Google’s 200 Ranking Factors (& Their Importance)

You’ve done an excellent job in creating compelling content, conducting keyword research, and embracing great performance on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) – that’s what a successful SEO result looks like.

However, the SEO landscape is constantly evolving, and algorithm updates can sometimes send your rankings plummeting.

While these updates can be disruptive, they are a natural part of the SEO journey. Google’s focus on delivering the most relevant results for user queries necessitates continual refinement of its algorithms.

Accepting this reality and fostering an adaptable SEO strategy is key to long-term success. While achieving the top-ranking spot can feel like a hard challenge, knowing Google’s 200 known ranking factors can help you navigate the ever-changing SEO landscape.

By understanding these factors and prioritizing user experience, you can create a sustainable SEO strategy that weathers the inevitable algorithm updates.

What are Ranking Factors?

Search engines like Google rely on complex algorithms to determine the order in which web pages appear for a specific search query. These algorithms consider a multitude of factors, known as ranking factors, to identify the most relevant and valuable results for users.

Understanding ranking factors is a crucial element of any successful SEO strategy. While they aren’t a guaranteed path to the top spot, they serve as valuable guideposts for creating high-quality content and optimizing your website for user experience. This, in turn, can lead to increased organic traffic, conversions, and ultimately, business growth.

Focusing on ranking factors isn’t about blindly chasing an arbitrary list.  It’s about understanding what search engines value when it comes to user experience.

By prioritizing factors that enhance user satisfaction, like clear and informative content, mobile-friendliness, and fast loading speeds, you’re essentially creating a website that Google sees as valuable and trustworthy. This translates to better rankings and ultimately, a strong foundation for your SEO efforts.

Why track Google Ranking Factors?

The concept of a definitive list of 200 ranking factors originates from a 2009 statement by Matt Cutts, a former Google engineer, who mentioned “over 200 variables” in the algorithm. However, it’s crucial to consider the significant evolution of search engine algorithms since then.

Major updates like the rise of HTTPS security protocols, the mobile-first indexing shift, and the introduction of natural language processing with Hummingbird have undoubtedly reshaped Google’s ranking criteria.

Additionally, the integration of machine learning with RankBrain further emphasizes the dynamic nature of the algorithm. Even if a hypothetical “200” factor existed in 2009, Google has likely incorporated new elements into the algorithm over time.

Moreover, it’s important to understand that most of these factors aren’t binary (“on” or “off”). They often exist on a spectrum of values or states. For instance, website speed can range from very slow to blazing fast, with varying degrees of impact on ranking.

Furthermore, some ranking factors might rely on the presence of others to exert their influence. For example, the quality of backlinks a website receives might be more impactful if the website itself demonstrates strong on-page optimization.

Knowing Google’s top 200 ranking factors can open up your eyes to what is lacking in your SEO strategy. We have segmented these factors into several categories to help get better insights.

Let’s get started:

Domain-level Ranking Factors

1. Domain Age: According to Google’s John Muller, the misconception has been revealed that older domains attain a higher value than new domains as a Google ranking factor.

2. Keyword Appears in Top Level Domain: Including a keyword in your domain name can still be a weak relevancy signal, but its impact as a direct ranking booster has diminished. Focus on building a brand identity that resonates with your audience.

3. Domain registration length: The length of domain registration can be a minor indicator of legitimacy. Websites with long-term registrations suggest a more committed owner, potentially correlated with higher-quality content or services.

4. Keyword in Subdomain: SEO experts generally agree that incorporating a relevant keyword in the subdomain can offer a slight ranking boost.

5. Domain History: Frequent changes in ownership or domain abandonment can trigger Google to re-evaluate the website’s history and potentially devalue backlinks accumulated over time.

6. Exact Match Domain (EMD): If an EMD website offers low-quality content or engages in spammy practices, it might be vulnerable to targeted algorithm updates aimed at curbing such domains.

7. Public vs. Private WHOIS: Having private WHOIS information doesn’t necessarily indicate wrongdoing. However, in conjunction with other factors like short registration lengths or low-quality content, it might raise a red flag for Google regarding the website’s legitimacy.

