AMP Is A Ranking Factor Or Not?
AMP is a HTML framework. It is used desktop-optimized sites to deliver fast mobile versions of webpages. Do you think AMP is a ranking factor. It’s true that AMP impact on other ranking factors like speed. But can it be a ranking factor. Let’s discuss what evidence says.
AMP was created by Google. It makes website more friendly. And also it improves webpage speed. That’s why people believe that AMP is a ranking factor. We can easily say, yes AMP is not a ranking factor. But we cannot ignore its impact on other ranking factors that cause for SEO. Let’s look at some evidences of AMP’s impact on SEO and its connection with other ranking factors.
The Claim of AMP is a Ranking Factor
The claim is AMP boost webpages ranking in Google’s search results. Google launched AMP technology in 2018. Since then, there are many discussions about it is a ranking factor or not. Google actively encourages people to use it for speed up the web. That led people to think AMP is a ranking factor. If using this technology boost ranking in SERPs, it would be unfair to any website that doesn’t use AMP.
AMP relevant to SEO and let’s look at some evidences for it.
The Evidence Against AMP Is A Ranking Factor
Google has said that AMP is not a ranking factor at all. They have said they use the same technology to rank all pages in their Advanced SEO guide.
“While AMP itself isn’t a Google ranking factor, speed is a Google ranking factor. We use the same standard for rank all pages, despite the technology that used to build the page.”
Page Speed
We mentioned before AMP affects on speed and now it’s sure that speed is a ranking factor. Because they have confirmed it. It has been a ranking factor for mobile searches when AMP technology was released. AMP loads pages quickly. It helps sites to send stronger ranking signals about page speed. Even though this increased speed has potential to lead pages to better ranking, websites can generate the same ranking signals without AMP.
Core Web Vitals
Core Web Vitals is a ranking factor since Page Experience update in 2021. AMP can help pages to achieve Core Web Vitals. Google said their thoughts as below.
“AMP’s duty is delivering user-first experiences and high-quality. AMP’s design goals close with what Core Web Vitals measure.”
Which means if you create your site with AMP, you can easily get Web Vitals thresholds. According to Google, AMP domains are five times more likely to pass Core Web Vitals than domains that don’t AMP. This process of passing Google’s Core Web Vitals thresholds can increase your site’s search rankings. It’s same as the page speed. You can achieve this even without AMP.
Decline Of AMP
AMP gave benefits when pages appearing in the search engine results. For example, when you looking for news stories in Google, Google’s Top Stories carousel is appeared at the top of the search results. But Google used to accept only AMP pages. But if you don’t use AMP, don’t worry. It changed since 2021 with the Page Experience update. Now non-AMP pages can appear in the Top Stories carousel also.
AMP pages have a lightning bolt icon which appeared in the search results. This unique feature indicate which pages give you faster experiences. But that feature is not using anymore. Therefore it’s important to identify AMP pages from non AMP pages.
AMP Decline Continues
Since AMP was released, it has continued to decline. Google introduce new tools and lately hyping them up and then retiring them. For examples, they introduced Skype competitor Google Hangouts and social media site Google+. But years after Google retired them because they were failed. Even though developing AMP web technology is no longer relevant, Google doesn’t retire it yet.
And also many web companies are dropping this web technology from their platforms. For example Twitter doesn’t supports AMP links anymore. It treats AMP links like Google News and redirect visitors to the publishers’ domains. Many companies have limited using AMP technology. But it doesn’t make sense that you should stop using AMP. If you are happy with the way your pages performing in search results, just continue of using it. If Google shut their AMP project, your website won’t stop working. Because it is a HTML code that crawled and indexed like any other on the web.
Final thoughts
Google has said AMP is not a ranking factor again and again. It doesn’t give advantages like Top Stories and distinctive icon that can be affect on click through rate anymore. AMP can impact on some ranking factors like page speed. But it’s not a ranking factor itself.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does AMP mean website?
AMP means Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP). It is an open source project and it created to improve the performance of web pages in mobile devices. The project was created by Google. The AMP technology enables lightweight pages that load more quickly for tablet and smartphone users.
What are the benefits of AMP?
There are many advantages of using AMP. Many of them depends on your site. Examples for advantages are less data consumption, Lower bounce rates, Higher time on site, a free CDN, improved server performance, Increased conversion rates and higher ad viewability.
How do I know if my website is an AMP?
You can check the validity of an AMP page by using the AMP Test tool. You can also verify that it has proper configuration to appear in the Google Search results, using this tool. If you want to make sure whether your AMP pages are indexed correctly or not, its better to use the URL inspection tool instead of AMP Test tool.
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