20 entries

SEO Character Limits

Search engines truncate on pixel width, not character count, so every SEO character limit is a rule of thumb rather than a hard rule. As working figures: title tags around 50 to 60 characters, meta descriptions around 150 to 160, Google Ads headlines a hard 30. Only the advertising limits are enforced; the rest are display guidance.

The distinction that matters here is between limits that are *enforced* and limits that are *displayed*. Google Ads rejects a 31-character headline outright. Google will happily index a 200-character title tag and then show you the first 600 pixels of it.

That is why a title of wide capitals truncates sooner than one of narrow lowercase at the same character count. The character figures below are conversions from the pixel widths, which is what actually decides where the ellipsis lands.

Search result display

6 entries

Not enforced. Exceed these and the text is truncated, not rejected.

Element	Working limit	Actual constraint	Notes
Title tag	50–60 characters	About 600 px desktop	Roughly 8 fewer characters on mobile. Put the important words first
Meta description	150–160 characters	About 920 px desktop	About 680 px on mobile, roughly 120 characters
URL slug	Under 75 characters	No hard limit	Breadcrumbs usually replace the URL in results now
H1	No limit	None	Not truncated; write for the reader
Image alt text	Under 125 characters	Screen reader convention	Not a search limit — describe the image and stop
Breadcrumb label	Under 30 characters	Display width	Long labels collapse to an ellipsis

Social sharing

5 entries

How a shared link previews. Each network truncates differently.

Property	Working limit	Used by	Notes
og:title	60–90 characters	Facebook, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, Slack, Discord	LinkedIn truncates earliest, around 70
og:description	110–200 characters	Same	Facebook shows about 300 on desktop, far fewer on mobile
og:image	1200 × 630 px	Same	Not a character limit, but the most common mistake — must be an absolute URL
twitter:title	70 characters	X	Falls back to og:title when absent
twitter:description	200 characters	X	Falls back to og:description

Google Ads

9 entries

Hard limits. Text over the count is rejected at upload.

Asset	Hard limit	How many	Notes
Responsive search ad headline	30 characters	Up to 15	At least 3 required; Google picks the combination
Responsive search ad description	90 characters	Up to 4	At least 2 required
Display ad short headline	30 characters	1
Display ad long headline	90 characters	1
Display ad description	90 characters	Up to 5
Business name	25 characters	1
Display path (each field)	15 characters	2	The two segments shown after the domain
Callout extension	25 characters	Up to 20
Sitelink text	25 characters	Up to 20	Descriptions are 35 each

Notes

Character counts here are conversions from pixel widths and assume mixed-case text in the default result font. A title in capitals truncates several characters sooner; one in narrow lowercase survives a few more.
Google frequently rewrites title tags and meta descriptions in results when it judges a different phrasing a better match for the query. Staying within the limits makes the rewrite less likely but does not prevent it.
Only the advertising limits are enforced. Nothing rejects a long title tag — it is simply truncated in the result.

Frequently asked questions

Why is there no exact character limit for a title tag?

Because the constraint is pixel width, not character count. Google allows roughly 600 pixels in a desktop result, and characters vary in width — a W is far wider than an i. Sixty characters is a conversion that holds for typical mixed-case text, not a rule.

Does the meta description affect ranking?

No, and it has not for many years. It affects click-through rate, which is why it is still worth writing well. Treat it as advertising copy for the result rather than as metadata.

Why did Google show different text from my title tag?

Google rewrites titles in roughly a third of results when it judges another phrasing a better match for the query — often pulling from your H1 or on-page text. Staying within the length guidance and matching search intent makes it less likely.

Are Google Ads limits really hard limits?

Yes. Unlike organic metadata, an asset over the count is rejected at upload rather than truncated. Thirty characters for a responsive search ad headline means thirty, spaces included.

Should I write to the mobile or desktop limit?

Mobile, if that is where your traffic is — it truncates earlier. In practice the safest approach is to front-load: put the words that must be read at the very start, so truncation costs you detail rather than meaning.

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Last reviewed 7 August 2026.