8. Penalized Who is Owner: If Google identifies an individual as a repeat spammer, it might scrutinize other websites owned by that person more intensely.

9. Country TLD extension (ccTLD): Using a ccTLD (e.g., .cn for China) can improve rankings within that specific country. However, it can limit your website’s global visibility.

Site-Level Ranking Factors

10. Content Provides Value and Unique Insights: Google prioritizes websites offering valuable, unique insights. Websites with thin, unoriginal content, especially affiliate sites, might face penalties.

11. Contact Us Page: Include a clear and easily accessible “Contact Us” page with accurate information matching your WHOIS details.

12. Domain Trust/Trust Rank: Many SEOs believe that “TrustRank” is a massively important ranking factor. And Google’s blog also backed up this fact in its insights.

13. Site Architecture: A well-organized website structure (like a silo structure) helps Google categorize your content thematically and allows search engine crawlers to efficiently index all your pages.

14. Site Updates: Regular website updates with fresh content can indirectly benefit rankings by indicating an active and relevant site. However, Google doesn’t directly reward publishing frequency.

15. Presence of Sitemap: Create a sitemap to improve search engine indexing, although Google downplays the importance of HTML sitemaps.

16. Site Uptime: Ensure minimal downtime due to maintenance or server issues to avoid potential deindexing.

17. Server Location: Server location influences where your site ranks in different geographical regions (source). Especially important for geo-specific searches.

18. SSL Certificate: Use a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate (HTTPS) for a secure connection, considered a tiebreaker by Google in ranking decisions.

19. E-A-T: Cite credible sources and demonstrate expertise in your field to reflect E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) – especially for health-related content.

20. Duplicate Meta Content: Duplicate meta information across your site can harm page visibility. Ensure every page has unique and relevant meta descriptions.

21. Breadcrumb Navigation: Implement a user-friendly navigation system, including clear menus and breadcrumb navigation.

Google states that breadcrumbs organize a website hierarchically, categorizing information from the root domain page to sub-pages.

22. Mobile Optimized: Make your website mobile-friendly, as Google prioritizes mobile search experiences and penalizes non-mobile-optimized sites.

23. YouTube: Google owns YouTube and may prioritize YouTube videos in search results. Consider incorporating video content into your strategy if relevant.

24. Site Usability: A site that’s difficult to use or to navigate can hurt rankings indirectly by reducing time on site, pages viewed, and bounce rate (in other words, RankBrain ranking factors).

25. Use of Google Analytics and Google Search Console: While Google denies using Google Analytics and Search Console data directly for ranking, having these tools installed can provide valuable insights for optimizing your website.

26. User reviews/Site reputation: Positive user reviews and a strong online reputation can indirectly improve rankings by increasing user engagement metrics (time on site, pages viewed, lower bounce rate).

27. Core Web Vitals: These are essential website metrics that measure user experience, including page load speed, mobile-friendliness, and visual stability. Google considers them more than just a tiebreaker and emphasizes their importance in ranking.

Page-Level Factors

28. Keyword in Title Tag: While not as crucial as before, your title tag remains a significant on-page SEO signal. It should accurately reflect your content and incorporate relevant keywords naturally.

29. Title Tag Starts with Keyword: Studies from Moz suggest that titles containing keywords earlier in the tag tend to perform better than those with keywords at the end.

30. Keyword in Description Tag: Though not a direct ranking factor, the meta description tag can significantly impact click-through rate (CTR), a confirmed ranking factor.

31. Keyword Appears in H1 Tag: Often referred to as a “second title tag,” your H1 tag serves as another relevancy signal for Google, alongside your title tag.

32. TF-IDF: Google likely uses a sophisticated version of this concept to determine content relevance. Generally, content with greater depth and covering a wider range of topics tends to perform better than shallow, keyword-stuffed articles.

33. Content Length: Studies suggest that longer content, typically around 1400 words, allows for a more comprehensive exploration of a topic, potentially giving it an edge over briefer articles.

34. Table of Contents: Including a table of contents can enhance both user experience and search engine to understand the content structure, leading to site links in search results.

35. Latent Semantic Indexing Keywords in Content (LSI): LSI keywords help search engines grasp the meaning behind words with multiple interpretations. Their presence can indicate content quality and act as a relevancy signal.

