A good meta description example says what the page offers in the searcher's words, adds one concrete detail such as a price, a number or a time, and gives a reason to click, all in about 110–160 characters. Below are eleven real-world page types, each with a typical weak description and a rewrite, the character count of both and why the rewrite works. Copy the pattern, not the words. For what the meta description is and how it fits with the other head tags, see our guide to meta tags for SEO.
Quick answer
- Formula: what the page is + one specific detail + what the reader gets or does next.
- Length: aim for 110–160 characters. Put the key point in the first 120, which is roughly what a phone shows.
- Use the words people search, once. Google bolds them in the snippet.
- Add a fact only this page has: a price, a size range, a date, a count, an opening time.
- Do not repeat the title. The title sits right above the description; use the second line for new information.
- One per page. Duplicates across pages are the descriptions Google replaces most readily.
The formula behind every example
Every rewrite below follows the same four parts. You do not need all four in every description, but a description with none of them is the kind Google swaps for a sentence from the page.
- The thing. What the page is, named the way a searcher names it: "women's trekking shoes", not "footwear solutions".
- The specific. One detail that proves the page is worth visiting: "48 models", "€149", "30 minutes", "open Saturdays".
- The benefit. What the reader gets: free returns, fit advice, a tested answer, a same-day appointment.
- The next step, when there is one: "book online", "compare plans". Skip "click here" and "learn more"; they take space and say nothing.
Google's Search Central documentation on snippets says the same thing in its own words: a good description is a short, relevant summary of the page, unique to it, and can include facts such as the author, date or price that are spread across the page. It also warns against a description that is only a list of keywords.
Home page
Before (133 characters):
Welcome to Outdoor Shop, your number one source for all things outdoors. We're dedicated to giving you the very best of outdoor gear.
After (126 characters):
Hiking and climbing gear for the Dinaric Alps since 2009. 2,400 products in stock in Zagreb, delivered in 24 h across Croatia.
The "before" is the default "About us" text of a theme. It names no product, no place and no reason to choose this shop. The rewrite answers the three questions a searcher has about a shop: what it sells, whether it has stock, and how fast it delivers.
Category page
Before (111 characters):
Shop our great selection of women's trekking shoes at the best prices. Buy women's trekking shoes online today!
After (125 characters):
48 waterproof women's trekking shoes from 6 brands, sizes 36–43. Filter by weight and sole, with fit advice on every product.
The "before" repeats the phrase twice and uses claims every competitor makes ("great selection", "best prices"). The rewrite uses the phrase once and adds what a shopper compares: how many models, which sizes, how to narrow them down. If your count changes daily, build it from the template (see below) or round it: "40+ models" stays true longer.
Product page
Before (20 characters):
Alpina Pro. Buy now.
After (130 characters):
Alpina Pro waterproof trekking shoe with a Vibram sole, 780 g a pair, sizes 36–47. €149, ships today, free returns within 30 days.
Product descriptions compete with shopping results that already show a price and a picture. The rewrite adds the facts that decide a purchase: the key spec, the weight, the sizes, the price and the returns policy. Keep prices in the description only if your template updates them; a stale price is exactly the kind of inaccuracy that makes Google prefer text from the page.
Blog post or article
Before (117 characters):
In this article we will take a look at some of the reasons why leather boots might leak and what you can do about it.
After (129 characters):
Leather boots leak at the seams, not the leather. The two products that fix it, the wax that ruins them, tested over two winters.
"In this article we will…" spends half the space announcing the article. The rewrite gives the answer first, which is what a searcher with a question wants, and then promises the detail they will get by clicking. A description that answers the question can cost you a click on a simple query; on anything with a "how" or a "which", it earns one.
Local business
Before (61 characters):
Dental services in Portland. Contact us for more information.
After (125 characters):
Emergency dentist in Portland, open Saturdays 8–14. Same-day appointments, most insurers accepted, parking behind the clinic.
Local searchers want to know three things: can you help, when, and how hard is it to get there. The rewrite covers all three in one line. Opening hours in the description must match your Google Business Profile and the page itself.
SaaS home page
Before (74 characters):
The best project management software for teams of all sizes. Try it today.
After (124 characters):
Plan sprints, track bugs and ship releases in one board. Free for up to 10 users, Slack and GitHub built in, no card needed.
"The best software for teams of all sizes" could describe any product in the category. The rewrite says what the software does in verbs, then lists the three facts that stop a visitor from bouncing to a competitor: the free limit, the integrations and the lack of a card requirement.
Pricing page
Before (30 characters):
Learn about our pricing plans.
After (128 characters):
Three plans from €0 to €24 per user a month, billed monthly or yearly. Compare limits, storage and support, and cancel any time.
People who search "[product] pricing" want a number. Give them the range; a searcher who sees €24 and still clicks is a better lead than one who clicks to find out.
Recipe
Before (77 characters):
Easy chicken curry recipe. This is the best chicken curry you will ever make!
