A meta description is a short summary in a page's HTML head. Search engines may use it as a search-result snippet, but they can also generate a different snippet from the page content.
How to add one
In the page's HTML, place a description inside the <head> element:
<meta name="description" content="A clear summary of this page and what visitors can find.">
Writing guidance
- Describe the actual page, not the whole site if the page is specific.
- Make important pages' descriptions distinct.
- Use natural language and accurately set expectations.
- Avoid keyword stuffing and misleading claims.
- Keep it concise; display length varies by device and query.
Most content-management systems provide an SEO field for the description. A missing description is not, by itself, proof that a page cannot be indexed or ranked.