Sean Walsh
Sean is a Director at Intelligency heading up our digital marketing and client services operations. Sean has 15+ years experiencing working both in-house and agency with brands including Lloyds, Alstom, Hitachi, Lufthansa, Viaplay, DFDS Seaways and Mercedes-Benz.
Title tags are one of the most basic but important elements of SEO. They’re what users see as the blue clickable headline in Google search results. Naturally, marketers and content teams spend a lot of time writing them. But what happens when Google decides to change them?
A recent study by SEO consultant John McAlpin has revealed that Google rewrites more than 76% of title tags. That’s a significant shift from earlier years and has big implications for anyone working in digital marketing.
What the study set out to discover
The goal of the study was to find out how often Google actually rewrites title tags and what patterns might explain why. McAlpin and his team tracked thousands of keywords across different types of content, industries, and websites — including commercial pages, informational content, and sensitive YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) topics like health and finance.
They reviewed the top 50 search results for each keyword and compared the original title tags on the websites with what Google displayed in search results. The findings show a clear trend: Google is making changes more often and for very specific reasons.
Why Google changes title tags
The study found that Google changes title tags to:
- Remove brand names that don’t add value to the query, especially when space is limited or the query isn’t brand-specific
- Improve readability by rewriting vague, long, or complex titles to be more direct and user-friendly
- Match search intent more closely, particularly in commercial queries where users expect product-related terms
- Manage length, by shortening titles that are too long for display or expanding overly brief titles with more useful information
- Add clarity to generic titles when the original doesn’t make the content of the page clear (e.g. changing “Our Products” to something more descriptive)
Interestingly, Google is not primarily focused on keywords when making these changes. Most title rewrites have little to do with keyword inclusion or removal, which suggests that usability and clarity matter more than strict SEO matching.
Which titles are most likely to be changed?
The rate of title tag changes was fairly consistent across different content types. Whether the page had commercial intent, offered general information, or was from a YMYL category, the rewrite rate stayed close to 76%. Even search volume played a role: high-volume keywords were slightly more likely to see title changes than lower-volume ones.
Commercial titles were a bit more keyword-heavy, and while Google preserved those keywords more often, many were still rewritten. Informational titles, on the other hand, included fewer keywords and were more likely to be changed for clarity.
For YMYL content, Google appeared even more cautious. In areas like health and finance, it consistently removed brand names and simplified titles — likely to make results feel more trustworthy and accessible.
What makes a title tag more likely to stay the same?
The study didn’t just focus on what gets changed — it also looked at what stays the same. Titles that were shorter (typically between 30 and 60 characters), well-structured, and clearly matched the user’s intent were far less likely to be altered.
Formats like “How to…”, “What is…”, and “Top 10…” were often left alone by Google. Titles that avoided brand names, excessive punctuation, or filler words also had a better chance of staying intact. In short, Google tends to leave titles alone when they’re already doing a good job of communicating value to the user.
What this means for digital marketers
Even though Google frequently rewrites title tags, they still play an important role in SEO and user engagement. Based on the study’s findings, here’s what marketers should take away:
- Keep titles short and focused — ideally between 30 and 60 characters
- Avoid unnecessary branding unless your brand name adds clear value to the query
- Use clear, intent-driven formats like “How to”, “What is”, or numbered lists (“Top 10…”)
- Write for clarity, not just keywords — Google prioritises user understanding over keyword matching
- Make the purpose of the page obvious in the title so users immediately know what to expect
- Don’t stop writing good title tags — even if Google rewrites them, strong titles improve click-through rates and guide Google’s edits