36. LSI Keywords in Title and Description Tags: Just like the internal pages, having LSI keywords in title and descriptions also helps to signal Google about the page.

37. Page Covers Topic In-Depth: Google rewards pages that comprehensively explore a topic, providing a clear advantage over pages with superficial coverage.

38. Page Loading Speed via HTML: Google considers page speed a highly valuable ranking factor. It utilizes real Chrome user data to assess loading times.

39. Use of AMP: Accelerated mobile pages (AMPs) are generally used for ranking mobile versions of the Google News carousel. Hence, not considered a direct ranking factor but has potentially made it to the list.

40. Intent Match: Does your page’s content align with the user’s search intent? Pages that provide a precise match for the user’s query are likely to receive a ranking boost for that specific keyword.

41. Google Hummingbird: This update empowered Google to move beyond basic keyword matching, enabling a deeper understanding of a web page’s topic and overall content.

42. Duplicate Content: Google may penalize websites with identical content (even slightly modified versions) on the same site.

43. Rel=Canonical: Proper use of this tag can help prevent Google from penalizing your site for duplicate content.

44. Image Optimization: Images convey crucial relevancy signals through file names, alt text, titles, descriptions, and captions. Optimize your images for search engines to ensure proper indexing.

45. Content Recency: Google’s Caffeine update prioritizes recently published or updated content, particularly for time-sensitive searches. Highlighting the importance of freshness, Google sometimes displays the date of a page’s last update.

46. Magnitude of Content Updates: The extent of edits and changes also contributes to the freshness factor. Adding or removing entire sections holds more weight than minor edits or typo corrections.

47. Historical Page Updates: The frequency of page updates (daily, weekly, etc.) also plays a role in freshness.

48. Keyword Prominence: Studies suggest that incorporating a keyword within the first 100 words of your content correlates with higher Google rankings.

49. Keyword in H2, H3 Tags: Including your keyword in H2 or H3 subheadings might function as a weak relevancy signal. However, Google emphasizes these tags primarily for structuring your webpage content.

50. Outbound Link Quality: Getting backlinks from high-authority websites to your content is always a supportive ranking factor on Google.

51. Outbound Link Theme: Google’s “The Hilltop Algorithm” suggests it might consider the content of linked pages as a relevancy signal. Links to irrelevant pages might confuse search engines about your content’s topic.

52. Grammar and Spelling: Proper grammar and spelling are generally considered quality indicators, although mixed messages were communicated by Google in the past regarding its exact impact on ranking.

53. Syndicated Content: Scraped or copied content from indexed pages is unlikely to rank well or may not be indexed at all. Strive for original content to improve your website’s visibility.

54. Mobile-Friendly Update: Google’s “Mobilegeddon” update prioritized mobile-optimized pages, and their “Mobile-first Index” emphasizes mobile usability.

55. Mobile Usability: You’ll get priority in Google’s mobile-first index list if your website is easily navigational on mobile devices.

56. “Hidden” Content on Mobile: Content hidden on mobile devices might not be indexed or might be given less weight compared to fully visible content. However, recent statements from Google suggest some flexibility on this point.

57. Helpful “Supplementary Content”: Google’s Rater Guidelines Document identifies helpful supplementary content, such as currency converters or interactive elements, as an indicator of a page’s quality and potential ranking boost.

58. Content Hidden Behind Tabs: If users are required to click on a particular section to access hidden content on a page then Google won’t index that particular content.

59. Number of Outbound Links: Too many Dofollow OBLs can “leak” PageRank, which can hurt that page’s rankings.

60. Multimedia: Images, videos, and other multimedia elements may act as a content quality signal.

61. Number & Quality of Internal Links Pointing to Page: The number and quality of internal links pointing to a page indicate its relative importance within your website. Pages with more high-quality internal links tend to rank higher.

62. Broken Links: Excessive broken links can signal a neglected website. The Google Rater Guidelines use broken links as one factor to assess a homepage’s quality.

63. Reading Level: While there’s no definitive answer, some suggest that a basic reading level improves rankings by appealing to a wider audience. However, others associate a basic reading level with low-quality content.

