Key Takeaways

Schema.org is a universal vocabulary for structured data understood by all major search engines
Structured data helps both Google and AI chatbots understand your content
JSON-LD is the recommended format for implementing Schema.org markup

What is Schema.org?

Schema.org is a collaborative project founded by Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, and Yandex that provides a shared vocabulary for structured data markup on web pages. It's essentially a dictionary of terms that help machines understand what your content means, not just what it says.

When you add Schema.org markup to your pages, you're telling search engines and AI systems:

What type of content this is (article, product, business, event, recipe, etc.)
Key properties of that content (price, author, date, rating, location)
Relationships between different pieces of content

Why Structured Data Matters

Rich Results in Google

Structured data enables rich snippets - star ratings, prices, FAQ accordions, and other enhanced search results that increase click-through rates.

AI Understanding

AI chatbots use structured data to accurately extract and cite information about your business, products, and services.

Voice Search

Voice assistants like Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant rely on structured data to answer user questions accurately.

Better Rankings

While not a direct ranking factor, structured data improves content understanding, which can indirectly boost your search visibility.

Most Important Schema Types

Schema.org has hundreds of types, but these are the most impactful for most websites:

Organization / LocalBusiness

Best for: Company websites, local businesses, service providers

Include your business name, logo, address, phone, opening hours, and social profiles. Essential for appearing in local search and AI business recommendations.

Product

Best for: E-commerce sites, product pages

Include name, description, price, availability, reviews, and images. Powers product rich snippets and AI product recommendations.

Article / BlogPosting

Best for: Blog posts, news articles, guides

Include headline, author, publication date, and featured image. Helps with Google News visibility and AI content citations.

FAQPage

Best for: FAQ sections, Q&A content

Mark up question-and-answer pairs. Perfect for AI since it directly maps to how users ask questions. Can also appear as FAQ rich snippets in Google.

HowTo

Best for: Tutorial content, step-by-step guides

Break down instructions into steps with time estimates and materials. AI loves citing step-by-step processes.

Review / AggregateRating

Best for: Review sites, product reviews, testimonials

Include rating value, review count, and individual reviews. Powers star ratings in search results and AI recommendations.

How to Implement Structured Data

There are three formats for adding Schema.org markup. JSON-LD is recommended by Google and is the easiest to implement:

Format	Recommendation	Notes
JSON-LD	Recommended	Added as a script tag, doesn't modify visible HTML
Microdata	Supported	Inline HTML attributes, harder to maintain
RDFa	Supported	Similar to Microdata, less commonly used

Example: LocalBusiness in JSON-LD


<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "LocalBusiness",
  "name": "Your Business Name",
  "description": "What your business does",
  "url": "https://yourdomain.com",
  "telephone": "+1-555-123-4567",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "123 Main Street",
    "addressLocality": "City",
    "addressRegion": "State",
    "postalCode": "12345",
    "addressCountry": "US"
  },
  "openingHours": "Mo-Fr 09:00-17:00",
  "priceRange": "$$"
}
</script>

For a deeper dive into JSON-LD implementation, see our JSON-LD Guide.

Testing Your Structured Data

Always validate your markup before publishing:

Google Rich Results Test

See which rich results your page is eligible for and catch errors.

Schema.org Validator

Validates any Schema.org markup, including types not supported by Google.

Google Search Console

Monitor structured data performance and errors across your entire site.

Check Your Structured Data with Ayzeo

Run a free website analysis to see what structured data your site has, what's missing, and get specific recommendations for improvement.

Analyze Your Website

Frequently Asked Questions

Is structured data a ranking factor?

Not directly. However, it improves how search engines understand your content, enables rich snippets that increase click-through rates, and helps AI systems cite you accurately.

Can I add multiple schema types to one page?

Yes! A product page might have Product, Organization, and BreadcrumbList schemas. Use an @graph array in JSON-LD to combine multiple types cleanly.

Do I need structured data on every page?

Focus on your most important pages first - homepage (Organization), product pages, key service pages, and blog posts. You can expand from there.

Understanding Structured Data (Schema.org)