Structured Data (Schema) for Small Business Websites

What structured data does, and what it does not

Google's introduction to structured data describes it as "a standardized format for providing information about a page and classifying the page content". Google uses it to understand the page and, for supported types, to show the page as a rich result: a search listing with extra details such as a logo, a breadcrumb trail, a price or a rating.

Two limits are worth knowing before you spend time on it:

• It makes a page eligible, nothing more. Google's structured data policies say: "Google does not guarantee that your structured data will show up in search results, even if your page is marked up correctly."
• It is not a ranking boost. Google's documentation talks about appearance in results, not ranking, and when Google has removed rich result types it has said the change does not affect how pages are ranked. A page still has to earn its position with useful content; see our guide to writing content Google calls helpful.

JSON-LD and schema.org

The vocabulary comes from schema.org, a shared project founded by Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and Yandex and now run through a W3C community group.

Google supports three formats: JSON-LD, Microdata and RDFa. It says it "recommends using JSON-LD for structured data if your site's setup allows it, as it's the easiest solution". JSON-LD sits in a <script type="application/ld+json"> tag, separate from the visible HTML, so it can be changed without touching the design. Most WordPress SEO plugins output it for you; on a custom site it goes in the page templates.

The types worth adding to a business site

Google's search gallery lists every type it currently supports. For most small business sites a handful cover it:

• Organization, on the home page. Google's Organization documentation says it helps Google understand your organisation's administrative details and tell it apart from others, and some properties can influence which logo appears in results and in your knowledge panel. There are no required properties; Google recommends adding as many as apply, such as name, logo, URL, contact details and address.
• LocalBusiness, if customers visit you or you serve a local area. The LocalBusiness documentation requires name and address, and recommends details such as phone, URL, opening hours and geo-coordinates. Google asks you to use the most specific type possible (its examples include Restaurant, DaySpa and HealthClub), and keep the details identical to your Google Business Profile.
• BreadcrumbList, on inner pages, to show where a page sits in the site. Since January 2025 Google no longer shows breadcrumbs in mobile results, only on desktop, but it still supports the markup.
• Article, on blog posts and guides. The Article documentation says it can help Google show better title text, images and date information. It has no required properties.
• Product, if you sell online. Google's Product documentation separates product snippets (pages where people cannot buy directly, such as reviews) from merchant listings (pages where they can), with price, availability, shipping and returns.

One trap: you cannot mark up your own reviews of yourself. Google's review snippet documentation only supports ratings on LocalBusiness and Organization for sites that capture reviews about other businesses. Star ratings you add to your own business markup are self-serving and are not eligible.

FAQ, How-to and other rich results Google has dropped

Many older SEO guides recommend FAQ and How-to markup. Google has since removed both:

• August 2023. Google's post Changes to HowTo and FAQ rich results limited FAQ rich results to "well-known, authoritative government and health websites" and How-to results to desktop. An update on 14 September 2023 said How-to results were no longer shown on desktop either, making the type deprecated.
• June and November 2025. Google phased out several lesser-used types, including Course Info, Claim Review, Estimated Salary, Learning Video, Special Announcement and Vehicle Listing, and said the change "won't affect how pages are ranked". In November 2025 it announced more removals as part of simplifying the results page.
• May 2026. Google's documentation changelog says the FAQ rich result no longer appears in Google Search starting 7 May 2026, and its documentation has since been removed.

You do not need to rip old markup out. Google's 2023 post said there is no need to remove it proactively: "Structured data that's not being used does not cause problems for Search, but also has no visible effects in Google Search." But adding it to win extra space in Google results no longer works. Rich results come and go, so check the search gallery rather than an old checklist.

The rules: policies and manual actions

Google's general structured data guidelines come down to honesty:

• "Don't mark up content that is not visible to readers of the page."
• "Your structured data must be a true representation of the page content."
• "Don't use structured data to deceive or mislead users. Don't impersonate any person or organization."
• Include all the required properties for a type, or the page is not eligible for that rich result.

Breaking them can lead to a manual action. Google says a structured data manual action "means that a page loses eligibility for appearance as a rich result". The Manual Actions report in Search Console shows any action, with examples such as content on the page that differs from the structured data. Fix the markup, then request a review in the same report.

Testing and monitoring

• Rich Results Test (Google): checks which Google rich results a URL or code snippet is eligible for and flags errors. Google's documentation says to fix critical errors; fixing the warnings is optional.
• Schema Markup Validator (schema.org): checks any schema.org markup against the vocabulary, including types Google does not use for rich results.
• URL Inspection in Search Console: shows how Google sees a live page after you deploy.
• Rich result reports in Search Console: one report per rich result type found on your site, showing valid items and errors.

Test a few pages before rolling markup out site-wide, and check the reports again after a redesign.

A short checklist

1. Organization markup on the home page with name, logo, URL and contact details.
2. LocalBusiness (most specific type) if you have premises or a service area, matching your Business Profile exactly.
3. BreadcrumbList on inner pages and Article on blog posts or guides.
4. Product markup on product pages if you sell online.
5. No markup for content that is not on the page, and no star ratings for your own business.
6. Every template tested in the Rich Results Test and Schema Markup Validator.
7. Search Console rich result and Manual Actions reports checked after launch and after changes.

For the wider picture, start with our SEO basics for small business websites.

Frequently asked questions

Does structured data improve my Google ranking?

No. Google describes it as a way to help it understand a page and make it eligible for rich results. When Google removed several rich result types in 2025 it said the change would not affect how pages are ranked.

Should I still add FAQ schema to my pages?

Not to get extra space in Google results. The FAQ rich result no longer appears in Google Search from 7 May 2026, according to Google's documentation changelog. Existing FAQ markup does no harm and you do not need to remove it.

Which structured data does a small business website need?

For most sites: Organization on the home page, LocalBusiness if you have premises or a service area, BreadcrumbList on inner pages, Article on blog posts, and Product if you sell online.

Can I add star ratings for my own business?

No. Google only supports review ratings on LocalBusiness and Organization markup for sites that collect reviews about other businesses. Ratings for your own business are self-serving and not eligible.

How do I check my structured data?

Use Google's Rich Results Test for Google features and the Schema Markup Validator for schema.org in general, then watch the rich result and Manual Actions reports in Search Console.

Building or rebuilding a site? We add the technical SEO basics, including structured data, to every website we build. See our website development service and all our services, or email info@creahive.com.