Your Money or Your Life (YMYL) pages are a classification of web content that Google considers to have a significant impact on a person’s well-being, financial stability, or quality of life.
Due to the potentially life-altering nature of the information provided, Google holds these pages to a higher standard regarding quality and expertise.
YMYL content is a central focus of Google’s search quality guidelines, as it directly affects its users’ trust in the search engine.
Examples of YMYL content include:
- Financial information: Banking, loans, investments, taxes, retirement planning, and other topics related to personal finance and money management.
- Medical and health information: Advice on diseases, medications, treatments, mental health, nutrition, and fitness.
- Legal information: Legal advice, immigration policies, family law, and other legal topics.
- News and current events: In-depth reporting on politics, business, technology, and other areas with a significant impact on society.
- Public safety information: Emergency response procedures, natural disaster preparedness, and other vital safety topics.
- Shopping and e-commerce: Websites that allow users to make purchases or transfer money online.
- Parenting and family: Adoption, childcare, and family planning advice.
To ensure the quality of YMYL content, Google’s algorithms and human reviewers evaluate these pages based on the expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (E-A-T) of the content creator, as well as the overall website.
High-quality YMYL content should be created by experts in their respective fields, provide accurate and well-researched information, and be presented in a clear, easy-to-understand manner.
Here are some helpful resources for understanding YMYL pages and their impact on SEO:
- Google’s Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines (PDF): These guidelines provide insights into how Google assesses YMYL content and E-A-T.
- Moz’s guide to YMYL and E-A-T: A comprehensive article discussing the importance of YMYL pages and how E-A-T affects SEO.
- Ahrefs’ guide to E-A-T and YMYL: Another in-depth resource on the topic, with tips on improving E-A-T for your website.