How many characters should a meta title be?

Aim for about 50 to 60 characters, but check the pixel width: Google cuts desktop titles at roughly 600 pixels, so a title with many wide or capital letters can be cut before 60 characters.

How long should a meta description be?

About 120 to 160 characters works for most pages. Put the most important words in the first 120 characters, because phones and some searches show less.

Why is Google showing a different title than mine?

Google rewrites titles that are too long, stuffed with keywords, repeated on many pages, or that do not match the page’s main heading. A clear, unique title that matches the H1 is rewritten less often.

Do meta descriptions help my rankings?

Not directly. Google says the meta description is not a ranking factor, but a good one can raise the share of people who click your result, which brings more visitors from the same position.

Should I put my business name in every title?

Usually yes, at the end and kept short, for example “| Lone Star Plumbing”. On the homepage the brand can come first. Google may also show your site name above the title on its own.

Why does the tool say my page has no title when it does?

Some sites add the title with JavaScript after the page loads. This tool reads the HTML the server sends, like most crawlers do on the first pass. If the title is only added by JavaScript, put it in the HTML so every search engine sees it.

Can you write my titles and descriptions for me?

Yes. When we build your website and app for free, every page gets its own title, description and schema. You see the finished site and pay $150 one-time only if you are happy with it.

Free tool

Free Meta Title & Description Checker with Google Preview

Paste a page address, or type a title and description, and see how your result is likely to look in Google on desktop and on a phone. The tool measures length in pixels (the way Google actually cuts titles), checks your focus keyword, flags the things that make Google rewrite your title, and gives you a shorter version that fits. You can then edit the text and watch the preview update live.

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What this snippet preview checks

There are two ways to use it. Enter a page URL and we read the page the way a search engine does: the title tag, the meta description, the H1, the robots and canonical tags, the favicon, the site name and the social sharing tags. Or type a draft title and description before the page exists, which is handy when you are writing a new service page.

Title: present, estimated width against the roughly 600 px Google shows on desktop, too short, focus keyword included and near the start, repeated words, ALL CAPS.
Meta description: present, length in characters and pixels (about two lines on desktop), keyword included, not a copy of the title.
Page checks (URL mode): one title and one description only, page not blocked by noindex or nosnippet, canonical URL, H1 present, favicon, site name and Open Graph tags for WhatsApp and Facebook shares.
Fixes: a shorter title and description that fit, cut at a separator, sentence or word instead of mid-word, plus a live editor to try your own wording.

How long should a title tag be in 2026?

Google does not cut titles at a fixed number of characters. It cuts them by width: on desktop a title link shows roughly 600 pixels of text, which is usually 50 to 60 characters. Wide letters such as W and M use more space than i or l, so a title in capitals or with many wide letters is cut sooner. That is why this tool shows both characters and pixels.

Meta descriptions are usually cut after about two lines on desktop, around 150 to 160 characters, and often shorter on phones. Treat these numbers as guides, not rules: Google can show a longer or shorter snippet depending on the search, and it sometimes builds the snippet from your page text instead of your description.

Why Google rewrites titles and descriptions

Google uses your title tag most of the time, but not always. A 2025 study reported by Search Engine Land found that Google changed most of the title links it showed in some way, often only by trimming or adding the site name. Ahrefs found Google shows a different text from the meta description for roughly six out of ten pages. Google’s own documentation lists the usual triggers: titles that are too long, stuffed with keywords, the same on many pages, empty, or that do not match the main heading on the page.

You cannot stop rewrites completely, but you can make them rare. Write one clear title per page that matches its H1, put the service and place first, keep the brand short at the end, and write a description that answers the search instead of listing keywords. Our technical SEO checklist covers the other on-page basics.

A title and description formula for local businesses

For a service business the pattern that wins clicks is simple. Title: the service, the city or area, then the brand, for example “Emergency Plumber in Austin, TX | Lone Star Plumbing”. Description: what you do, one proof point and one next step, for example “Same-day repairs, upfront prices and 400+ five-star reviews. Call now or book online in 60 seconds.”

Every page needs its own title and description. If your service pages all say “Home | Business Name”, Google has nothing to tell them apart and searchers have no reason to click. Our guide to local SEO for small business shows how titles fit with your Google Business Profile, reviews and service pages.

What this tool does not do

It does not predict rankings, and the preview is an estimate: Google changes its result layout often, may add dates, ratings, sitelinks or images, and may rewrite your text. It reads one page at a time and does not run JavaScript, so titles set only by JavaScript may not be seen. For a full review of every page by a person, use our free website audit.

Frequently asked questions

How many characters should a meta title be?: Aim for about 50 to 60 characters, but check the pixel width: Google cuts desktop titles at roughly 600 pixels, so a title with many wide or capital letters can be cut before 60 characters.
How long should a meta description be?: About 120 to 160 characters works for most pages. Put the most important words in the first 120 characters, because phones and some searches show less.
Why is Google showing a different title than mine?: Google rewrites titles that are too long, stuffed with keywords, repeated on many pages, or that do not match the page’s main heading. A clear, unique title that matches the H1 is rewritten less often.
Do meta descriptions help my rankings?: Not directly. Google says the meta description is not a ranking factor, but a good one can raise the share of people who click your result, which brings more visitors from the same position.
Should I put my business name in every title?: Usually yes, at the end and kept short, for example “| Lone Star Plumbing”. On the homepage the brand can come first. Google may also show your site name above the title on its own.
Why does the tool say my page has no title when it does?: Some sites add the title with JavaScript after the page loads. This tool reads the HTML the server sends, like most crawlers do on the first pass. If the title is only added by JavaScript, put it in the HTML so every search engine sees it.
Can you write my titles and descriptions for me?: Yes. When we build your website and app for free, every page gets its own title, description and schema. You see the finished site and pay $150 one-time only if you are happy with it.