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SEO & Metadata

Meta tags, structured data, and the long tail of "what does Google want".

Meta tag helpers

  • ★ Next.js Metadata API — metadata / generateMetadata exports; the default for Next.js App Router.
  • next-seo — older Next.js helper; less needed now that Metadata API exists, but still used.
  • unhead — universal head management; used by Nuxt, Vue, Solid, Svelte.
  • react-helmet-async — older React option; less recommended for new projects.
  • Astro built-in <head> slot — Astro is simple enough you don't need a library.

Structured data (JSON-LD)

  • ★ schema-dts — TypeScript types for schema.org JSON-LD. Default for "I want autocomplete on Article properties."
  • next-seo has a JsonLd component for common schemas.
  • Astro Schema Org integration.
  • Hand-written <script type="application/ld+json"> is fine; types help.

Sitemaps

See Sitemap & Feeds.

Open Graph / Twitter / social

  • See OG Images for dynamic image generation.
  • For tags themselves, the Metadata API / unhead handle og:* and twitter:* automatically.

Robots / crawl

  • robots.txt — next-sitemap and most frameworks generate this.
  • Cloudflare's bot management — to allow / block AI bots, Googlebot variants, etc.
  • <meta name="robots"> — page-level overrides.

Canonical / hreflang

  • ★ Always set <link rel="canonical"> for canonicalized URLs (utm params, query-shuffled URLs).
  • For multi-language sites, set hreflang per-locale; next-intl and Paraglide can generate.

Validators / testers

  • Google Rich Results Test — paste a URL, see what JSON-LD Google parses.
  • Schema.org Validator — replaces the old "Structured Data Testing Tool."
  • Twitter Card Validator / LinkedIn Post Inspector / Facebook Sharing Debugger — for social previews.
  • Lighthouse SEO audit — built-in, fine for basics.
  • Ahrefs Webmaster Tools, Bing Webmaster Tools — free monitoring.
  • Google Search Console — non-negotiable; free.

Performance for SEO

Core Web Vitals are real ranking factors. See Observability and Load Testing — web-vitals and Lighthouse CI.

AI / LLM discoverability

In 2026, "appearing in AI answers" is its own discipline:

  • /llms.txt — emerging convention; a Markdown file at root listing your key URLs for LLMs.
  • ai.txt / ai-policy.txt — declare your AI training policy (advisory).
  • Structured data still matters; LLMs ingest it during training and via tools.
  • Cloudflare's "AI Audit" — see what AI bots are crawling you.

Pick this if…

  • Default Next.js: Metadata API.
  • Vue / Nuxt / Astro / Solid: unhead.
  • JSON-LD with types: schema-dts.
  • Validate before shipping: Google Rich Results Test + Search Console.
  • Discoverable in AI: add llms.txt.

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