The <title>
HTML element defines the document's title that is shown in a browser's title bar or a page's tab. It only contains text; tags within the element are ignored.
html
<title>Grandma's Heavy Metal Festival Journal</title>
Content categories | Metadata content. |
---|---|
Permitted content | Text that is not inter-element whitespace. |
Tag omission | Both opening and closing tags are required. Note that leaving off </title> should cause the browser to ignore the rest of the page. |
Permitted parents | A <head> element that contains no other <title> element. |
Implicit ARIA role | No corresponding role |
Permitted ARIA roles | No role permitted. |
DOM interface | HTMLTitleElement |
Attributes
This element only includes the global attributes.
Usage notes
The <title>
element is always used within a page's <head>
block.
Page titles and SEO
The contents of a page title can have significant implications for search engine optimization (SEO). In general, a longer, descriptive title performs better than short or generic titles. The content of the title is one of the components used by search engine algorithms to decide the order in which to list pages in search results. Also, the title is the initial "hook" by which you grab the attention of readers glancing at the search results page.
A few guidelines and tips for composing good titles:
- Avoid one- or two-word titles. Use a descriptive phrase, or a term-definition pairing for glossary or reference-style pages.
- Search engines typically display about the first 55–60 characters of a page title. Text beyond that may be lost, so try not to have titles longer than that. If you must use a longer title, make sure the important parts come earlier and that nothing critical is in the part of the title that is likely to be dropped.
- Don't use "keyword blobs." If your title is just a list of words, algorithms often reduce your page's position in the search results.
- Try to make sure your titles are as unique as possible within your own site. Duplicate—or near-duplicate—titles can contribute to inaccurate search results.
Examples
html
<title>Awesome interesting stuff</title>
This example establishes a page whose title (as displayed at the top of the window or in the window's tab) as "Awesome interesting stuff".
Accessibility concerns
It is important to provide an accurate and concise title to describe the page's purpose.
A common navigation technique for users of assistive technology is to read the page title and infer the content the page contains. This is because navigating into a page to determine its content can be a time-consuming and potentially confusing process. Titles should be unique to every page of a website, ideally surfacing the primary purpose of the page first, followed by the name of the website. Following this pattern will help ensure that the primary purpose of the page is announced by a screen reader first. This provides a far better experience than having to listen to the name of a website before the unique page title, for every page a user navigates to in the same website.
Examples
html
<title>Menu - Blue House Chinese Food - FoodYum: Online takeout today!</title>
If a form submission contains errors and the submission re-renders the current page, the title can be used to help make users aware of any errors with their submission. For instance, update the page title
value to reflect significant page state changes (such as form validation problems).
html
<title> 2 errors - Your order - Sea Food Store - Food: Online takeout today!</title>
Note: Presently, dynamically updating a page's title will not be automatically announced by screen readers. If you are going to update the page title to reflect significant changes to a page's state, then the use of ARIA Live Regions may be necessary, as well.
Specifications
Specification |
---|
HTML Standard # the-title-element |
Browser compatibility
BCD tables only load in the browser
See also
- SVG
<title>
element
I am an expert in web development and HTML, with a comprehensive understanding of the
Now, let's delve into the concepts mentioned in the provided article:
1. The <title>
HTML Element:
The <title>
HTML element is utilized to define a document's title, which is displayed in a browser's title bar or a page's tab. It only contains text, and any tags within the element are ignored.
- Permitted Content: Only text that is not inter-element whitespace is allowed.
- Tag Omission: Both opening and closing tags are required. Omitting the closing
</title>
tag can cause the browser to ignore the rest of the page. - Permitted Parents: It must be within a
<head>
element that contains no other<title>
element. - Implicit ARIA Role: There is no corresponding ARIA role.
- Permitted ARIA Roles: No ARIA roles are permitted.
- DOM Interface: It is represented by the
HTMLTitleElement
.
2. Attributes:
The <title>
element only includes the global attributes defined in HTML.
3. Usage Notes:
The <title>
element is always used within a page's <head>
block. Page titles play a crucial role in search engine optimization (SEO). Longer, descriptive titles are generally preferred for better SEO performance.
4. Page Titles and SEO:
The content of a page title can significantly impact SEO. Guidelines for composing good titles include avoiding one- or two-word titles, using descriptive phrases, and keeping titles within the first 55–60 characters to ensure visibility in search results.
5. Examples:
<title>Awesome interesting stuff</title>
This example sets the page title as "Awesome interesting stuff."
6. Accessibility Concerns:
Accurate and concise titles are important for accessibility. Screen readers often rely on page titles to infer the content, making unique and descriptive titles crucial. Examples include:
<title>Menu - Blue House Chinese Food - FoodYum: Online takeout today!</title>
<title>2 errors - Your order - Sea Food Store - Food: Online takeout today!</title>
7. Dynamically Updating Page Titles:
If a form submission contains errors, the title can be updated to reflect significant page state changes, aiding users. However, note that screen readers may not automatically announce dynamically updated titles.
These concepts collectively highlight the importance of the <title>
element in web development, emphasizing both SEO considerations and accessibility concerns.