What is a SERP (search engine results page)
Also known as: search engine results page, results page
SERP stands for search engine results page, the page a search engine shows after a query. On Google, it brings together ads, text results, rich results with stars or prices, images, videos, related questions and, for some searches, an AI generated summary. Every search builds a different SERP, depending on the query, the location and the device.
A clinic ranks third organically for dentist in Austin. It sounds good, but someone opening that search on a phone first sees two ads, a map with three clinics and a related questions block.
The third text result only shows up after scrolling several times. For the same clinic, appearing on the map through its Google Business Profile may bring more contacts than climbing one position in the text results.
What appears on a Google SERP
- Ads: paid results, labeled as sponsored.
- Text results: the old blue link, with title, URL and description.
- Rich results: results with stars, prices, dates and other information from structured data.
- Images and videos: more frequent for searches that call for that kind of content.
- AI Overviews: an AI generated summary with supporting links, shown only for some searches.
- Exploration features: related questions (People Also Ask) and related searches.
- Map and knowledge panel: local businesses and boxes with facts about companies, people and places.
The parts of a text result
| What it is | How to influence it | |
|---|---|---|
| Attribution | Icon, site name, URL and breadcrumb | Favicon, site name and breadcrumb markup |
| Title link | The clickable title of the result | Title tag and clear headings on the page |
| Snippet | The description or summary below the title | Meta description and page text |
| Byline date | Estimated publication or update date | A visible, marked up date, never invented |
| Sitelinks | Links to other pages on the same site | Automatic; good navigation helps |
Why ranking position does not tell the whole story
SEO reports tend to talk about position: first, third, tenth. On the real screen, the same position can sit right at the top for one search and below ads, a map, videos and an AI summary for another.
So before deciding where to invest, it pays to look at the SERP for each important search. Sometimes the best opportunity is not moving up one position but appearing in another element of the same page: the map, the images, the videos.
How to analyze the SERP for a search
- Search in a private window, on a phone and on a computer, and note which elements appear.
- See what kind of page ranks at the top: guide, product page, video, comparison. That reveals the searcher's intent.
- Count the ads. Many ads point to a search with buying intent.
- Note whether there is an AI summary, a featured snippet or a map, and who appears in them.
- Cross check with Search Console, which shows average position, impressions, clicks and CTR for each query.
The SERP and AI features
According to Google, AI Overviews only appear when its systems determine they add something to classic search, and so they often do not show. To be a supporting link in them, a page must be indexed and eligible to appear with a snippet, with no extra technical requirement.
Traffic from these features is counted in Search Console's overall search traffic, together with the rest of the SERP.
Frequently asked questions
What does SERP mean?
It stands for search engine results page, the page a search engine shows after a query.
What are SERP features?
The elements beyond text results: ads, featured snippets, related questions, the map, images, videos, the knowledge panel and AI summaries.
Why does the SERP change from person to person?
Google builds results based on the query, the device, the country, the language and other factors. The same search can show different elements on a phone and on a computer.
Do ads count as organic results?
No. Ads are paid and labeled as sponsored. Organic results are the ones Google ranks without payment.
How can I appear in more parts of the SERP?
With structured data for rich results, well described images and videos, a Google Business Profile for the map and content that answers questions directly.
Related terms
- Featured snippetA featured snippet is the box where Google reverses the format of a result: it shows the answer first, taken...
- Rich snippetsRich snippets are Google results that show more than a title, URL and description: review stars, a product's...
- Knowledge panelA knowledge panel is the information box Google shows when someone searches for an entity in the Knowledge...
- CTRCTR (clickthrough rate) is the percentage of people who clicked after seeing an ad, an email or a search...
- IndexingIndexing is the stage where Google analyzes the content of a page it has already crawled, works out what it...
Rodrigo Fávaro
Founder of ROO3, a marketing and technology agency in São José do Rio Preto, Brazil. Builds AI products running in production (Tobia, gerar.app, Pense Mercado) and maintains the AI Benchmark, a public ranking of AI models.
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