Meta Description
The meta description is the short paragraph of text that appears beneath your page title in Google search results. Although it is not a direct ranking factor, it is a powerful tool for improving your click-through rate (CTR) from search results.
What Is a Meta Description?
The meta description is an HTML tag placed in the <head> section of your page. It provides a brief summary of the page's content for search engines and users alike.
<meta name="description" content="Buy handmade soy candles online. Free UK delivery on orders over £30. Browse 50+ scents." />Why It Matters
Google frequently displays the meta description as the snippet beneath your title in search results. A well-crafted description acts as an advert for your page — it persuades users to click your result over a competitor's. A higher CTR signals relevance to Google, which can indirectly support your rankings over time.
If you do not provide a meta description, Google will generate one automatically from your page content, which is often poorly formatted and less persuasive.
Ideal Length
Google typically truncates descriptions at around 155–160 characters on desktop. On mobile, the limit can be slightly shorter. Keep your most important information within the first 150 characters.
How to Write an Effective Meta Description
- Include your target keyword — Google bolds matching words in the snippet, making it stand out
- Summarise the page accurately — misleading descriptions increase bounce rate
- Include a call to action — phrases like "Browse the range", "Get a free quote", or "Learn more" encourage clicks
- Highlight your unique value — free delivery, UK-made, next-day dispatch, and so on
- Write for humans — the description should read naturally, not as a list of keywords
How to Fix a Missing Meta Description
Add the meta tag inside your page's <head> section:
<meta name="description" content="Your description here." />For CMS users: WordPress (Yoast/Rank Math), Shopify, Wix, and Squarespace all have a dedicated field for the meta description on each page's settings.