What is schema markup?

Schema markup is a form of microdata that you add to your website’s HTML to help search engines understand the exact meaning and context of your content. Created through a collaborative effort by major search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, and Yandex under Schema.org, it acts like a standardized language or dictionary for web crawlers. Without schema, a search engine can read text on a page, but it might struggle to determine whether a string of numbers represents a price, a phone number, or a publish date. When you implement schema markup, you explicitly label your content as specific entities—such as articles, products, local businesses, recipes, events, or FAQs. Search engines use this structured data to generate rich snippets in search results, which can include star ratings, pricing, event dates, or step-by-step instructions. These visually appealing rich snippets make your search listings far more attractive, leading to higher click-through rates and better overall search visibility.