64. Affiliate Links: There isn’t a direct impact on your ranking from affiliate links, as Google algorithms first analyze other quality signals to track the authenticity of your site.

65. HTML errors/W3C validation: While debated, many SEOs believe well-coded pages are used as a quality signal. Avoid excessive HTML errors or sloppy coding to maintain a professional website appearance.

66. Domain Authority: Generally, pages on authoritative domains tend to rank higher than those on domains with lower authority.

67. Page’s PageRank: Another Google ranking factor that tells how many quality links are pointing to your website. It is a Google algorithm used to measure the relevancy and importance of web pages.

68. URL Length: Excessively long URLs might hinder search engine visibility. Aim for clear, concise URLs that accurately reflect your content.

69. URL Path: Pages closer to the homepage might receive a slight authority boost compared to pages buried deep within your website’s architecture.

70. Page Category: The category a webpage appears in is a relevancy signal. A page placed in a closely related category might outperform a page in an unrelated category.

71. Keyword in URL: This Google ranking factor might have a little weightage, but is essential according to several marketers.

72. URL String: Google reads the categories mentioned in the URL string to know what a page is about. This is a thematic signal in Google ranking factors.

73. References and Sources: Including credible references and sources demonstrates content quality. While Google denies using external links as a direct ranking factor, citing sources can enhance your website’s trustworthiness.

74. Bullets and Numbered Lists: Bullet points and numbered lists improve content readability and user experience. Google likely favors content formatted in a user-friendly manner.

75. Priority in Sitemap: The priority assigned to a page within your sitemap.xml file might influence ranking. However, its exact impact remains unclear.

76. Too Many Outbound Links: Avoid excessive outbound links that can overwhelm users and potentially detract from your main content.

77. UX Signals from Other Keywords Page Ranks: If any page of your website gets ranked on multiple relevant keywords, then Google considers it a quality signal.

78. Page Age: Although Google values fresh content, an older page that’s consistently updated can outperform a newer page with stagnant content.

79. Usable Page Layout: Prioritize a user-friendly layout that makes your main content readily visible to users, as emphasized in the Google Quality Guidelines.

80. Useful Content: Google always prioritizes both unique as well as useful content to get better visibility over boring and irrelevant information.

On-Page Ranking Factors

81. Panda Penalty: The “Panda Update” targeted websites with low-quality content, particularly those resembling “content farms” focused on quantity over value. Google prioritizes informative, user-beneficial content.

82. Links to Bad Neighborhoods: Associating your website with spammy or malicious websites (e.g., payday loan sites) can negatively impact your search visibility. Maintain a selective linking strategy, connecting only to reputable sources.

83. Redirects: Implementing deceptive redirects intended to manipulate search engines can result in website de-indexing, meaning complete removal from search results.

84. Popups or “Distracting Ads”: Google’s Rater Guidelines identify excessive popups and intrusive ads as indicators of a low-quality user experience.

85. Interstitial Popups: Full-page popups on mobile devices can trigger penalties, as they significantly hinder user experience.

86. Site Over-Optimization: Keyword stuffing, excessive keyword usage in header tags, and unnatural keyword density can be seen as attempts to manipulate search engine algorithms.

87. Gibberish Content: Google has implemented technology to identify nonsensical content, such as machine-generated text or “gibberish.” This helps filter out irrelevant content from search results.

88. Doorway Pages: These pages are designed solely to redirect users to a different destination. Google considers them misleading and penalizes their use.

89. Ads Above the Fold: Stuffing your website with lots of ads in the ‘Above the fold’ section can penalize your website, according to the “Page Layout Algorithm”

90. Hiding Affiliate Links: While affiliate marketing is a legitimate practice, excessively cloaking or hiding affiliate links can be seen as an attempt to deceive search engines.

91. Fred: This series of updates targeted websites prioritizing revenue generation over user value. Google emphasizes creating valuable content that genuinely addresses user needs.

92. Affiliate Sites: While not explicitly confirmed, some believe Google holds affiliate websites to a higher standard, requiring them to demonstrate exceptional content quality and user value.

