Are schema markup and structured data the same thing?

Nearly. Structured data is any machine-readable description of a page. Schema markup is structured data that uses the schema.org vocabulary, which is what Google, Bing and most other engines read, so in SEO the two terms are used interchangeably.

Which format should I use for schema markup?

Google supports JSON-LD, Microdata and RDFa, and recommends JSON-LD where your setup allows it because it sits in one script block instead of being mixed into the HTML.

Does schema markup improve rankings?

Google does not describe structured data as a ranking factor. It makes pages eligible for certain rich results and helps Google understand the page. Google also does not guarantee that valid markup will be displayed.

Do I need special schema for AI Overviews or ChatGPT?

Google says there is no special schema.org structured data needed for its AI features. Other engines have not published a schema requirement either. Standard Organization and Product markup that matches your visible text is the practical baseline.

How do I test my schema markup?

Use Google's Rich Results Test before publishing, then the rich result status reports and URL Inspection tool in Search Console after the page is live.

AI search glossary

Schema markup (structured data): what it is and what it does today

Schema markup is structured data added to a web page, using the shared schema.org vocabulary, that labels what the page is about (a business, a product, an article, an event) in a format search engines can read directly instead of inferring it from the text.

Also called: structured data, schema.org markup, schema

Why it matters for AI search

AI answers are built from search indexes, and structured data is one of the few places where you state facts about your business without ambiguity: official name, logo, profiles, prices, availability. Google says no special schema is required to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, so markup will not get you cited on its own. Its value is consistency: when your markup, page text and third-party profiles agree, engines have less reason to confuse you with someone else.

What schema markup does

A page about a coffee grinder says, in prose, that it costs $129 and is in stock. Schema markup says the same thing in labeled fields: this is a Product, its offers.price is 129, its priceCurrency is USD, its availability is InStock. Search engines can read the prose too, but the labeled version removes guesswork.

Schema.org is the shared vocabulary. It defines hundreds of types (Organization, Product, Article, Event, LocalBusiness and more) and the properties each can have. Google supports three ways to write it: JSON-LD, Microdata and RDFa. It recommends JSON-LD.

What it changes in Google today

Structured data makes a page eligible for rich results such as product prices, review stars and merchant details. Eligibility is not display: Google says it does not guarantee your markup will show up.

The list of rich results has also been shrinking. Google's own documentation changelog records HowTo rich results removed in September 2023, several types (course info, estimated salary, vehicle listing and others) removed in 2025, and the FAQ rich result deprecated in May 2026. See FAQ schema for the details. The types that still carry visible features are mostly commerce, local and article markup.

Which types matter for AI visibility

Type	Where it goes	What it tells engines
Organization	Home or about page	Your official name, logo, URL and profiles
Product with Offer	Product pages	Name, brand, price, currency, availability
Article	Blog and guide pages	Headline, author, publish and update dates
LocalBusiness	Location pages	Address, hours, phone

Start with Organization schema and, if you sell anything, Product schema. These describe the facts an AI answer is most likely to repeat about you.

Rules that apply to every type

Mark up only content that readers can see on the page.
Keep values accurate. Google can issue a manual action for misleading markup, which removes rich result eligibility.
Do not block marked-up pages with robots.txt or noindex. You can check what your robots.txt allows with the robots.txt checker.
Include every required property for the rich result you want.

Treat schema as part of entity SEO: a consistent, machine-readable statement of who you are and what you sell.

Questions

Are schema markup and structured data the same thing?: Nearly. Structured data is any machine-readable description of a page. Schema markup is structured data that uses the schema.org vocabulary, which is what Google, Bing and most other engines read, so in SEO the two terms are used interchangeably.
Which format should I use for schema markup?: Google supports JSON-LD, Microdata and RDFa, and recommends JSON-LD where your setup allows it because it sits in one script block instead of being mixed into the HTML.
Does schema markup improve rankings?: Google does not describe structured data as a ranking factor. It makes pages eligible for certain rich results and helps Google understand the page. Google also does not guarantee that valid markup will be displayed.
Do I need special schema for AI Overviews or ChatGPT?: Google says there is no special schema.org structured data needed for its AI features. Other engines have not published a schema requirement either. Standard Organization and Product markup that matches your visible text is the practical baseline.
How do I test my schema markup?: Use Google's Rich Results Test before publishing, then the rich result status reports and URL Inspection tool in Search Console after the page is live.