# Structured data checker

Read the structured data on a page: what it declares, whether each block parses, which rich result each type can earn and whether it has what that needs, which fields Google documents as required or recommended are missing, and a mended copy of each node to paste back. A check of shape, said plainly; whether Google shows a rich result is Google's decision.

Updated 2026-09-14 · Source: https://porteur.ai/tools/structured-data-checker

## What it checks

Every script of type application/ld+json on the page is parsed. The ones that do not parse are listed with the error, because a block that does not parse is a block Google never reads. Every typed node in the ones that do, @graph and nested nodes included, is checked against the fields Google documents for its rich result: Article (headline, image, dates, author), Product (name, and offers, a review or a rating), SoftwareApplication (name, category, operating system, offers or rating), FAQPage (questions with accepted answers), HowTo (name, steps), BreadcrumbList (items in order with names), Organization (name, url, logo), WebSite, Review, Event, LocalBusiness, VideoObject, Person and a few more. For each node the table says which rich result it can earn and whether it has what that needs, what is required and missing, what is recommended and missing, and what changed: FAQ rich results have been limited to government and health sites since August 2023, and How-to rich results were retired in September 2023. Microdata nodes are counted with their types. And for each node, a mended copy: its own values kept, the missing fields filled with placeholders to replace, ready to paste as a script tag.

## Why shape matters, and why it is not everything

Structured data is the one place a page says what it is in a form every reader agrees on: this is an article, published then, by them; these are questions and their answers; this is a product at this price. Google uses some of it for rich results, the extra lines under a result, and all of it to understand the page. Assistants read it too. A block with a syntax error or a missing required field is worth exactly nothing, and no browser will tell you.

Well-formed is not the same as shown. Google decides whether a page gets a rich result, on its own rules, and says which fields it wants without promising to use them. The checker tells you the block is right; it cannot tell you what Google will do with it.

## How to read the result

- **The verdict** says whether every block parses, how many types are declared, and whether any node lacks a required field. A page with no structured data is not an error.
- **Rich result** names what the type can earn and whether the node is in shape for it: in shape, not yet (a required field is missing), or no longer shown (FAQ and How-to).
- **Required and missing** are the fields Google lists as required; without them the rich result is not shown. **Recommended and missing** are the ones Google says improve it.
- **Note** carries the specifics: a FAQPage entry that is not a Question with an answer, a breadcrumb out of order, an image as one string where Google prefers an array, a software app without an operating system.
- **Mended JSON-LD** opens a copy of the node with the gaps filled by placeholders. Replace the placeholders with what is on the page; never with what is not.

## What to add, on which page

| Page | Type | The fields that matter |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Home | Organization, WebSite | name, url, logo, sameAs to your profiles |
| Product or pricing | SoftwareApplication or Product | name, applicationCategory, offers with price and priceCurrency |
| A guide or an article | Article | headline, datePublished, dateModified, author, image |
| A page with questions | FAQPage | mainEntity: Question with name and acceptedAnswer with text, for questions that are on the page |
| Every page under the home | BreadcrumbList | itemListElement with position, name and item, in order |

> Only mark up what is on the page. A FAQPage for questions the page does not show, or a rating the page does not display, is the kind of markup Google removes rich results for.

## Limits

JSON-LD is judged; microdata is counted, not judged; RDFa is not read. Pages that inject their markup with a script after load show none here. The rules cover the types a product site carries; a type not listed is shown, not judged. And shape is not eligibility: Google decides whether to show a rich result on its own rules, and the Rich Results Test in Search Console is the word on what it would show for a page.

## Questions

### What is the difference between this and Google's Rich Results Test?

Google's test says whether a page is eligible for rich results, on Google's rules, and renders the page. This reads the JSON-LD as served, tells you what does not parse and what is missing, and runs in a second. Use this first, Google's test to confirm.

### Which structured data does a SaaS site need?

Organization and WebSite on the home page, SoftwareApplication with offers on the product or pricing page, Article on the guides, FAQPage where there are real questions on the page, and BreadcrumbList on every page under the home.

### Does structured data improve rankings?

Not directly. It can earn rich results, which take more space and more clicks on the results page, and it helps every reader, Google and assistants alike, understand what the page is.

### Why does my FAQPage not show as a rich result?

Google restricted FAQ rich results to a few kinds of sites in 2023. The markup still helps readers understand the page; it rarely earns the extra lines now.

### Why does the tool say my FAQPage no longer earns a rich result?

Since August 2023 Google shows FAQ rich results only for well-known government and health sites; How-to rich results went in September 2023. The markup is still valid and still tells readers and assistants what the questions are; it just does not change how the result looks in Google. The tool keeps checking its shape and says so in the note.

## Read next

- [Technical SEO checklist for a small site](https://porteur.ai/guides/technical-seo-checklist): Run these 20 technical SEO checks, in order. Each shows how to check it free and what fixed looks like for a site under 1,000 pages.
- [On-page SEO checklist: the twelve things on the page](https://porteur.ai/guides/on-page-seo-checklist): The twelve page elements that move clicks and rankings, with examples you can copy to your own product pages today.
- [People also ask: turning Google’s questions into sections](https://porteur.ai/guides/people-also-ask): See what People also ask is, where questions come from, how to collect them, write two-sentence answers, add FAQ markup, and track results.
- [Title and meta description checker](https://porteur.ai/tools/title-and-meta-description-checker): Paste a page or type a title and a description: pixel widths, character counts, desktop and phone previews, with the h1 and canonical beside them.
- [Structured data](https://porteur.ai/glossary/structured-data): Structured data is schema markup that names your page type. See why it changes results, how to add JSON-LD, and how to validate it.
- [Keyword cannibalization](https://porteur.ai/glossary/keyword-cannibalization): Keyword cannibalisation is when two of your pages compete for the same search, splitting clicks and weakening both; here is how to find and fix it.
- [Review schema: what is allowed, what is shown, what is self-serving](https://porteur.ai/guides/review-schema): What review schema is, when you can show stars, the self-serving rule, and how to mark up Product or SoftwareApplication reviews that validate.

The markup says what a page is. The free check reads what the page does: shown or not, clicked or not, and what Google's AI answers quote on your searches. Free check: https://porteur.ai/