How to Write a Meta Description (With Examples)

A meta description is the short summary that appears under your page title in search results. It does not directly affect rankings, but it has a big effect on whether people click your result instead of a competitor's. A clear, specific description can lift your click-through rate noticeably, and more clicks means more traffic from the same ranking.

How long should a meta description be?

Aim for about 150 to 160 characters. Google truncates descriptions that run longer, so the end of your sentence can get cut off with an ellipsis. Writing to around 155 characters keeps the full message visible on most devices. If you go shorter, that is fine too, as long as the description still sells the click.

What to include

A good meta description does three things:

1. States what the page is about in plain language, so the searcher knows they are in the right place.
2. Includes the target keyword naturally, because Google bolds matching words in the results, which draws the eye.
3. Gives a reason to click, whether that is a benefit, a promise of a quick answer, or a hint at what is inside.

Write it like a two-line advert for the page, not a summary for a search engine.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Leaving it blank. If you do not write one, Google pulls a snippet from the page, which is often awkward or off-topic.
• Duplicating descriptions across many pages. Each page should have its own.
• Keyword stuffing. Repeating the keyword three times reads as spam and wastes space you could use to persuade.
• Being vague. "Welcome to our website" tells the searcher nothing.

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The second version is specific, includes the keyword, and gives a clear reason to click.

Generate and preview your tags

Once you have written a description, it helps to see how it will look in search before you publish. Our free Meta Tag Generator builds your title, description, Open Graph and Twitter tags from a simple form, with a live Google preview and character counters that warn you when the text runs too long.

The takeaway

Treat the meta description as your pitch in the search results. Keep it near 155 characters, include the keyword once, be specific, and give people a reason to choose your page. It is a small piece of text with an outsized effect on your traffic.