5 Best Structured Data Testing Tools for 2020

Websites that use structured data have reported a boost in the click-through rate (CTR) and conversions. If you’re looking to implement structured data on your website, be sure to check out these five structured data testing tools for 2020.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing your site content so that search engine crawlers can easily understand your website. Structured data from an SEO perspective is a format to markup page information to help search engine crawlers understand what your page is about.

There has been some confusion around whether structured data helps in boosting search engine rankings, but John Mueller (Senior Webmaster Trends Analyst at Google) clarified, “There’s no generic ranking boost for SD usage. That’s the same as far as I remember. However, SD can make it easier to understand what the page is about, which can make it easier to show where it’s relevant (improves targeting, maybe ranking for the right terms),” in response to a Twitter query.

There’s no generic ranking boost for SD usage. That’s the same as far as I remember. However, SD can make it easier to understand what the page is about, which can make it easier to show where it’s relevant (improves targeting, maybe ranking for the right terms). (not new, imo)

— 🍌 John 🍌 (@JohnMu) April 2, 2018

(Note that SD in the above response stands for structured data.)

A few of the structured data formats include JSON-LD, RDFa, and Microdata markup. Schema.org is a ubiquitous structured data markup format introduced by Google, Yahoo!, Bing, and Yandex that uses Microdata.

Structured data testing tools help you check the structured data code for errors before you implement them on your website.

Let’s look at the top five structured data testing tools you can use in 2020.

1. Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool

Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool is a simple-to-use tool that lets you test your structured data. Paste the URL or code snippet that you want to check, and the tool will run tests and inform you of any errors present in the code.

You can use the tool to validate JSON-LD, RDFa, and Microdata formats. Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool can help you immensely while implementing schema on your website.

Neil Patel suggests this tool to boost your SEO efforts, “If you are unsure if your code is correctly implemented or not, use Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool, and you can add your code snippet or the page that you implemented the schema on, and it will tell you if you did it right or wrong. Plus, it will give you feedback on if there are any errors or issues with your code.”

He also recommends Google’s Rich Result Tester to get a preview of how your structured data will look like in search results.

If you use Google Chrome, you can also experiment with Chrome’s Structured Data Testing Tool.

Learn More: Search Engine Optimization: The Role of Structured Data

2. Bing Markup Validator

Bing Markup Validator is a structured data testing tool for Bing and is a part of Bing Webmaster Tools. It is used to verify the structured data that’s been added to your site, such as HTML Microdata, Microformats, RDFa, Schema.org, and OpenGraph.

You can also generate a report that shows the markup Bing Webmaster Tools has discovered. To learn more about the tool, you can read the step-by-step guide written by Matteo Duo on how to use the Bing Webmaster Tool.

3. SEO SiteCheckup

SEO SiteCheckup lets you run structured data tests while offering plenty of website analysis features. The structured data testing tool evaluates whether your website uses HTML Microdata specifications or structured data markup.

Although you can use this feature for free, it has certain limitations, such as it allows you to run only one test per hour. You can either register or upgrade to one of their premium plans to use the tool without restrictions.

Brian Dean of Backlinko recommends SEO SiteCheckup after having used it, “A very easy-to-use SEO audit tool. Also includes backlink analysis data, uptime reports, and site speed recommendations. The white-label reports for digital marketing agencies look really sharp.”

Learn More: 19 Free SEO Tools That Should Be on Every Marketer’s Radar

4. Merkle’s Schema Markup Generator

Merkle’s Schema Markup Generator is a nifty yet powerful tool that helps you generate structured data in JSON-LD format for applications including article, event, breadcrumb, how-to, FAQ page, job posting, product, and recipe. All you have to do is to pick a category, fill in the fields, and you’ll get a ready-to-implement script.

While talking about the tool, Alexis Sanders (Senior SEO Manager at Merkle) says, “It contains Google’s top markups with an incredibly user-friendly experience and all of the top item properties. This tool is a great support for starting your markups, and it’s great for individuals looking to reverse-engineer markups. It offers JSON-LD and some illustrative Microdata markups. You can also send the generated markups directly to Google’s structured data testing tool.”

5. Schema – All In One Schema Rich Snippets (WordPress Plugin)

For marketers who are not proficient at coding but are looking to experiment with structured data, they can do so by using Schema – a WordPress plugin. The only prerequisite is to have WordPress as the CMS. You can watch the following tutorial to understand how to implement the schema using the WordPress plugin: 

Learn How to Implement Structured Data on Your Website Using a WordPress Plugin

 

Learn More: Reverse Engineering Search Engine Optimization Success

Conclusion

Apart from these tools, you can also try out JSON-LD Playground, RDF Translator, and Structured Data Linter to test your structured data. We urge you, marketers and webmasters, to use structured data testing tools as they can boost search engine rankings and earn a spot in the highly revered rich snippets!

Have you used any of these structured data testing tools before? Tell us on Twitter, LinkedIn, on Facebook; we’re always listening!