Go-Live Clearance

On-page SEO · Meta description

Meta Description Checker

The meta description is the two-line snippet under your title in Google search results. It doesn't directly affect rankings, but it massively affects click-through rate. Paste your URL and we check length, presence, and quality, then stamp CLEARED / HOLD / DENIED.

Meta description problems we catch

Google auto-generates a snippet when your description is missing or bad — and it's usually worse than what you'd write.

  • Missing meta description entirely

    Google scrapes page text for a snippet. You lose control of what users see in search results. Often a generic 'Skip to content' or nav text appears instead.

  • Description too short (under 50 chars)

    Wastes SERP real estate. A 20-character description leaves most of the snippet blank or makes Google fill it with page text you didn't choose.

  • Description too long (over 160 chars)

    Google truncates at ~160 characters on desktop (~120 on mobile). Your call-to-action or key benefit gets cut off with an ellipsis.

  • Duplicate description across pages

    When every page has the same description, Google may ignore them all and auto-generate. Each page deserves a unique, relevant description.

Copy-paste description fixes

Target 50-160 characters. Write it as a compelling ad, not a summary.

Next.js App Router — metadata API

export const metadata = {
  description: 'Scan your site before launch. Get a Go/No-Go ' +
    'clearance report, typically within 30 seconds — HTTPS, headers, ' +
    'robots.txt, OG tags, and more.',
}

Plain HTML

<head>
  <meta name="description" content="A clear 50-160 character summary of this page that compels users to click." />
</head>

Per-page description (Next.js)

// app/blog/post-1/page.tsx
export const metadata = {
  description: 'Learn how to fix missing security headers in ' +
    'Next.js before your production launch.',
}

Still check by hand

  • Target 120-160 characters (mobile truncates earlier than desktop)
  • Write it as an ad — include a value prop and implicit CTA
  • Each page needs a unique description — never copy-paste
  • Don't just repeat the title — add context and a reason to click

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