What is breadcrumb structured data, and how do you add it?

What is breadcrumb structured data?

A breadcrumb trail on a page indicates that page's position within the site hierarchy. This trail can help users understand where they are on your website and explore other related pages effectively.

Structured data is a standardized format for providing information about a page and classifying its content. Google Search uses breadcrumb markup, which is a type of structured data, to categorize the information from your page in search results. Schema.org defines a BreadcrumbList as an ItemList consisting of a chain of linked web pages, typically described using at least their URL and their name, and usually ending with the current page.

How do breadcrumbs appear in search results?

Google Search uses breadcrumb markup found in the body of a web page to categorize the information from that page in search results. This means that instead of a simple URL, users might see a breadcrumb trail directly in the search result snippet. This visual cue helps users quickly grasp the context of a page within your site before clicking through.

How do you implement breadcrumb structured data?

To specify breadcrumbs, you must define a `BreadcrumbList` that contains at least two `ListItem`s. A `ListItem` is used with ordered lists when you want to provide additional context about an element in that list, or when the same item might appear in different lists. For the `itemListElement` values within your `BreadcrumbList`, you can use simple strings, existing entities, or `ListItem`s.

The order of elements in your markup alone is not sufficient for indicating their sequence. Instead, you must use the `position` property within each `ListItem` to explicitly reconstruct the correct order of items in the `BreadcrumbList`. Schema.org's convention is that a breadcrumb list has an `itemListOrder` of `ItemListOrderAscending`, meaning lower values are listed first. The first items in this list correspond to the 'top' or beginning of the breadcrumb trail, such as a site or section homepage.

The `position` values should be integers, typically beginning with '1' for the first item in the list. For example, your homepage might have a position of '1', a category page '2', and the current page '3'. Google Search Central recommends providing breadcrumbs that represent a typical user path to a page, rather than simply mirroring the URL structure of your website. This approach often provides a more intuitive and helpful navigation experience for users.

It is important to use current standards for your markup. `Data-vocabulary.org` markup is no longer eligible for Google rich result features, so ensure you are using Schema.org's `BreadcrumbList`.

What are common errors in breadcrumb markup?

One common error is using outdated markup. Google Search Central states that `Data-vocabulary.org` markup is no longer eligible for Google rich result features. Ensure your implementation uses Schema.org's `BreadcrumbList` to be considered for rich results.

Another mistake is failing to correctly specify the order of items. The order of elements in your markup is not sufficient for indicating the order. You must use `ListItem` with a `position` property for each item in the breadcrumb trail to explicitly define the sequence. Also, remember to represent a typical user path to a page, rather than just mirroring the URL structure, as recommended by Google Search Central.

If Google detects that some of the markup on your pages may be using techniques that are outside its structured data guidelines, your site may receive a manual action. Adhering to the guidelines is crucial to avoid issues that could affect your site's visibility in search results.

How do you check if your breadcrumbs are working?

After implementing breadcrumb structured data, validate your code using Google's Rich Results Test. This tool helps you identify and fix any critical errors in your markup, ensuring it is correctly structured for Google Search. Fixing these errors is an important first step.

Beyond validation, you need to ensure your pages are indexed. The Page indexing report in Google Search Central Help shows how many URLs on your site have been crawled and indexed by Google. Indexing is the process where Google finds your page, processes its content, and adds it to the Google index, making it eligible to appear in Google Search results. If a specific page isn't indexed, you can use the URL Inspection tool to investigate the reason.

Your goal is to get the canonical version of every important page indexed. The Page indexing report might show a 'Not indexed' status for various reasons, such as an indexing error, or legitimate reasons like the page being blocked by `robots.txt` or being a duplicate. If there is an indexing error, or if a page was not indexed for a reason that doesn't make sense, follow the documentation to understand and fix the issue. When reviewing issues, prioritize fixing those in validation state 'failed' or 'not started' and with the source 'Website'.

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