Google Displaying Header Tags Instead Of Titles For Search Snippets?

Aug 17, 2021 - 7:11 am 10 by

Google Headers

I am seeing numerous complaints this morning that Google is showing header tags, H1s and H2s, instead of the meta title tags, for its search result snippets. I am seeing some public complaints on Twitter, but also in some of the private forums and emails.

So this seems to be more widespread of a change. I tried to quickly replicate it, but I didn't come up with any examples.

Yes, I know Google might not show the title tag for the clickable link of the Google search result snippet, but often Google does. And based on the early chatter, there may have been a shift in how Google is handling it. Maybe it is a bug or a test, I am not sure.

Here are some of the public mentions of this:

Robert Owen from Timberwise shared a few examples with me, here is one:

click for full size

If you look at the page, Google is pulling the H1, not the title tag.

Do you see any of this?

Forum discussion at Twitter.

 

Popular Categories

The Pulse of the search community

Search Video Recaps

 
Video Details More Videos Subscribe to Videos

Most Recent Articles

Search Forum Recap

Daily Search Forum Recap: July 4, 2025

Jul 4, 2025 - 10:00 am
Search Video Recaps

Search News Buzz Video Recap: Google June 2025 Core Update, Search Volatility, Insights Report, Ads & More

Jul 4, 2025 - 8:01 am
Bing Search

Bing Search Tests Zoomable & Sticky Related Searches

Jul 4, 2025 - 7:51 am
Google

Google AI Mode Can Respond In Non-English Languages

Jul 4, 2025 - 7:41 am
Bing Search

Bing Tests Local Place Listings In Green

Jul 4, 2025 - 7:31 am
Google Ads

Google Merchant Center Gains Automatic Shipping Updates

Jul 4, 2025 - 7:21 am
Previous Story: Raw Google Product Strategy Notes