned with the ultimate goal of serving the end user is a significantly more effective and enduring strategy.
In essence, Google is motivated by its aspiration to offer the most exceptional search results, thereby maintaining its position as a market leader. At its core, it’s a business endeavour. Once you internalize this perspective, you grasp the fundamental concept of SEO.
Having said that, here are the essential ranking factors that must all be taken into account for achieving visibility on search engine results pages (SERPs).
Google Ranking Factors That SEO Experts Should Focus On
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High-Quality Content
The initial phase of the ranking process involves comprehending the user’s query. The subsequent step entails aligning the query with the content found on a web page.
According to the information found in Google’s “How Search Works,” their systems scrutinize the content to determine whether it contains information that may be pertinent to the user’s search intent. Provided that your website is technically proficient to be crawled and rendered, the paramount ranking factor remains high-quality content.
Content holds pivotal significance, not solely for ranking purposes but also for enhancing user experience and driving conversions.
Gary Illyes of Google succinctly encapsulates this concept, stating that ranking is virtually impossible without content. If there are no words on the page, you won’t achieve a favourable ranking. The top two or three ranking factors may vary for each website.
Essentially, the internet is constructed from a myriad of content-rich web pages.
But what defines high-quality content? In brief, it can best be characterized as content that adheres to E-E-A-T signals, exhibiting:
- Experience
- Expertise
- Authoritativeness
- Trustworthiness
Keywords and words featured on a page play a vital role in its content. While there are ongoing debates about the relevance of keywords for ranking, it remains evident that keywords continue to hold significance.
According to Google, “The most fundamental indicator of content’s relevance is its alignment with the keywords used in your search query. For instance, when these keywords are present on a web page or within its headings and body text, the information tends to be more pertinent.”
To ensure clarity and avoid ambiguity in ranking, a page must distinctly convey its subject matter.
Pedro Dias, a former Google employee, articulated in a direct conversation, “Keywords, the foundational elements, are not obsolete; they are the building blocks upon which we construct. It remains just as important as ever to implement these fundamentals effectively.”
Pedro further elaborated, stating, “Google has integrated machine learning on top of these fundamentals to deliver results that consider the more subtle nuances of search queries.”
Google’s constant pursuit of delivering optimal results has led to the development of machine learning systems that improve the understanding of natural language queries. This enables Google to differentiate between various meanings of a word, such as distinguishing between “cheat” as a dishonest act and “cheat” as a method for manipulating a system, as exemplified by a story shared by Pedro featuring Gary Illyes.
Discussing content and keywords necessitates a consideration of entities, an important aspect Google uses to improve its comprehension of topics. This article provides a comprehensive exploration of the significance of grasping entities in the realm of SEO.
As articulated by Ammon Johns, “Search engines now prioritize semantic search and entities. To illustrate, if you search for ‘History of Munchen,’ Google not only recognizes the misspelling of ‘MÜNCHEN’ but is also likely to predominantly display results featuring the more common ‘Munich’ keyword in their titles and snippets.
The key systems influencing content rankings are as follows:
RankBrain
Introduced in 2015, RankBrain stands as one of Google’s machine learning systems, adept at establishing connections between words and concepts, aiding Google in deciphering the intent behind search queries.
This plays a pivotal role in the process of refining rankings, as Google endeavours to furnish the most pertinent results for each query. Moreover, it empowers Google to yield results for inquiries that have no prior search history.
In the pre-RankBrain era, Google lacked the ability to comprehend synonyms and would return strictly literal interpretations of search terms. As stated by Google, “Before we harnessed advanced AI, our systems simply matched words. For instance, if you searched for ‘pziza’ – unless a page included that exact misspelling, you’d likely need to rephrase the search with the correct spelling to locate a nearby pizza place… Now, thanks to advanced machine learning, our systems can more instinctively identify when a word seems amiss and propose a potential correction.
The Helpful Content System
Introduced in 2022, Google’s helpful content system is centred around delivering top-quality content to users. Google’s primary objective is for content to reflect real-world expertise, ultimately improving the reader’s experience through “more content by people, for people.”
This system undergoes continuous updates, with several iterations having taken place in 2023. According to Google, “The helpful content system is designed to reward high-quality content that leaves visitors satisfied, while content that falls short of meeting visitor expectations will not perform as effectively.”
Some of the guidelines for creating helpful content, all rooted in the principles of E-A-T, comprise:
- Staying on topic without deviation.
