Watch: [SEO Test] Tabs and Accordions not OK in Mobile-First
%%excerpt%% An SEO test was conducted on three sets of mobile-first websites with similar authority. Our results show that content hidden behind tabs and accordions remains devalued.
Transcript
A recent search engine optimization test on three mobile-first websites reveals that content hidden behind tabs and accordions is still being devalued by Google.
To test this, identical content was published on two different sites. On one site, the content was hidden behind tabs and accordions. On the other site, the same content was fully visible.
When search queries were run, the site with the visible content consistently outranked the site with the hidden content. Additionally, desktop search snippets for the hidden content showed no bolded keywords.
Google representatives have previously stated that hidden content should receive full weight in a mobile-first world. However, these test results tell a different story. While hidden content still indexes and ranks, it struggles to compete with content that is openly displayed.
While hiding content can sometimes improve user experience, it appears to hurt your search performance. If you want your important content to rank well, the best advice remains simple: do not hide it.