It has been some time since I lined the key phrase meta tag and for some cause the subject has come up just lately, so I made a decision to cowl it once more. In brief, Google Search nonetheless doesn’t use the key phrase meta tag for rating functions.
Google doesn’t take a look at the phrases in your key phrase meta tag for search functions. Including, eradicating, spamming or excluding phrases or the meta tag utterly won’t matter in your rankings in Google Search.
Google mentioned this again in 2009 and mentioned it once more final 12 months on this video. Google additionally has it posted in its official documentation the place it mentioned, “The meta-keyword tag just isn’t utilized by Google Search, and it has no impact on indexing and rating in any respect.”
Google Search doesn’t take a look at the phrases in your key phrase meta tag in any respect.
Most just lately, John Mueller from Google mentioned in this video, “Simply to be clear from the beginning, the reply continues to be no. We don’t use the contents of the key phrase meta tag in Google Search.” “And once more, Google Search doesn’t use the key phrases meta tag,” he added.
Right here is that video:
Then in 2012, Matt Cutts posted one other video on the subject and mentioned, “You should not spend any time on the meta key phrases tag. We do not use it.” He added, “And so quite a lot of site owners simply key phrase stuff there. And so it is actually not all that useful. So we do not use meta key phrases in any respect.”
Right here is that video:
Then earlier than that in 2009, Matt Cutts posted this video the place he mentioned “So we had an attention-grabbing query from somebody who simply requested me, “How a lot do you utilize the key phrase or key phrases meta tag in your primary search outcomes?” And the reply is, mainly in no way.”
Right here is that video:
Now Bing Search might use key phrases meta tag nonetheless. You might have different makes use of for meta key phrases, equivalent to for inside search, for different content material functions. However for rating functions in Google Search, Google doesn’t use it.
Here’s a latest ballot I posted asking SEOs in the event that they use the key phrase meta tag:
Do you continue to use meta key phrases tags on pages you optimize?
rerunning a ballot @bill_slawski ran a number of years in the past— Barry Schwartz (@rustybrick) August 30, 2023
This was the ballot from Invoice, RIP, from a number of years in the past:
Do you continue to use meta key phrases tags on pages you optimize?
— Invoice Slawski ⚓ 🇺🇦 (@bill_slawski) Might 29, 2020
Discussion board dialogue at Twitter.