- Demonstrating firsthand expertise.
- Avoiding the merging of multiple subjects on a single website.
BERT
Back in 2018, BERT sent ripples through the SEO sector as a substantial Google update, said to influence approximately 10% of search queries during that period.
This system possesses the capability to discern how word combinations, including so-called stop words, can carry varying meanings, thus rendering even stop words pertinent in search queries when they play a role in shaping the query’s significance.
In Google’s own words, “BERT marked a significant leap in natural language comprehension, aiding us in comprehending how combinations of words convey diverse meanings and intentions.
Content Freshness
In 2010, Google introduced Caffeine, departing from the practice of refreshing the entire index every few weeks. Google’s primary aim with Caffeine was to “examine the web in smaller segments and continuously update our global search index.”
Recognizing the rapid expansion of the internet in 2011, Google expanded upon Caffeine by introducing “Freshness.” They announced, “Today, we are implementing a significant enhancement to our ranking algorithm, impacting approximately 35% of searches. This enhancement better determines when to provide users with more current and relevant results, varying in freshness.”
It’s essential to note that content freshness is not uniformly applied to all searches. Its application depends on specific queries and is more crucial in certain niches and topics. For instance, it plays a pivotal role in delivering breaking news, weather updates, or stock prices.
Over time, most content in search results will exhibit some degree of decay if it is not regularly updated. This is because ideas, concepts, products, and information are in a constant state of evolution, and user expectations evolve in tandem.
Multitask Unified Model (MUM)
In 2021, during Google IO, MUM was unveiled as a system taking a significant stride forward by embracing a multimodal approach, enabling it to glean insights from text, images, and possibly video content.
MUM’s role doesn’t encompass all verticals for ranking purposes, as Google clarified: “While we’re still in the early stages of harnessing MUM’s potential, we have already used it to improve searches related to COVID-19 vaccine information.”
It seems that the primary application will be for searches that integrate text and images within Google Lens.
According to Google, “As we introduce more MUM-powered features to Search, our focus will shift from advanced language comprehension to a more nuanced understanding of the world’s information… MUM possesses the capacity to both comprehend and generate language.
Personalization & Locality
While content quality isn’t the primary focus here, it’s worth noting that beyond the various factors that refine ranking, there exists a layer of personalization. This layer accounts for a user’s search history and their geographical location.
For instance, queries like “phone repairing shop” are influenced by your location and will present results on a map based on where you are. Certain product-related queries are tailored to showcase local suppliers.
Results for the same query can vary from one device to another. Understanding a user’s intent at a particular point in their online journey significantly influences the results displayed in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).
As an illustration, the query “London Fun Park” produces desktop results that emphasize research, featuring video and image carousels. In contrast, the mobile SERP places emphasis on tickets, directions, and location.
In the words of John Mueller, “If you’re searching on your phone, you might be looking for local information because you’re on the move. However, if you’re searching on a desktop, you may prefer to see more images or videos in the search results.”
When conducting keyword research and creating content, it’s important to grasp how personalization and local factors influence rankings. Integrating this understanding into your strategy is essential.
E-E-A-T Is Not A Ranking Factor But Is Important
Once more, though not a direct ranking system, it’s vital for all content creators to consider the concept of Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, commonly known as E-E-A-T.
Previously, Google’s Search Quality Raters Guidelines were closely guarded at Google and were only made public after a leak. Nowadays, Google openly publishes this document as an illustration of the criteria its Quality Raters use during manual website reviews.
E-E-A-T is an integral part of the Google Quality Search Raters Guidelines, serving as a guideline rather than a direct ranking factor. E-E-A-T encompasses a set of refining signals that underpin Google’s overarching goals of enhancing user experience and combating misinformation.
This concept bears significance across all niches, but it holds particular weight in Your Money Your Life (YMYL) sectors like finance and health, where search results can profoundly impact a user’s life.
As previously mentioned, high-quality content is an important ranking factor, and there’s no better roadmap for achieving it than following the E-E-A-T guidelines. Establishing a reputable presence as an expert in your field aligns with Google’s objectives and enhances the user experience.
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Page Experience
The removal of Page Experience from Google’s ranking systems page stirred some discussions within the community, prompting the Search Liaison team to clarify: “…As stated in the first sentence of our page experience guidance: ‘Google’s core ranking systems seek to reward content that offers a positive page experience.'”
The Page Experience concept was introduced in 2021, following the prior emphasis on Core Web Vitals (CWVs) as a significant ranking factor.
