A title tag is an HTML element for the title of a specific web page. Web page title tags appear in search engine results pages (SERPs) as part of search snippets . It appears as a clickable title for search results and is important for user experience, SEO, and social sharing. The title tag of a web page means an accurate and concise description of the content of the web page.
For example, you search for "organic click-through rate" in Google. That line of blue font in the search results is the title tag.
Title tags in search results
Example title tag
HTML code example
title tag HTML code
You can find the title tag in the HTML code section of the page.
Title tags in HTML code
In our commonly used WordPress website building program, the title tag can be edited directly through page editing.
Edit title tag in page editor
Format example
Primary Keyword - Secondary Keyword | Brand
For example, Technical SEO: The Ultimate Guide (2022) | Exxon Digital Marketing
optimal title tag length
Although Google does not specify or recommend the length of title tags, most desktop and mobile browsers generally display title tags of 50-60 characters in length. If you keep your title under 60 characters, more than 90% of your title can be fully displayed in the search results page.
While writing succinct titles is important for human readability and understanding, Google's crawling spiders consider the entire title tag when crawling a page (within reason), even if it's not fully displayed in the SERPs come out.
Why are title tags important?
Title tags are a major factor in helping search engines understand your page, and it’s the first impression people get when they discover country email list your page through organic search.
Title tags are mainly used in four key places:
Search Engine Results Pages (SERPS)
web browser window
Social network
Browser Favorites
1. Title tags in search engine results pages
Title tags determine the title displayed in search engine results pages (with a few exceptions) and are the first experience a search visitor has with your site. Even if your page ranks well, a good title is a key factor in determining whether someone clicks on your link.
How title tags are displayed in search results
2. Title tags in web browser windows
The title tag also appears as a placeholder at the top of the web browser window when someone visits your page, especially if there are several browser tabs open. Unique and easily recognizable title tags with important keywords prepended to help people track your content.
Display of title tags at the top of the browser
3. Title tags in social networks
Some external sites – especially social networking sites – will use your title tag as content to display when the page is shared.
For example, here's a screenshot of Facebook's share:
facebook share display title tag style
Pro tip: Some social networks (including Facebook and Twitter) have their own meta tags that allow you to make titles different from HTML title tags, which can be marked up in your page code.
This allows you to optimize each social network and provide longer titles if it makes sense.
Social media sharing title tag customization
4. Title Tag in Browser Favorites
The Chrome Favorites window displays the title tag of favorite sites by default.
As you can see from the example below, page title tags are usually truncated in the Bookmarks Bar.
Title label style in favorites
However, if you use folders, you can see most of the title tags of the page. This is a good reason why you should use short, descriptive title tags.
Title Tags Affect CTR and Ranking
Another reason why the title tag is important: it is closely related to keyword ranking and click-through rate .