Is Google still using the meta tags and keywords as a ranking factor?

Google does not use the meta keywords tag as a ranking factor. In fact, Google officially announced in 2009 that they no longer consider the meta keywords tag in their ranking algorithms. Therefore, adding meta keywords to your website’s HTML code is unlikely to have any impact on your search engine rankings.

On the other hand, while Google doesn’t use the meta description tag as a direct ranking factor, it does play a significant role in search engine optimization (SEO). The meta description is the brief summary of a web page’s content that appears in search engine result pages (SERPs). Although it doesn’t affect rankings directly, it can influence click-through rates (CTR) and user engagement.

A well-crafted meta description that accurately represents the page’s content and entices users to click can indirectly improve your website’s visibility in search results. While Google may sometimes generate its own snippets for search results based on the page content, providing a relevant and compelling meta description can increase the likelihood of Google using it.

It’s important to note that search engines continually evolve their algorithms, and practices may change over time. It’s a good idea to stay updated with the latest SEO guidelines and recommendations from search engines like Google to ensure your website’s meta information is optimized effectively.