E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) is a content quality evaluation standard defined in Google's Search Quality Rater Guidelines. It consists of four elements, with Trustworthiness placed at the center. Although it is not a direct ranking signal, it indicates the direction Google's algorithm aims for, making it a concept at the core of SEO strategy.
What Is E-E-A-T?
E-E-A-T is a framework for determining content quality defined in Google's Search Quality Rater Guidelines. In the December 2022 guideline update, "Experience" was added to the previous E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness), creating the current E-E-A-T.
As an important premise, E-E-A-T is not a direct ranking factor in the algorithm. Ben Gomes, who served as VP of Google's search quality team, explained that "the Quality Rater Guidelines indicate the direction the algorithm should go." In other words, Google's thousands of Quality Raters evaluate search result quality based on E-E-A-T, and the results are reflected in algorithm improvements.
Experience
Whether the content creator has real-world experience with the topic. This is the newest element, added in December 2022. For example, product reviews from people who actually used the product, or travel guides from people who actually visited the location, are rated higher than content based solely on desk research. It can also be seen as a criterion for distinguishing between generic AI-generated content and content based on real experience.
Expertise
Whether the content creator has sufficient knowledge and skills on the topic. In the YMYL domain, professional qualifications and educational backgrounds are important, such as doctors for medical information and lawyers for legal information. On the other hand, for hobbies and everyday topics, Google explicitly states that everyday expertise is sufficient.
Authoritativeness
Whether the content creator or site is recognized as a trusted source of information on the topic. Indicators include backlinks, mentions in the media, and reputation in the industry. Google officially states that "links are still an important signal" because backlinks act as a proxy for authoritativeness.
Trustworthiness
The most important element of E-E-A-T. Google's Quality Rater Guidelines place Trustworthiness at the center of the other three elements. The overall trustworthiness of the site is evaluated, including HTTPS, accurate operator information, privacy policy, transparent advertising, and accurate and verifiable information. No matter how high the other three elements (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness) are, if trustworthiness is low, the overall rating will be low.
Why Trust Is at the Center
In Google's Quality Rater Guidelines, the E-E-A-T diagram depicts Trustworthiness at the center, surrounded by the other three elements. This means that "no matter how much Experience, Expertise, or Authoritativeness a site has, an untrustworthy site will be judged as low quality." This principle is why fraudulent or fake news sites are not rated favorably, even if they present a professional appearance.
E-E-A-T in Google's Quality Rater Guidelines
Google has approximately 16,000 Search Quality Raters worldwide who evaluate the quality of search results. The manual used by these raters is the Search Quality Rater Guidelines (approximately 170 pages), and E-E-A-T is its core evaluation standard.
Quality Rater evaluations do not directly change the ranking of individual pages. However, by aggregating large amounts of evaluation data, they function as training data for algorithms to learn "what constitutes high-quality search results." In other words, creating content with E-E-A-T in mind means aligning with the direction Google's algorithm is evolving.
Quality Rating Scale
The Quality Rater Guidelines evaluate page quality on the following five levels.
Most sites should aim for the "High" level. To receive a High rating, you need to show clear signals for each element of E-E-A-T.
Specific Measures to Improve E-E-A-T
Although E-E-A-T is an abstract concept, there are concrete measures when broken down to the implementation level. Here they are explained in order of priority.
1Setting Up Author Information (Experience / Expertise)
This is the most directly controllable element in E-E-A-T evaluation. Since Google places importance on "who wrote it," content that does not clearly identify the author will be at a disadvantage in evaluation.
- Create an author profile page (real name, photo, career, specialty, achievements)
- Display author name on each article and link to profile page
- Implement Person structured data to make author information machine-readable
- Link the author's social media accounts and external profiles (LinkedIn, etc.) with sameAs
- Include firsthand information based on real experience in articles ("results from actual testing", "from X years of experience", etc.)
2Ensuring Site-wide Trustworthiness
Trustworthiness is the most important element at the heart of E-E-A-T. All of the following items can be checked with CodeQuest.work SEO diagnostics.
- HTTPS implementation (correct SSL certificate configuration)
- Set up operator information page (company profile, representative name, location, contact information)
- Set up a privacy policy
- Implement Organization structured data
- Clearly display contact information (email address or inquiry form)
3Implementing Structured Data (Machine-readable E-E-A-T Signals)
Structured data acts as a "translation device" that conveys E-E-A-T signals to search engines. By providing information in a format that is both human-readable and machine-understandable, each element of E-E-A-T is more accurately evaluated.
