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Page Title Optimisation: The Complete Guide to Writing Titles That Rank, Convert, and Survive Google Updates

Page titles are one of the most powerful — and most misunderstood — elements of on-page SEO. They influence rankings, click-through rates, accessibility, browser usability, bookmarking, and how your pages are perceived across search engines and social platforms.

Get them right and you gain a compounding advantage. Get them wrong and even the best content can struggle to perform.

This guide explains exactly how page titles work today, how Google actually treats them, and how to write titles that rank and earn clicks — without triggering rewrites.

What is a page title?

A page title (often called the title tag) is the text defined in the <title> element of a web page’s HTML head.

<title>Page Title Goes Here</title>

It typically appears in:

  • Search engine results pages (SERPs)
  • Browser tabs
  • Browser history and bookmarks
  • Accessibility tools (screen readers)
  • Social previews (when no OG title is set)

Despite its simplicity, the title tag is still one of the strongest on-page ranking signals available.

Why page titles matter for SEO

Page titles influence three critical areas:

1. Rankings

Search engines use title tags to understand the primary topic of a page. A clear, relevant title helps Google correctly classify and rank your content.

2. Click-through rate (CTR)

Your title is often the first impression a user has of your page. A well-written title can outperform higher-ranking competitors simply by earning more clicks.

3. Google rewrites

Poor titles increase the likelihood that Google will rewrite them — often using H1s, anchors, or boilerplate text, which removes your control entirely.

How Google uses page titles today

Google no longer treats titles as immutable.

If your title is:

  • Too long
  • Keyword-stuffed
  • Duplicated
  • Vague or misleading
  • Missing important context

…it may be rewritten.

Common sources Google uses for rewrites:

  • H1 headings
  • Internal anchor text
  • External backlinks
  • URL structure
  • Site name patterns

Your goal is to write titles so good that Google doesn’t feel the need to change them.

Ideal page title length (and why it’s not a fixed number)

There is no perfect character count — because Google truncates based on pixel width, not characters.

Practical guidelines

  • Minimum: ~35 characters (below this often lacks context)
  • Ideal range: 50–60 characters
  • Upper safe limit: ~580–600 pixels
  • Absolute max before risk: ~65–70 characters

Short titles risk being rewritten. Long titles risk truncation or replacement.

How to structure a high-performing title

A proven formula:

Primary keyword + context | Brand (optional)

Examples:

  • Page Title Optimisation: Best Practices for SEO in 2025
  • SEO Audit Checklist: Fix Common Ranking Issues Fast
  • Image Optimisation for SEO: Speed, Alt Text & Best Formats

Avoid unnecessary separators, emojis, or filler words unless they genuinely improve clarity.

Keyword placement rules that still work

Despite years of SEO evolution, some fundamentals remain true:

  • Put the primary keyword near the start
  • Use natural language, not forced phrases
  • Include one main topic, not five
  • Avoid repeating the same keyword multiple times

Bad example:

SEO Titles | SEO Title Tags | Title Tag SEO Guide

Good example:

SEO Title Tags: How to Write Page Titles That Rank

Branding: should you include your site name?

It depends.

Include your brand if:

  • You are well known
  • Brand trust increases clicks
  • The page is transactional or navigational

Exclude your brand if:

  • You need every pixel for context
  • The brand adds no value
  • Titles are already near the limit

If included, place it at the end, separated by a pipe (|) or dash (–).

Common page title mistakes (and how to fix them)

1. Duplicate titles

Each page must have a unique title. Duplicate titles confuse search engines and dilute relevance.

Fix: Generate titles dynamically using page-specific data.

2. Keyword stuffing

Over-optimisation increases rewrite risk and hurts readability.

Fix: Write for humans first. One main keyword is enough.

3. Boilerplate titles

Titles like “Home”, “Products”, or “Services” provide no value.

Fix: Add specificity and intent.

4. Mismatch with page content

If your title promises something the page doesn’t deliver, Google will replace it.

Fix: Align titles tightly with on-page content and H1s.

Relationship between title tags and H1 headings

They should not be identical, but they should support each other.

  • Title: Optimised for search and clicks
  • H1: Optimised for clarity and on-page reading

If they are identical across the site, Google may rewrite titles using other signals.

Page titles for different page types

Homepage

  • Broad but descriptive
  • Brand often included
  • Focus on core offering

Blog posts

  • Specific topic focus
  • Informational or problem-solving language
  • Often perform better without brand

Category pages

  • Clear keyword + grouping context
  • Avoid generic labels

Product or feature pages

  • Include differentiators (price, speed, benefits, audience)

Titles and Google rewrites: how to reduce the risk

You cannot force Google to keep your title — but you can influence it.

Best practices:

  • Match search intent precisely
  • Keep titles concise and descriptive
  • Avoid excessive punctuation
  • Ensure H1 supports the title
  • Remove repeated site-wide prefixes/suffixes

Pages that follow these rules are far less likely to be rewritten.

How page titles fit into a modern SEO checklist

A proper SEO checklist should verify:

  • Title exists
  • Title length is within safe range
  • Title is unique
  • Primary keyword is present
  • No keyword stuffing
  • No boilerplate patterns
  • H1 alignment
  • Rewrite risk indicators

If any of these fail, the page is under-optimised — regardless of content quality.

Final thoughts

Page titles are not just a technical SEO task — they are a strategic growth lever.

They sit at the intersection of:

  • Rankings
  • Click-through rate
  • Branding
  • User trust
  • Accessibility

Investing time into writing strong, intentional titles pays dividends across every channel that touches search.

If you fix nothing else on a struggling page, fix the title first.

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