Freqo Compass · Guide

Page titles and meta descriptions

The title and the description are often the first thing people see of your site, in the search results. Missing, duplicate or badly sized, they cost you clicks.

Why it matters

The title tells search engines what the page is about, and it is usually shown as the headline of the result.
The meta description does not change your position, but search engines often show it under the title: a clear description makes people want to click.
When several pages share the same title or description, they look interchangeable, to people and to search engines.

How to check them

Search for your site on Google and read your own results: are the titles clear, are they cut off? Freqo Compass reads every page each week and lists the pages without a title or description, the duplicates, and those that are too long or too short.

How to write them

One unique title per page, around 50 to 60 characters, with the main subject first.
One unique description per page, around 120 to 160 characters, that says what the visitor will find.
One main heading (H1) per page, close to the title.
On sites with many similar pages, such as products or articles, build each title from the page's own content rather than from one template.

What Freqo Compass checks

Missing titles and meta descriptions
Duplicate titles and descriptions
Titles and descriptions that are too long or too short
Pages with no H1, or several

This is one of the 39 checks Freqo Compass runs on your site every week, each with an explanation of how to fix it. Discover Freqo Compass

Other guides

No tool can guarantee a position in search results, and neither do we.