How bad is it going over 70 character for title tag length?
-
I know less than 70 is recommended. I am about to run a script to create some title tags and a few will be between 71-74. Is going just the few characters over ok until I can get in there and manually do them?
-
Hi Niners72,
I agree with Mark. But I would also try to ensure that you are providing a relevant yet unique title tag for each of your pages where possible (you can focus on the ones that are top level then work through as when you have the time-if you have a large site) as these can help to improve Click Through Rate also as well as the description (which needs to be within the 156 limit).
-
Going over 70 characters means your title tags will be truncated by Google. And nowadays, it's not dictated by characters, but the amount of pixels those characters take up - staying under 65 will usually mean you're in the clear.
If you are formulaically creating title tags, and a few of those go over 70, I don't think it's the end of the world. It's not bad - you aren't going to be punished - Google will just truncate the tag and add an ellipsis - worst case scenario, they'll create their own title tag.
That being said, I'd make sure for your target pages (pages you really care about and are aiming for as landing pages in the SERPs), you manually review/write them and make sure they are optimized in terms of keyword inclusion, Call to action, branding, length, etc.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Affect of ™ and ® in title for SEO
I am looking at adding the trademark and rights reserved symbols to some of my titles. I think this might help with click through rate. From what I have found, this shouldn't have an affect on SEO unless it makes the title too long. Is this correct? Stephen
On-Page Optimization | | stephen.volker1 -
How to explain to a client that duplicate content is bad...
Afternoon! An SEO client of ours has copied a load of landing/category page content from other sites. Lots of emails have been sent back and forth asking them to remove it, but they are adamant to keep it up there until we have time to amend it. We have explained to them: The Google penalty risks The copyright risks The short and long-term implications for their brand new business/website The money they are spending on our SEO package could be completely wasted if they're caught I think the above is pretty black and white, but the director of this company will not budge. Does anyone have any different approaches? The director said he's happy for us to amend the content but, in the meantime, the plagiarised content will not be removed. Cheers, Lewis
On-Page Optimization | | PeaSoupDigital0 -
How should a ALT TAG Be?
Hi All, Can a ALT Tag have special characters? Can i have my ALT Tag as Image-explained-with-what-it-is? Can i have - hyphens as this? Thanks I have a 2nd question I have 100's of videos which has a ALT tag as Tumbnail link to video How can i deal with them? Can i add the Video title as ALT Tag? thanks
On-Page Optimization | | Nettv0 -
Do you say Browser Title or Page Title?
I have seen much more use of "Page Title" of late....in fact hardly any of "Browser Title" except by some folks who are using a very old CMS. We need to go with one at my workplace to avoid confusion. My vote is Page Title. Thoughts? Thanks, Tim
On-Page Optimization | | Jen_Floyd0 -
Title Tag duplication.
Hi Guys/Gals, We do a lot of work in a very competitive space (personal injury) and are having an internal debate on the best way to implement title tags for new sites. We understand that keywords, title tags, etc., don't possess the power they once did, but we have yet to see conclusive proof of this in our space. The vast majority of competitors still rank very well for keyword focused content, title tags, etc., while having average link profiles and little content. We write a lot of content for our clients and want to know if someone can offer their opinion on the question that follows this example: "Top 5 Injuries Caused by T-Bone Collisions | Indiana Accident Lawyer" Would it seem repetitive or manipulative to construct title tags as shown, always placing "Indiana Accident Attorney" or "Indianapolis Accident Lawyer," or similar of at the end of each title tag? Thanks, gang!
On-Page Optimization | | Wayne760 -
Meta Title for Category Pages
I am trying to improve the SEO for a few key category pages on my blog. I have two ranking really well so I want to boost them and bring up some others. Can I put two keywords in the meta title? Example: Maternity Deals | Pregnancy Deals Or should I just stick with one? Thanks!
On-Page Optimization | | dealblogger0 -
Are tags important for SEO?
I just installed a plugin called SEO content control and it is telling me I need to write descriptions for my tags. I haven't been using tags although I did create a list of them. I don't have an endless amount of time on my hands so is this a worthwhile task?
On-Page Optimization | | dealblogger0 -
Dash or vertical bar in titles?
Hello. Should I use a dash or a vertical line in title tags? Thank you!
On-Page Optimization | | nyc-seo0