Chrome Bookmarks Are A Ranking Factor Or Not?

This question is exist over years and there’s many myths around it. Chrome bookmarks are a ranking factor or not? Does Google use how many times a site is bookmarked when Google giving ranks? How would you choose true from the fiction? In this tutorial, we are going discuss this subject. Let’s get started.

The Claim for Chrome Bookmarks are a Ranking Factor

Many people believe that Chrome bookmarks are a ranking factor because of this claim. A website stated that,

Google collects the browsing data and stored all the records of the bookmarked pages in their browsers. Then use them to boost rankings.

The Evidence for Chrome Bookmarks are a Ranking Factor

Google applied for “Search customization based on user profiles and personalization” patent in 2006. In Google Patent Search, this is displayed under “Bookmarks and ranking.” In 2017, Google changed the capitalization of the name. It is now abandoned though it was reassigned at that time.

We can learn a little bit about how other people may have applied the technologies described in Google’s “Search customization based on user profiles and personalization” patent by looking at patent citations. In 2004, IBM published a patent for its own “Method, System, and Program for Ordering Search Results Using an Importance Weighting,” citing the aforementioned work of Google. 

Microsoft also made reference to it in their “Mobile friendly internet searches” from 2005. Some have questioned whether the specific Google patent establishes that bookmarking information influences rankings. Getting a patent for a technology doesn’t mean that technology can be used in the future. Piece of that technology can be used for any other purposes by other companies or people.

The Evidence Against for Chrome Bookmarks are a Ranking Factor

The fact that Google use chrome bookmarks as a ranking factor is questionable in different ways.

Google Has Access to Much Better Data

Some of them are,

• What you’re searching / your search queries
• What is your device and where you’re searching from (location)
• which sites that you have visited before
• What did you do on those sites (user behavior signals)

Google has access to useful data than Chrome bookmarks.

Devoid of Context

There are many feedback forms that give helpful content than what chrome bookmarks do. For example, you have bookmarked Dogtime.com. What would be the information that provides. What would be the reason behind bookmarking it. You might wanna details for a school project about dogs or you might thinking to get a new dog. May be, you just wanted to look at dogs funny videos. You might have bookmarked it to return that page again. No one knows your intend behind it. Do you still believe that Google can use those details to improve your experience. I don’t think so.

Too Simple to Game

Can you imagine if bookmarks were a commodity like links? We would have bookmark spam, bookmark agencies, and negative bookmarks. You could hire the services of the VA for a fee to bookmark it. There is no way to bookmarks become a useful signal. We can confirm that chrome bookmarks are not a ranking factor at all.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between Google bookmarks and Chrome Bookmarks?

Your bookmarks are all stored in the cloud via Google Bookmarks. You won’t be able to access them if your internet goes down. However, it can be helpful to be able to access your bookmarks from any web browser. On the other hand, Chrome Bookmarks mostly works offline.

Are Chrome bookmarks tied to Google account?

Your bookmarks, extensions, and preferences on that computer are saved to your Google account when you sign in using your work account. As a result, Google will sync your choice when you use the same account on a different device, ensuring that you always have the same experience.

How many bookmarks are too many?

You can store as many bookmarks as you’d like with Chrome. They can start acting a little differently after you reach the thousands, but there is no upper limit. Things you bookmarked five years ago might not be still be relevant now, though. However, you might realize that you need them in a week or a year.