Title tag

November 05, 2026

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A title tag is the HTML <title> element in a page’s <head> that names the page. Google often uses its text as the title link, the clickable headline of a search result.

What is a title tag and where does it show?

The title tag does not appear in the page body. People see it on the browser tab, in bookmarks and in search results:

<head>
  <title>Men's running shoes, cushioned, sizes 39 to 45 | Shop Name</title>
</head>

Google generates title links automatically. Its sources include the <title> element, the main visual title on the page, headings such as <h1>, og:title meta tags and anchor text pointing to the page (Google Search Central, Influencing your title links in search results, accessed November 2026). When a title is half-empty, shows an old year, does not match the content or repeats the same boilerplate across many pages, Google is more likely to show different text.

SEO title vs. title tag vs. post title

In WordPress, the SEO title field in Yoast SEO or Rank Math is the text printed into the <title> element. The post title you type in the editor usually becomes the page’s H1 (WordPress.org, Heading block, accessed November 2026). Leave the SEO title field empty and the plugin falls back to a site-wide template. H1s are covered under heading tags, and the description under the title link under meta description.

How to write a title tag, per Google

Give every page its own title that describes the content accurately and concisely.
Do not stuff keywords. A phrase does not need to appear twice.
Keep the brand short, at the start or end, separated by a hyphen, colon or pipe.
If a page is updated yearly, update the year in the title too.

Avoid: “Running shoes | men’s running shoes | cheap running shoes”, or a title that just says “Home”.

Title tag length: how many characters?

Google sets no length limit on the title element. It only truncates title links to fit the screen, so put the important part first.

Adtek’s AI Search checker scores a “Title 20-70 characters” item: 3 points for a title of 20 to 70 characters, 1 point when a title exists but falls outside that range, 0 when there is no title. The 20 to 70 range is the tool’s own convention for catching titles that are too short or too long. It is not a number Google publishes.

Hypothetical example: a 46-character product name plus the suffix ” | ABC Sports Trading and Services Company Limited” (50 characters) makes 96 characters and scores 1 point. Shorten the suffix to ” | ABC Sport” (12 characters) and the title drops to 58 characters, scoring 3 points.

Does the title tag matter for AI search?

Google says there are no extra requirements for appearing in AI Overviews or AI Mode: the page needs to be indexed, eligible for a snippet and follow SEO basics (Google Search Central, AI features and your website, accessed November 2026). No AI company has published documentation saying title length affects whether a page gets cited. A clear title is groundwork; the other AIO steps are in what is AI optimization (AIO).

How to fix a title the checker flags

Check the current title. Press Ctrl+U to view the page source and search for <title. If you see two title elements (theme and SEO plugin both printing one), turn one off, because the checker joins the text of both.
Yoast SEO. For one post: open it, open the Yoast SEO sidebar, go to Search appearance and edit the SEO title field. For the template: Yoast SEO, Settings, Content types, choose the content type, then edit SEO title (Yoast, Content types settings, accessed November 2026).
Rank Math. For one post: click the Rank Math icon at the top right, General tab, Edit Snippet (Rank Math, General tab, accessed November 2026). For the template: Rank Math SEO, Titles & Meta, Posts, Single Post Title field.
Shopify. Online Store, Pages, choose the page, then in the Search engine listing section click Edit website SEO, fill in Page title and Save. Shopify allows up to 70 characters. The home page title is under Online Store, Preferences (Shopify Help Center, Adding keywords, accessed November 2026). For Haravan and Sapo, two Vietnamese store builders, I could not open official docs, so no menu names here.
Custom code. Render the title element on the server, one per page. Do not set it only with JavaScript, because the checker reads the raw HTML.
Verify. In Google Search Console, paste the URL into the inspection bar, click Test live URL, then View tested page to see the HTML, then Request indexing (Search Console Help, URL Inspection tool, accessed November 2026). Then run the AI Search checker again.

Frequently asked questions

I fixed my title, so why does Google still show different text?

Title links are generated automatically and can differ from the title tag, especially when the title and H1 disagree. Google also needs time to recrawl the page.

Should a title tag include the main keyword?

Yes, once, placed naturally. Repeating it several times is keyword stuffing, which Google advises against.

If you want titles and other technical items reviewed across your site, see Adtek’s SEO solution.