After (130 characters):
A 30-minute chicken curry with pantry spices, coconut milk and one pan. Serves four, freezes well, and the heat is easy to adjust.
Recipe searchers decide on time, ingredients and effort. The rewrite puts the time first and answers the practical questions (servings, freezing, spice) that the "best ever" claim avoids. Recipe structured data can add cooking time and ratings to the result as well; the description adds what the markup cannot say.
About page
Before (52 characters):
Learn about our company, our mission and our values.
After (130 characters):
Family-run since 1994: three stores in Zagreb, Split and Rijeka, 40 staff who hike what they sell, and a repair workshop in-house.
About pages are searched by people checking whether a business is real. Facts do that job: the founding year, the locations, the number of people. "Our mission and values" says nothing a searcher can check.
Contact page
Before (11 characters):
Contact us.
After (112 characters):
Call +385 1 555 0100 or write to [email protected]. We answer within one working day, Monday to Friday 8–16.
A contact page description can be the answer itself: the searcher may get the phone number from the result without clicking, and that is a good outcome for them and for you.
Event page
Before (41 characters):
Get Report 2026 conference. Register now!
After (126 characters):
Web performance conference, 14–15 May 2027 in Zagreb. 20 talks, two workshop tracks, early-bird tickets €190 until 31 January.
Event searchers need the date, the place and the price. The rewrite also gives a deadline, which is a real reason to click now rather than a manufactured one.
What the rewrites have in common
Look back at the eleven "after" versions and the same pattern shows up each time:
| Weak description | Strong description |
|---|---|
| Talks about the company ("we", "our") | Talks about the reader's need |
| Makes claims ("best", "great", "leading") | Gives facts (numbers, places, times, prices) |
| Repeats the keyword two or three times | Uses the searcher's phrase once |
| Announces the page ("in this article…") | Gives the answer or the offer |
| Ends with "learn more" or "click here" | Ends with a concrete benefit or next step |
| Under 70 characters, or over 160 | Between about 110 and 160 characters |
How to write your own, step by step
- Find the query. In Google Search Console, open Performance → Pages, pick the page, then switch to Queries. The top queries are the words your description should echo.
- List the page's facts. Price, count, size range, time, place, date, guarantee. Pick the one a searcher would compare.
- Write the first sentence with the thing and the specific. Check that it makes sense cut at 120 characters.
- Add the benefit or next step in the second sentence.
- Count. Aim for 110–160 characters. The meta tags checker shows the length and a preview of the result.
- Compare with the title. If the description repeats the title's words, replace them with a new fact.
For hundreds of similar pages, such as products or locations, do not write by hand. Build a template from fields the CMS already has, for example {name}, {key attribute}, sizes {size range}. {price}, {shipping promise}., and hand-write only the pages that bring the most search traffic. Meta descriptions: length, wording and Google rewrites shows how to set templates in WordPress, Shopify and static sites, and duplicate titles and descriptions across a site covers fixing a template that gives every page the same text.
Why Google may not show your description
Even a perfect description is not always shown. Google's snippet documentation says it builds the snippet from the page content by default and uses the meta description when it describes the page more accurately for that query. A searcher typing a narrow question may see a sentence from your body text, and one typing the page's main query may see your description.
That is not a failure. Write the description for the page's main query, and make sure the body text answers the narrower ones clearly, so whatever Google picks reads well. And keep the old meta keywords habit out of it: a description that is only a list of phrases is one Google names as a bad example. Our guide to meta keywords and why Google ignores them covers that tag.
How to check your descriptions
The meta tags checker reads any public page's meta description with its length in characters, next to the title, canonical and social tags, and shows a preview of the search result. It flags a description that is missing, under 70 characters or over 160.
Both the meta tags checker and the SEO audit read one page per run, so check one page of each template: home, category, product, article. The guide to duplicate descriptions explains how to find the same text on many pages.
Questions people ask
What does a good meta description look like?
A good meta description names what the page offers in the words people search, adds one concrete fact such as a price, count or time, and ends with what the reader gets. For example: "48 waterproof women's trekking shoes from 6 brands, sizes 36–43. Filter by weight and sole, with fit advice on every product." It is 110–160 characters and unique to the page.
Should a meta description include a call to action?
Only a specific one. "Book online in two minutes" or "compare plans" tells the searcher what happens next and can earn a click; "click here" and "learn more" take space and say nothing. If there is no natural next step, such as on an article, end with the benefit instead: what the reader will know or be able to do.
Should the meta description repeat the page title?
No. The title sits directly above the description in the search result, so repeating it wastes the second line. Use the same topic in different words and add a fact the title has no room for, such as the price, the size range or the opening hours. The title makes the claim and the description backs it up.
Can I copy a meta description template from another site?
You can copy the structure, not the text. A pattern such as "what it is, one number, the benefit" works for any page, but a description copied word for word says nothing specific about your page, and Google is more likely to replace it. Fill the pattern with your own facts: your prices, counts, places and dates.