93. Autogenerated Content: Recent Google updates share some critical rules to penalize and remove pages that have AI-generated content. This will de-index and block those pages to achieve rankings in SERPs.

94. Excess PageRank Sculpting: You cannot make all outbound links as nofollow, as this activity can lead to a violation of PageRank signals.

95. Server IP Spam Flag: If the server hosting your website has a history of spam activity, it might negatively impact all websites on that server.

96. Meta Tag Spamming: Keyword stuffing within meta tags (title tags, descriptions) can also be penalized as an attempt to manipulate search engine algorithms.

Off-Page Ranking Factors

97. Hacked Site: A sudden and significant increase in backlinks can trigger suspicion from search engines, as it might indicate manipulative tactics.

98. Unnatural Influx of Links: A sudden (and unnatural) influx of links is a surefire sign of phony links.

99. Penguin Penalty: Google’s Penguin update brought several sites down in the search results. This update focuses on filtering and penalizing websites with bad links.

100. Link Profile with Low-Quality Links: Backlinks from websites with poor reputations or irrelevant content can negatively impact your ranking.

101. Links from Unrelated Websites: Attaining a good number of backlinks from websites that are irrelevant to your niche might raise concerns about manipulative link building.

102. Unnatural Links Warning: Google may issue warnings through the Search Console if they detect suspicious link-building behavior. These warnings often precede ranking drops.

103. Low-Quality Directory Links: Backlinks from directories with poor reputations might be seen as attempts to manipulate search engines.

104. Widget Links: Links automatically generated when users embed widgets on their websites are generally disregarded by search engines.

105. Links from the Same Class C IP: Getting an unnatural amount of links from sites on the same server IP may help Google determine that your links are coming from a blog network.

106. “Poison” Anchor Text: Backlinks containing irrelevant or spammy anchor text (e.g., pharmacy keywords) might be associated with hacked websites or spam campaigns.

107. Unnatural Link Spike: Google can identify sudden bursts of unnatural links to a page. These links may be devalued or ignored, impacting your ranking. Build links organically over time.

108. Links from Article Directories and Press Releases: While once popular link-building strategies, Google now scrutinizes backlinks originating from article directories and press releases.

109. Manual Actions: Google may issue manual penalties for violations like manipulative link building.

110. Selling Links: Selling website links can negatively impact search visibility. Consider alternative monetization strategies that don’t compromise link quality or user experience.

111. Google Sandbox: New websites experiencing a sudden influx of links might be placed in a “sandbox” by Google, temporarily limiting their search visibility.

112. Google Dance: Search engine results can fluctuate as Google updates its algorithms (the “Google Dance”).

113. Disavow Tool: The disavow tool allows you to disavow spammy backlinks, and a successful reconsideration request can lift penalties.

114. Temporary Link Schemes: Google crawlers can quickly catch temporary links (which are created and removed quickly) and block this scheme as spam.

Backlink Ranking Factors

115. Linking Domain Age: Backlinks from established websites with high authority tend to be more valuable than those from newer or less authoritative sites.

116. # of Linking Root Domains: According to Google’s algorithm, referring domain is one of the most important ranking factors.

117. No. of Links from Separate C-Class IPs: Getting backlinks from different IP addresses widens your profile from a variety of sites linking to you, possibly helping boost rankings.

118. No. of Linking Pages: The quantity of linked pages also matters in ranking your page on Google, even from the same domain.

119. Backlink Anchor Text: While keyword-rich anchor text can be a weak signal of relevancy, over-optimizing it is considered a form of spam. Focus on using natural anchor text that accurately reflects the content of the linked page.

120. Alt Tag (for Image Links): Alt text for images is a crucial element in Google ranking factors, as it acts as anchor text, particularly for images.

121. Links from .edu or .gov Domains: Domains like .edu and .gov do not have importance in Google’s algorithm, however, from SEOs’ point-of-view, these domains have a special place in the algorithm.

122. Authority of Linking Page: From the very beginning, the referring page’s authority attains a critical value among all other Google ranking factors.

123. Authority of Linking Domain: The domain authority of the referring domains also possesses great value as an important Google ranking factor. It defines how reputed and reliable the website is where you get the backlink.