- Person (author info: name, title, specialty, achievements, sameAs)
- Organization (operating organization: name, logo, contact, founder)
- Article (article info: author, publication date, update date, publisher)
- WebSite (site info: SearchAction, publisher)
- BreadcrumbList (breadcrumb list: explicit site structure)
4Improving Content Quality (Expertise / Experience)
Content with high E-E-A-T is content that satisfies search intent and provides accurate, experience-backed information.
- Accurately understand search intent and directly answer user questions
- Clearly cite information sources ("according to a survey by XX", "per official Google documentation", etc.)
- Regularly update information and display the last updated date
- Dig deeper into specialized areas with topic cluster models
- Consolidate low-quality pages to increase overall site quality density
5Building Authoritativeness
Authoritativeness cannot be built in a short period, but it greatly influences SEO results in the medium to long term.
- Create original content that is naturally cited and linked from other sites
- Contribute to industry media and respond to interviews
- Increase awareness through sharing information on social media
- Publish original research data, free tools, and industry reports
- Offline activities such as book publishing and conference presentations
E-E-A-T Related Items You Can Check with CodeQuest SEO
Although E-E-A-T is an abstract concept, there are technically verifiable items. CodeQuest.work SEO's diagnosis automatically checks the following E-E-A-T related items and generates fix code if any issues are found.
Trustworthiness Related
- HTTPS verification
- Security header configuration status
- Correct canonical tag settings
Structured Data Related
- Article structured data (author, publication date, publisher)
- Organization structured data
- BreadcrumbList structured data
- FAQPage structured data
- WebSite structured data
Meta Information & Content Related
- Title tag optimization
- Meta description settings
- OGP tags (og:title, og:description, og:image)
- Heading structure (h1-h6 hierarchy)
- Image alt attribute settings
Technical Foundation Related
- Core Web Vitals (LCP, INP, CLS)
- Mobile-friendly support
- Internal link health
- XML sitemap setup
You can check these items for free simply by entering a URL. Regularly verify that the technical foundation of E-E-A-T is in place and fix any issues as soon as possible.
Special Importance of E-E-A-T in YMYL Topics
YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) refers to topic areas that can affect users' health, safety, or financial stability. Google applies E-E-A-T evaluation particularly strictly in this area.
Examples of YMYL Topics
In YMYL topics, Expertise and Trustworthiness are evaluated particularly strictly because inaccurate information can cause real harm to users. Medical information must be supervised by doctors or medical institutions, and financial information must be written and supervised by qualified professionals.
Caution for YMYL Topics
In YMYL topics, it tends to be realistically difficult for personal blogs and small sites to compete with major specialized organizations. In the August 2018 core update (commonly known as the "Medic Update"), large-scale ranking changes occurred for medical and health-related sites, and many sites that did not meet E-E-A-T standards dropped significantly in ranking. When entering the YMYL field, always have qualified professionals supervise your content and clearly state this information.
Common Failure Patterns in E-E-A-T Optimization
Not displaying author information
Content that does not clearly state who wrote it has a major handicap in E-E-A-T evaluation. Especially for blog articles and guide content, displaying the author's name, profile, and field of expertise is essential. Prepare an author page with your real name and photo, rather than an anonymous display like "management team."
Not implementing structured data
Simply including author and site information in HTML may not allow search engines to correctly understand the information. By implementing Person, Organization, and Article structured data, you can convey E-E-A-T signals in a machine-readable format. You can check the implementation status of structured data with CodeQuest.work SEO.
Publishing information without sources
Unfounded statements like "it is said that..." or "generally..." reduce E-E-A-T trustworthiness. Always cite sources for figures and claims. Citing official Google documentation, academic papers, and reliable research data improves content trustworthiness.
Leaving HTTPS unsupported
Since Chrome started displaying "not secure" warnings on HTTP sites in 2018, HTTPS has been a basic requirement for Trustworthiness. Not supporting HTTPS is also treated as a low-quality signal in the Quality Rater Guidelines. You can implement it for free with Let's Encrypt.
Publishing a large amount of low-quality content
Google's Helpful Content system evaluates the overall quality of your site. If there is a lot of content with low E-E-A-T, there is a risk that even high-quality pages will be affected and the evaluation will drop. Focus on quality over quantity and noindex or delete unnecessary pages.
