GlossarySEO
What are SERP features?
Also called: search features, Google search features, SERP elements
Definition
SERP features are anything on a search results page beyond the standard blue-link result: AI Overviews, featured snippets, People Also Ask, sitelinks, image and video packs, knowledge panels and rich results.
SERP features, explained
A modern Google results page is a mix of elements. Google's own visual elements gallery documents the building blocks: text results with title links, snippets and attribution (favicon, site name, breadcrumb URL); rich results powered by structured data; image and video results; sitelinks; and exploration features like related searches and the related questions group, better known as People Also Ask. On top of those sit AI Overviews and, for some queries, knowledge panels, local packs, shopping units and ads.
Features matter because they change what a ranking is worth. Position 1 under an AI Overview, a video pack and four PAA questions sits much lower on the screen than position 1 on a plain page. Search Console records the position of your topmost appearance, so a page shown inside a feature can have a high position but few clicks.
Some features you can influence directly. Structured data makes pages eligible for rich results. Clear question-and-answer sections help with featured snippets and PAA. Good titles, headings and site structure help Google pick sitelinks. Organization markup and consistent profiles support knowledge panels. Others, like AI Overviews, depend on your page being a strong, quotable source.
Before targeting a keyword, look at the actual results page. The features present tell you what format Google thinks satisfies the query, and whether clicks are even likely.
Why it matters for founders
Keyword tools show volume but not how crowded the page is. Checking SERP features first stops you from chasing queries where the answer is already on the results page.
Example
You consider "what is a sitemap". The results show an AI Overview, a featured snippet and PAA. You target it anyway with a crisp definition, knowing clicks will be modest, and put more effort into "sitemap checker" queries that lead to your tool.
Common mistakes
- Judging keywords on search volume without looking at the results page.
- Reading a high position as success when a feature takes the clicks.
- Chasing retired features like HowTo results.
- Ignoring the search appearance filter in Search Console.
Sources
Checked
Related terms
- SERPA SERP (search engine results page) is the page a search engine shows after a query: the list of links plus features like AI Overviews, featured snippets, videos, ads and "People also ask" boxes.
- Rich resultsRich results are search listings with extra visual features beyond the title, URL and snippet, like review stars, prices, breadcrumbs or video thumbnails. Most depend on structured data.
- People Also AskPeople Also Ask is a Google results feature showing a list of related questions that expand to reveal a short answer from a web page, with a link to that page.
- Zero-click searchA zero-click search is a search that ends without the user clicking any result, because the answer was shown on the results page itself, in an AI Overview, featured snippet, knowledge panel or other feature.