SEO Terms A-Z

A comprehensive glossary of search engine optimization terminology. Use this reference to understand common SEO terms and concepts.

A

Algorithm

A complex system used by search engines to retrieve data and deliver results for a query. Google uses multiple algorithms to rank pages.

Alt Text (Alternative Text)

HTML attribute that describes the content of an image. Used by screen readers and search engines to understand images.

Anchor Text

The clickable text in a hyperlink. Anchor text helps search engines understand what the linked page is about.

Authority

A measure of a website's trustworthiness and expertise, often determined by the quality and quantity of backlinks.

B

Backlink

A link from another website to your site. High-quality backlinks are an important ranking factor.

Black Hat SEO

Practices that violate search engine guidelines, like keyword stuffing, cloaking, or buying links. Can result in penalties.

Bounce Rate

The percentage of visitors who leave after viewing only one page. High bounce rates may indicate poor content or user experience.

Breadcrumb

Navigation showing the page's position in the site hierarchy (e.g., Home > Category > Page). Helps users and search engines.

C

Canonical URL

The preferred version of a URL when duplicate content exists. Specified using the rel="canonical" link element.

Click-Through Rate (CTR)

The percentage of people who click on a search result after seeing it. Calculated as clicks divided by impressions.

Crawl Budget

The number of pages a search engine bot will crawl on your site within a given timeframe.

Core Web Vitals

Google's metrics for user experience: LCP (loading), INP (interactivity), and CLS (visual stability).

CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift)

A Core Web Vital measuring visual stability—how much content shifts during page load.

D

Domain Authority (DA)

A score (1-100) predicting how well a domain will rank. Created by Moz, not used by Google.

Duplicate Content

Content that appears on multiple URLs. Can dilute ranking signals and confuse search engines.

Dwell Time

The amount of time a user spends on a page after clicking from search results before returning to the SERP.

E

E-E-A-T

Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. Google's framework for evaluating content quality.

External Link

A link from your site to another domain. Also called outbound link.

F

Featured Snippet

A special search result that appears above the regular organic results, showing a direct answer to a query.

FCP (First Contentful Paint)

The time from when the page starts loading to when any part of the content is rendered on screen.

G

Google Search Console

Free Google tool that helps monitor and maintain your site's presence in Google Search results.

Googlebot

Google's web crawling bot that discovers and indexes web pages.

H

H1 Tag

The main heading of a page. There should typically be one H1 per page containing the primary topic.

Heading Tags

HTML elements (H1-H6) that define headings and subheadings. Create content hierarchy for users and search engines.

Hreflang

An HTML attribute that tells search engines which language and region a page is intended for.

HTTPS

Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure. Encrypts data between browser and server. A ranking factor since 2014.

I

Impression

When a URL appears in search results, even if the user doesn't click on it.

Indexing

The process of adding web pages into Google's database so they can appear in search results.

Internal Link

A link from one page on your site to another page on the same site.

INP (Interaction to Next Paint)

A Core Web Vital measuring page responsiveness to user interactions.

J

JavaScript SEO

Practices to ensure JavaScript-rendered content can be crawled and indexed by search engines.

JSON-LD

A JavaScript notation for structured data. Google's recommended format for implementing schema markup.

K

Keyword

A word or phrase that users search for. SEO involves optimizing content for target keywords.

Keyword Density

The percentage of times a keyword appears relative to total words. Excessive density (stuffing) is harmful.

Keyword Cannibalization

When multiple pages on the same site compete for the same keyword, potentially hurting both.

L

LCP (Largest Contentful Paint)

A Core Web Vital measuring loading performance—when the largest content element becomes visible.

Link Building

The process of acquiring hyperlinks from other websites to your own.

Link Equity

The SEO value passed from one page to another through links. Also called "link juice."

Local Pack

The section of Google results showing a map and three local business listings.

Long-Tail Keyword

A longer, more specific search phrase. Usually has lower volume but higher intent.

M

Meta Description

An HTML tag that provides a brief summary of a page. Often displayed in search results.

Meta Tags

HTML tags that provide metadata about a webpage. Include title, description, robots, etc.

Mobile-First Indexing

Google primarily uses the mobile version of content for indexing and ranking.

N

NAP

Name, Address, Phone number. Consistency across citations is important for local SEO.

Nofollow

A link attribute that tells search engines not to pass link equity to the linked page.

Noindex

A meta tag directive that tells search engines not to include a page in search results.

O

Off-Page SEO

Optimization activities outside your website, primarily link building and brand mentions.

On-Page SEO

Optimization of elements on your website: content, HTML, and site architecture.

Organic Search

Non-paid search results. Traffic from organic search is earned through SEO, not ads.

Orphan Page

A page with no internal links pointing to it. Hard for search engines to discover.

P

Page Speed

How quickly a web page loads. A ranking factor and important for user experience.

PageRank

Google's original algorithm measuring page importance based on links. Still used internally.

PBN (Private Blog Network)

A network of sites used for link building. Violates Google guidelines and can result in penalties.

R

Ranking Factor

A signal that influences a page's position in search results. Google uses hundreds of factors.

Redirect

A way to send users and search engines to a different URL. 301 is permanent, 302 is temporary.

Robots.txt

A file that tells search engine crawlers which pages they can or cannot access.

S

Schema Markup

Structured data code that helps search engines understand your content and create rich results.

Search Intent

The purpose behind a search query: informational, navigational, commercial, or transactional.

SERP (Search Engine Results Page)

The page displayed by a search engine in response to a query.

Sitemap

An XML file listing all important URLs on a site. Helps search engines discover pages.

SSL Certificate

A digital certificate that enables HTTPS encryption on a website.

T

Technical SEO

Optimizations to help search engines crawl and index your site more effectively.

Title Tag

An HTML element specifying the title of a page. Appears in browser tabs and search results.

TTFB (Time to First Byte)

The time between requesting a page and receiving the first byte of data from the server.

U

URL

Uniform Resource Locator. The address of a web page (e.g., https://example.com/page/).

User Experience (UX)

The overall experience a visitor has with your website. Increasingly important for SEO.

W

White Hat SEO

Ethical SEO practices that follow search engine guidelines. Focuses on long-term results.

Web Vitals

Google's initiative to provide unified guidance for quality signals essential to user experience.

X

XML Sitemap

A file in XML format that lists all URLs on a website for search engines to crawl.

X-Robots-Tag

An HTTP header that provides robot directives for pages that can't use meta robots tags (like PDFs).

Y

YMYL (Your Money or Your Life)

Pages that could impact a person's health, finances, safety, or happiness. Held to higher quality standards.