Websites · Glossary

What is a meta description?

A meta description is a short summary of a page, written in the page head as a meta tag, that search engines may show as the snippet under the page title in results. It does not affect rankings directly, but a clear, specific description that matches the search can persuade more people to click.

Search engines sometimes write their own snippet from the page text instead, especially when the description does not match the search. A good description makes that less likely.

Nuwan Madhusanka · Co-founder

3 min read · Published 13 October 2026

What it is for

The description is the pitch under your title in search results. It tells a searcher what the page offers before they click. Pages with a specific, accurate description tend to earn more clicks than pages where the snippet is a random fragment of navigation or legal text.

How long to make it

Search engines cut snippets by pixel width rather than a fixed count, and the cut point varies by device. Around 120 to 160 characters usually shows in full on desktop. Put the most important words first so the meaning survives a shorter cut on phones.

How to write one

Say what the page offers, for whom and where, in plain words: Learn to swim classes for babies to adults in Brisbane northside, term enrolments and holiday intensives. Use the words people search for. Each page needs its own description, because duplicates tell search engines nothing.

Common mistakes

Stuffing keywords, repeating the title, writing the same description on every page, leaving it empty so a menu fragment appears, and promising something the page does not deliver, which brings clicks that bounce straight back.

Where it shows up in OneCraft

The Search and sharing card holds the site description, with a Preview on Google that updates as you type. Each page has its own search description in the builder Page tab, which overrides the site one. Published pages put it in the meta description and in the Open Graph description used by share previews.

Questions people ask

Does the meta description affect ranking?

Not directly. Google has said descriptions are not a ranking factor. They influence whether people click once you appear, and a page that earns clicks for a search is serving that search well, so a good description is still worth the few minutes it takes.

Why does Google show different text from my description?

Google may rewrite snippets when it thinks other text on the page better matches the search. This happens more when the description is vague, duplicated or does not mention what was searched. A specific description per page reduces rewrites but cannot prevent them entirely.

Should every page have a meta description?

Every page you want found in search should have its own. Pages that are noindexed, such as thank you pages, do not need one. Duplicated descriptions across many pages are worse than none, because they suggest the pages are the same.

Can I use emojis or special characters?

You can, and search engines may display some of them, but they also may not, and they take space. Plain, specific words usually do better for a small business. Avoid quotation marks inside the text, which some systems handle poorly.

How is the meta description different from the title?

The title is the clickable headline in results and a stronger signal of what the page is about. The description is the supporting line underneath. Write the title to name the page topic and the description to give the reason to click.

Make one with websites

The button opens the generator with this use case already described. Change the wording to match your own.

Create a website with OneCraft

Sources

Written and checked by the OneCraft team. Last checked 13 October 2026.