124. Links from Competitors: Getting links from websites that are visible on the same SERP helps to gain more value on a particular keyword, as they are highly relevant pages for boosting your rank.

125. Links from “Expected” Websites: Some instances from SEO experts believe that Google will only trust a page if it is getting links from ‘expected’ authority websites.

126. Links from Bad Neighborhoods: ‘Bad neighborhood’ websites are somewhere spammed, penalized, or untrusted sources. And links to these websites or pages might hurt your rankings.

127. Guest Posts: Guest blogging on high-quality websites within your niche is a great way to acquire backlinks and reach a wider audience.

128. Links From Ads: Getting links from Ads, if marked nofollow or used with rel=sponsored attribute, can be considered as one of the ranking factors, as Google identifies them as followed links.

129. Homepage Authority: Getting links for the homepage can boost your site’s value and enhance its importance in Google’s ranking.

130. Nofollow Links: While nofollow links don’t directly pass on ranking power (PageRank), they can still be valuable and contribute to a natural link profile. These links indicate that the linking website is not explicitly endorsing the content on your website, but they can still drive traffic.

131. Diversity of Link Types: Google always prefers a link profile having a variety of natural backlinks, and avoids webspams, coming from forums, blog comments, etc.).

132. “Sponsored” or “UGC” Tags: Links tagged as “rel=sponsored” or “rel=UGC” are treated differently by search engines compared to normal “followed” or “nofollow” links. These tags indicate that the link is part of an advertisement or user-generated content, and search engines may take this into account when evaluating the link’s value.

133. Contextual Links: Links that are embedded organically within relevant content carry greater weight than those placed in sidebars, footers, or other peripheral areas of a webpage.

134. Excessive 301 Redirects to Page: Backlinks from pages that have been redirected (301 redirects) may pass on some ranking power, but the value might be diluted.

135. Internal Link Anchor Text: By strategically linking to relevant internal pages, you can distribute PageRank (a concept not officially confirmed by Google) and improve the overall SEO performance of your website.

136. Link Title Attribution: While the exact impact is uncertain, using descriptive and relevant link titles can provide additional context about the linked page.

137. Country TLD of Referring Domain: Links from websites with a country-specific top-level domain (TLD) like “.co.uk” for the United Kingdom may help your website rank higher in search results for that particular country.

138. Link Location In Content: Links placed within the main body content of a webpage are generally considered more valuable than those placed in headers, footers, or comment sections.

139. Link Location on Page: Links within the main content area suggest a more deliberate placement and a stronger connection between the linking website and your website’s content.

140. Linking Domain Relevancy: Backlinks from websites that are thematically relevant to yours are generally considered more valuable than links from completely unrelated sources.

141. Page-Level Relevancy: Getting links from the relevant pages also enhances the value of your content to be prioritized in Google rankings.

142. Keyword in Title: It is an excellent ranking factor that can help you strengthen your chances to be visible in top searches on Google. Including the main keyword in a page or blog, title can help you become more search-friendly.

143. Positive Link Velocity: A steady increase in backlinks over time (positive link velocity) can be a positive ranking factor. This suggests that your website is gaining popularity and trust within your niche.

144. Negative Link Velocity: However, if you face a decline in the backlink profile strength then it can result in negative link velocity. In that case, you need to check broken or spammy links to your website.

145. Links from “Hub” Pages: According to the Hilltop Algorithm, creating backlinks from the pages that are considered the most trusted and top information resources (hub pages) on a particular niche or topic enhances your backlink profile.

146. Link from Authority Sites: Backlinks from well-established websites with high domain authority carry more weight than links from newer or less authoritative sites.

147. Linked to as Wikipedia Source: Despite being nofollow links, backlinks from a highly authorized and authentic website like Wikipedia make your page trustworthy for Google’s top searches.

148. Co-Occurrences: Co-occurrences are the words that tell Google about your page getting links from another domain. They appear around backlinks so that your page gets relevancy on the topic covered in the referred domain.

149. Backlink Age: According to Google, backlinks that have been in place for a longer period may possess slightly more value compared to recently acquired ones.

