Google Search can enable a rich set of features for your page in search results if it understands the content of the page and, in some circumstances, if you explicitly provide additional information in the page code using structured data. These features fall into two general categories:
- Content type: Many search features are tied to the topic of your page. For example, if the page has a recipe or a news article, or contains information about an event or a book. Google Search results can then apply content-specific features such as making your page eligible to appear in a top news stories carousel, a recipe carousel, or an events list.
- Enhancements: These are features that, can be applied to more than one kind of content type. For example, providing review stars for a recipe or movie, or exposing a carousel of rich results.
There is no guarantee that your page will appear in Search results with the specified feature. This is because search features depend on many factors, including the search device type, location, and whether Google thinks the feature would provide the best search experience for the user.
Google Search has a few general types of search result categories. Most features apply to specific categories.
Search result categories | |
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Basic result: Often called "plain blue links". An example of enhancements that appear in this category of result is breadcrumb (shown). | ![]() |
Rich result: A result that includes styling, images, and other features. Examples of content types with rich results include book (shown), recipe, and product. Examples of features include breadcrumb and review snippet. | ![]() |
Enriched search result: A more interactive or immersive result type that can often display its own page or support interactivity. Examples include recipe and job posting. | ![]() |
Knowledge Graph result: A compilation of information from one or more pages, displayed in a visual layout similar to a rich result. It can be difficult to distinguish visually between a rich result and a Knowledge Graph result. Knowledge Graph results can include identity (logo, preferred site name, social profile links). The Knowledge Graph can potentially ingest data using any schema.org elements, even those not described in this documentation. Read more about managing your Knowledge Graph data. |
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Carousel: A container for multiple rich results of the same type on your site. Google Search can also automatically create carousels of similar type items from different sites in search results. | ![]() |
Implementing search features
Search features are typically implemented using structured data. Read the introduction to structured data to learn the standard guidelines required by Google Search, then read the specific guidelines for your content type and any enhancements.
Supported combinations
Start by adding structured data appropriate for your page content, and then optionally add additional enhancements or features. Some enhancements can work only with specific content types. The following table shows which enhancements are supported for content types or formats.
Content type and available enhancements | |
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Article/blog | AMP special features |
Book | Review snippet, Critic review |
Recipe | AMP special features, Review snippet |
Product | Review snippet |
All content types |
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