Alt text is used to assist computers in reading images.
Can alt tags, however, have an impact on your organic search rankings?
Continue reading to find out if there is a link between alt text and higher Google rankings.
The Proposition: Alt Text Is a Ranking Factor
What exactly is alt text?
Alt text is a type of image attribute in HTML. It enables you to create an alternate text version of your image in the event that the image cannot be loaded or there is an accessibility issue.
Because of its significance in Google Image Search, it is regarded as a ranking factor.
The Evidence for Using Alt Text as a Ranking Factor
Google emphasizes the significance of alt text in a variety of ways.
The following is stated about the use of alt tags in Google Search Central’s “Search Engine Optimization Starter Guide“:
“…optimizing your image filenames and alt text makes it easier for image search projects like Google Images to better understand your images.”
A page on image best practices can be found in Google Search Central’s Advanced SEO documentation. Google discusses the use of alt text in a section titled about alt text.
“Google uses alt text along with computer vision algorithms and the contents of the page to understand the subject matter of the image. Also, alt text in images is useful as anchor text if you decide to use an image as a link.”
While they do not state that using alt text will improve your rankings, they do warn webmasters that using it incorrectly can harm your website.
“Avoid filling alt attributes with keywords (keyword stuffing) as it results in a negative user experience and may cause your site to be seen as spam.”
They also provide examples of good and bad alt text usage.
During a Google Webmaster Office Hours in 2020, John Mueller, Google Search Advocate, answered a question about the alt text of a quote image. In his response, he explained how Google uses it:
“For Search, what happens with the alt attribute is we use that to better understand the images themselves, in particular, for Image Search. So if you didn’t care about Image Search, then from a Search point of view, you don’t really need to worry about alt text.
But if you do want these images to be shown in Image Search, which sometimes it makes sense to show fancy quotes in Image Search as well, then using the alt attribute is a good way to tell us this is on that image and we’ll get extra information from around your page with regard to how we can rank that landing page.”
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In relation to alt text, Moz mentions ranking factors. Rather than stating that alt text is a ranking factor in and of itself, Moz suggests:
“…alt text offers you another opportunity to include your target keyword. With on-page keyword usage still pulling weight as a search engine ranking factor, it’s in your best interest to create alt text that both describes the image and, if possible, includes a keyword or keyword phrase you’re targeting.”
During a Twitter discussion about the benefits of ALT text for SEO in 2021, Google Developer Martin Splitt stated:
“Yep, alt text is important for SEO too!”
Our Opinion on Alt Text as a Ranking Factor
There is no specific mention of alt text as a Google search ranking factor.
It is obvious that if you want your images to appear in Google image results, you must use descriptive, non-spammy alt text.
So, based on the comments made by Google representatives, as well as all of the supporting data we’ve uncovered, we’re declaring alt text to be a confirmed Google ranking factor.
Need help with our free SEO tools? Try our free Code to Text Ratio Checker, Alexa Rank Checker, Search Engine Spider Simulator.
Learn more from SEO and read about How to Make Gallery Page Images Google Search Friendly.
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