150. Links from Real Sites vs. “Splogs”: Google prefers backlinks from only authentic and genuine sites, rather than irrelevant or fake blog channels. To distinguish between them, Google uses user experience signals and brand value.

151. Natural Link Profile: “Natural” link profiles mean that you haven’t used any black hat strategy for link building, and keep it organic. Google tends to prefer these sites on top rankings.

152. Reciprocal Links: Google considers “Excessive link exchanging” with partner websites as link spamming activity, and prevents these pages from ranking on SERPs.

153. User-Generated Content (UGC) Links: User-generated content is always preferable as a ranking factor. Google can recognize fake or self-generated brand owners’ content to push their websites in reviews.

154. Links from 301: Despite losing some of the link juice from 301 redirects, it is cleared by Matt Cutts that 301s are of the same value as direct links.

155. Schema.org Usage: Having microformats for several pages of the website can rank above the pages that don’t support microformats. This is due to a higher CTR because of micro-formatting or a direct push.

156. TrustRank of Linking Site: TrustRank is an algorithm that separates relevant web pages from spammy ones for ranking purposes. It will measure the trustworthiness of your website and provide a score based on analysis.

157. Number of Outbound Links on Page: PageRank is finite. A link on a page with hundreds of external links passes less PageRank than a page with a handful of outbound links.

158. Forum Links: Because of industrial-level spamming, Google may significantly devalue links from forums.

159. Word Count of Linking Content: Attaining links from a 25-word snippet have lesser weightage in Google ranking factors than links from lengthy posts (1000 words or more).

160. Quality of Linking Content: Links from poorly written or spun content don’t pass as much value as links from well-written, content.

161. Sitewide Links: Matt Cutts has confirmed that sitewide links are “compressed” to count as a single link.

User Interaction Ranking Factors

162. RankBrain: RankBrain is one of the most important Google ranking factors, which is an AI-based ranking algorithm. It analyzes user interaction signals and ranks the URLs accordingly.

163. Organic Click-Through Rate for a Keyword: Organic clicks have been a crucial ranking factor, which directly impacts the click-through rate (CTR). If it increases for a particular keyword, the chances of getting your page ranked on Google are high.

164. Organic CTR for All Keywords: The average CTR across all your ranking keywords can be interpreted by Google as a user-based quality score. Consistently high CTR across a broad range of keywords suggests high-quality content that resonates with diverse user interests, potentially leading to ranking improvements.

165. Bounce Rate: The debate on bounce rate’s direct impact on rankings continues. However, a high bounce rate might indicate that your page is not effectively satisfying user search intent. This could trigger Google to reassess your page’s relevance for specific keywords.

166. Direct Traffic: Insights from Google, such as the volume of direct traffic a website receives, can be a quality indicator. Websites with significant direct traffic suggest brand awareness and user trust, which can positively influence rankings.

167. Repeat Traffic: Websites that attract returning visitors demonstrate user engagement and potentially valuable content.

168. Pogosticking: When users quickly click back to the search results page from your website (Pogosticking), it suggests your content might not be meeting their search intent. A high rate of Pogosticking can negatively impact your ranking position.

169. Blocked Sites: While Google Chrome no longer offers the ability to block websites, the historical use of this feature suggests Google may still value user-based quality signals related to blocking behavior.

170. Chrome Bookmarks: Given that Google collects Chrome browser usage data, pages that users bookmark might receive a ranking boost.

171. Number of Comments: Pages with active comment sections can be a sign of user engagement and potentially high-quality content. While Google hasn’t confirmed the exact weight, comments can positively influence rankings.

172. Dwell Time: The amount of time users spend on your page after arriving from a Google search (dwell time) is a critical metric. Google prioritizes user satisfaction, and dwell time is a strong indicator of how well your website meets user needs.

Google Algorithms Ranking Factors

173. Fresh and Updated Content: For specific searches, Google prioritizes newer content to ensure users encounter the most up-to-date information.

174. SERP Diversity: Google might prefer to add a diverse range of results on SERP when users search for ambiguous queries like “ball”, “drinks”, and “bank”.

175. User Browsing History: Personalized search experiences are a cornerstone of Google’s approach. Websites you frequent might receive a ranking boost in your SERPs based on your browsing behavior.