CWVs then became part of a broader set of ‘signals’ that collectively constitute the Page Experience—still essentially a ranking factor but now part of a group of factors referred to as ‘Page Experience.’
To grasp the importance of this shift, one must understand Google’s overarching objectives. Google is committed to delivering an exceptional user experience. It reflects poorly on its product if it serves pages that load slowly, display poorly on certain devices, or are cluttered with obstructive ads that hinder user access.
As Google states: “Google’s core ranking systems aim to reward content that provides a positive page experience.”
Page Experience centres on four primary signals:
- HTTPS.
- Page Speed.
- Mobile Friendliness.
- Core Web Vitals.
While Page Experience is important, it may not always be the most critical factor. Its significance becomes more apparent when multiple pages compete for the same position.
As John Mueller elucidates: “When the content in the search results is very similar, Page Experience can help to some extent in determining which pages offer a fast and user-friendly experience, as opposed to those that fall short in these aspects.”
Google’s aspiration is to offer the finest product on the market, and this is a pivotal aspect of SEO that shouldn’t be overlooked. Concentrating on Google’s motivations and aligning your efforts with them can yield better ranking results than anything else.
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Links
The interplay between ranking factors and links is undeniable. Since its inception, Google has witnessed SEO professionals harnessing links to influence rankings, while Google itself has been engaged in an ongoing battle against link spam to enhance result quality.
However, a perception has emerged within the SEO community that links are diminishing in their role as a ranking factor. To understand the historical importance of links, one can hark back to Google’s founders, Sergey Brin and Lawrence Page, who accorded links an important role in their renowned Stanford paper. In this paper, links were equated with citations in academic papers, forming a cornerstone of their ranking system.
In the early days of Google, links became a widely exploited technique for manipulating rankings, culminating in Google’s 2012 Penguin update, designed to eliminate low-quality links. Since then, Google has been working to reduce the significance of links in its ranking algorithm.
Interestingly, the first instance of a Google representative publicly acknowledging that links were a ranking factor occurred in 2016. During a Q&A with Ammon Johns and others, Google’s Search Quality Senior Strategist Andrey Lipattsev stated that the top three ranking signals were “Content, Links, RankBrain.”
Fast forward to 2023, when Gary Illyes, in an AMA at PubCon, contradicted this view by asserting that links were not a “top 3” ranking signal and hadn’t been so for some time. He contended that there was no universal top 3, adding, “It’s absolutely possible to rank without links.”
It’s important to consider why Google might downplay the significance of links, particularly to combat link spam. Google is unlikely to assert that links are an infallible ranking factor given their susceptibility to manipulation. While it is technically feasible to rank without links, they often contribute to improved ranking.
Ammon, in response to his 2016 video, emphasized that Andrey Lipattsev’s statement about “Content, Links, and RankBrain” underscored the importance of on-page, off-page, and query processing factors as essential components, regardless of later comments by Gary Illyes.
Beyond the flow of PageRank, links are vital because Google discovers pages through crawling and traverses the web via links. Consequently, a page lacking inbound or internal links may struggle to rank, as Google may not find it through links for crawling and indexing. This underscores the significance of submitting a sitemap to guide Google in indexing desired pages.
Internal linking not only facilitates Google’s indexing but also supports the structuring of topic clusters, a valuable SEO content strategy.
Importantly, not all links are created equal. Google places greater emphasis on the quality of individual links over their quantity.
As John Mueller stated, “The number of links may have been an important factor during the early days of PageRank, but Google prioritizes more helpful metrics to evaluate links today.”
Links no longer carry the same weight as in the early days when a high volume of low-quality inbound links could propel a page’s ranking. Today, relevance and link quality are paramount.
In conclusion, it is evident that both internal and inbound links continue to be regarded as ranking factors in the SEO landscape.
In Conclusion
The key takeaway from this article is that achieving ranking and visibility on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) is not a straightforward process governed by a fixed list of ranking factors.
This complexity is what makes the SEO industry both exciting and challenging to work in.
With that said, while there isn’t a clear-cut set of Google ranking factors to follow, there are numerous factors and signals that hold significance in securing the best possible ranking.
To begin, it’s essential to gain a deep understanding of Google’s objectives and operational principles. Once you grasp these, you can shape your content and SEO strategy to optimize your ranking.
Would you like to read more about “The Most Important Google Ranking Factors” related articles? If so, we invite you to take a look at our other tech topics before you leave!
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