What is E-E-A-T in Google?
What does E-E-A-T mean in plain words?
- Experience. Has the author actually used, done or seen the thing?
- Expertise. Do they know the subject well?
- Authoritativeness. Are they a known source on it?
- Trustworthiness. Can a reader rely on the page being accurate and honest?
Google says E-E-A-T itself isn't a specific ranking factor, but its systems use a mix of factors to identify content that shows these qualities1. Content does not need to show all four; the others feed into trust1. You may still see the older form, E-A-T, without "experience".
Why does it matter for a brand?
Because it describes what a careful reader wants anyway: a named author, a reason to believe them and honest limits.
It also matters because SEO is not a bag of tricks. Google describes SEO as helping search engines understand your content and helping people find your site and decide whether to visit it. E-E-A-T sits on the "decide whether to trust" side of that.
How much of this carries over to AI Overviews and GEO is a separate question: see AEO vs GEO vs SEO.
Our view: this is a content standard, not a ranking promise. Our version is how we source and review our content: an author, a reviewer and a named type of source on each page.
Easily confused with
E-E-A-T vs A ranking factor
Google says E-E-A-T itself isn't a specific ranking factor1. Do not read it as a number a tool can measure for you.
E-E-A-T vs Quality rater guidelines
Google's raters are trained to judge E-E-A-T, but Google says raters have no control over how pages rank1.
E-E-A-T vs Structured data
Markup gives Google explicit clues about what a page means. Markup does not make a page trustworthy.
E-E-A-T vs SEO
The wider job. E-E-A-T is one idea inside it.
Buzzword alert
"We will optimise your E-E-A-T"
Usually means: author bios and an about page, with little change to what the pages actually say.
Ask: what will the pages say differently afterwards?
"Your E-E-A-T score is low"
Usually means: a third-party tool's own metric; Google does not describe E-E-A-T as a score.
Ask: which tool produces that score?
FAQ
Is E-E-A-T a Google ranking factor?
Google says E-E-A-T itself isn't a specific ranking factor1. It names qualities its systems look for in helpful content.
How do I show E-E-A-T on a page?
Name the author: Google encourages accurate bylines where readers expect them1. Say why they know the subject. Give sources, state what you do not know, and have someone else check it.
Does E-E-A-T apply to ecommerce pages?
Yes, the idea is general. Product and policy pages can show who stands behind the claims.
Sources
Let’s find what’s actually working.
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