176. Search History Influence: The search chain a user employs can influence subsequent search results. For instance, searching for “reviews” followed by “toasters” might elevate toaster review websites in the SERPs.

177. Featured Snippets: SEMrush’s study suggests Google prioritizes content length, formatting, page authority, and HTTPS usage when selecting content for Featured Snippets. This prominent placement can significantly impact click-through rates.

178. Geolocation Targeting:  Local search preferences are factored in. Websites with a local server IP and country-specific domain extensions (e.g., .cn for China) might receive a ranking boost for geo-targeted searches.

179. SafeSearch Filtering: SafeSearch safeguards users from explicit content. Search results containing profanity or adult content won’t appear for users with this feature enabled.

180. YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) Keywords: For keywords related to critical life decisions (e.g., health, finance), Google enforces stricter content quality standards to ensure users encounter trustworthy information.

181. DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) Takedowns: Pages with valid DMCA complaints are demoted in search rankings. Google prioritizes respecting intellectual property rights.

182. Domain Diversity: The “Bigfoot Update” supposedly aimed to increase the number of unique domains displayed on each SERP. This ensures a broader range of voices and perspectives are represented.

183. Transactional Searches: For shopping-related keywords (e.g., flight searches), Google might display distinct results tailored to the user’s purchase intent.

184. Local Search Bias: Local searches often prioritize local businesses within the user’s vicinity, placing them above traditional organic results.

185. Top Stories Box: Specific keywords trigger the appearance of a “Top Stories” box showcasing curated news articles relevant to the search query.

186. Brand Preference: Following the “Vince Update,” Google may give established brands a slight ranking boost for certain keywords, acknowledging user familiarity and trust.

187. Shopping Results Integration: Organic SERPs sometimes include Google Shopping results, offering users a seamless product discovery experience.

188. Image Search Inclusion: Relevant image search results might appear alongside traditional organic results, providing users with a more comprehensive search experience.

189. Easter Eggs: For a touch of whimsy, Google has included a handful of “Easter Egg” results. These playful interactions can add delight to the search experience.

190. Brand-Focused Results: Domain or brand-oriented keywords might generate multiple results from the same website, acknowledging the brand’s established authority on the topic.

191. Payday Loans Update: This targeted algorithm aims to combat spammy queries often associated with payday loans, promoting a more trustworthy search environment.

Brand Signals

192. Anchor Text with Brand’s Name: Links containing your brand name as anchor text are a clear and powerful brand signal.

193. Branded Searches: Users actively searching for your brand name on Google demonstrates brand recognition and user trust. This user behavior sends a positive signal to Google about your brand’s legitimacy.

194. Brand + Keyword Searches: If users combine your brand name with specific such as Apple iPhone company, it suggests a brand association with those keywords.

195. Social Media Presence: Active and engaging social media profiles contribute to brand recognition. Brands typically have Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter pages with significant followings, fostering user engagement and brand awareness.

196. Known Authorship: While Google’s official stance on authorship has evolved, verified online profiles can still contribute to brand authority. Users often prioritize search results associated with trusted sources.

197. Legitimacy of Social Media Accounts: Google considers real social media accounts that have authentic audiences with more interactions and activities. The company even filed a patent to recognize fake accounts and penalize them on SERPs.

198. Brand Mentions on Top Stories: Being featured prominently on “Top Stories” sites highlights a brand’s newsworthiness and influence. This visibility can translate into positive brand perception for Google.

199. Unlinked Brand Mentions: Even mentions of your brand without hyperlinks can be a valuable brand signal. Google likely recognizes these mentions as indicators of brand recognition and user awareness.

200. Brick and Mortar Location: Having a physical location can bolster brand legitimacy, particularly for local SEO. Google may utilize location data to verify brand presence and build a more comprehensive picture of your business.

Key Takeaways

In parting, let’s keep in mind that anything you think you know about the number of ranking factors is becoming more and more invalid with each step toward full integration of machine learning into Google’s algorithms.

It may be that presently machine learning is only adjusting factors that are programmed by engineers, but it can’t be long before they are given the task of looking for ranking factors that are not yet considered and weighing them in.