How Long Should A Blog Post Be For SEO?

If you have been wondering what the ideal length is for a blog post in order to benefit your search engine optimization, you are not alone. This is a very frequently asked question and you may have heard several different answers.

New writers are sometimes confused about the appropriate length for their blogs, and who can blame them. With some sites suggesting 300 words and others suggesting more than 2,000, there is a range of opinions.

Often, those who write the blogs will prefer to write shorter posts, claiming that anything between 200 and 700 words simply feels right. Certainly, you don’t want a post that feels like it drags on far longer than it should, so a writer’s skill will come into play here, as not everyone can write a long, but readable post. Still, one needs to consider the length that Google and other search engines are looking for. Ideally, one should aim for that “sweet spot” or word length that is long enough to benefit SEO while still feeling short to the reader.

Why Does Blog Length Matter?

You might be hearing that 300 words is the minimum length for a blog post, but if you write longer posts of 1,000 words or more, you have a greater chance of ranking well in Google. It is often suggested to aim for the 1,500-wordmark. So why does length make a difference? There are a couple of reasons.

When you write a longer post, assuming you are not being repetitive, you will be providing more information, not only to your audience but to Google as well. Your longer text will allow Google to better understand what it is you are writing about. Well-written, the optimized text should be making good use of your keywords, using them more frequently and more naturally, without the need for keyword stuffing.

Longer text will also offer you the opportunity to use long-tail variants of your key phrases. Additionally, longer texts will tend to touch upon multiple subjects, giving you the opportunity to appear in searches beyond the focus of the blog.

Google likes quality content that is of value to users. If your content is too short, it might be viewed by Google as not offering enough value. Perhaps it is not adequately answering user questions, or simply not giving enough detail. In these cases, chances are that Google will not rank it highly.

Readability is Key

A skilled writer can produce a post over 1,000 words that still reads well, but if you are still developing your writing abilities, you are better served writing a blog in the 700 to 800-word range.

Always remember that your reader is coming to your site for quality content and relevant information. Don’t overwhelm them with unrelated text just for the sake of lengthening your post. Be clear and informative without being overly verbose, and structure your text in a way that it is easily read. For example, make use of headings that allow readers to scan your text and quickly make sense of what they are seeing. Many readers will scan a page before reading it fully. Make sure you give them a reason to stay on-page.

The Perfect Length

The idea that there is one specific length that is perfect for every situation may be appealing, but in truth, the ideal length takes various factors into consideration. It is better to have a somewhat shorter blog that is well-written and easily read than it is to artificially hit your word count while producing a text that no one will read.