--- title: JSON-LD — definition and role in structured data | Siite description: "JSON-LD explained: why Google prefers it over inline microdata, where the script belongs, and what a local business should describe with it." url: "https://siite.co/dictionary/json-ld" type: static generatedAt: "2026-10-22T08:21:10.789Z" --- Web & Technical # JSON-LD The script format Google recommends for structured data — a block of JSON in the page's code that describes the business, service or article in machine-readable terms. Also goes by Structured data format [![Siite](/images/layout/logo.svg)Written by Siite](/about/)Updated September 8, 2026 ## Entry contents [All Terms A to Z←Browse the full dictionary](/dictionary/) The abbreviation unpacks as JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data, which explains the format and says nothing about the use. In practice it is a block of structured data placed in a page’s source that describes what the page is about, in a vocabulary search engines already understand. It is the format Google recommends, and it has one property that makes it far easier to live with than the alternatives. > **Briefly explained** > > - The recommended format for structured data. > - It occupies a block of its own, holding nothing a visitor ever sees. > - That separation means the design can change without breaking it. > - It describes the page. It does not change what the page says. ## Why is it preferred over the older formats? Because it does not have to be woven into the HTML. Microdata and RDFa annotate the visible markup, which means every design change risks damaging the data. JSON-LD sits in its own block, so the two can be maintained independently. For a site where templates change, that is the whole argument. ## What should a local business describe with it? The facts somebody would otherwise have to infer. - The business: name, address or service area, phone, hours - The services: what you sell, and where you sell it - The questions: where they genuinely appear on the page - The author: for articles written by a named person See [schema markup](/dictionary/schema-markup/) for which types are worth the effort. ## What are the rules that actually matter? - Describe only what is on the page - Keep the entities connected: the service belongs to the business, the article to its author - Validate after every template change, because markup breaks silently - Never mark up reviews, prices or questions a visitor cannot see ## How do you validate it? There are two, and they answer different questions. The Rich Results Test tells you what Google can parse and what the page qualifies for. The Schema Markup Validator checks the vocabulary itself, including types Google does not use. Run both after a template change, not after a traffic drop. ## What do the terms mean? - **Linked data:** Data that connects to other data through shared identifiers. - **@type:** The kind of thing being described. - **@id:** A stable identifier, used to connect entities across pages. - **Microdata:** The older format, written into the visible HTML. - **Rich Results Test:** Google’s tool for checking what a page qualifies for. Owner questions ## What owners ask us about JSON-LD ### Is JSON-LD the same as schema markup? +Not quite. Schema.org is the vocabulary and JSON-LD is the format used to write it. Google asks for JSON-LD rather than the older ways of writing structured data. ### Where should the block go? +Anywhere in the document. Google reads it in the head or the body, including markup injected by JavaScript, though server-rendered markup is safer. ### How do I check that mine is valid? +Google's Rich Results Test shows what it can parse and which rich result types the page qualifies for. The Schema Markup Validator checks the vocabulary itself. ### Do I need a developer? +For a one-off page, no. For a site where every service page needs it, yes, because it should come from the template rather than being pasted in by hand. ### What happens if it is wrong? +Usually nothing visible. The rich result simply never appears, which is why validation after a template change matters more than the initial setup.Put this to work ## Guides that use this Step-by-step playbooks from the team, written for owners doing the work themselves. No sign-up and no email required. [### Schema markup for service businesses: the 4 types that matter in 2026 Most service sites either skip schema or pile on every type. Here are the four that actually move rankings and AI Overview citations in 2026. Read the guide→](/articles/schema-markup-service-businesses-2026/)4.9191 reviewsWhere this turns into work ## Markup that stays correct Structured data generated from the template rather than pasted in, connected properly, and validated whenever the site changes. [See the service→](/services/web-design/)[Ask us about it](/contact/) ![Elvir Sejfulai, Head of Development at Siite](/images/team/panel/elvir-sejfulai.webp) *Our head of development* ## Related entries - [### Schema Markup Code added to a page that describes its content in a vocabulary search engines and AI systems read directly — your services, reviews, location, hours and FAQs, stated as data.](/dictionary/schema-markup/) - [### Technical SEO The part of SEO concerned with crawling, indexing and delivery — whether search engines can reach your pages, understand them, and render them quickly.](/dictionary/technical-seo/) - [### Zero-Click Search A search that ends without anyone clicking a result, because the answer appeared on the results page — in the map pack, a snippet or an AI overview.](/dictionary/zero-click-search/) [All terms A to Z Browse every term A to Z Open the dictionary→](/dictionary/)