Why are my videos not showing up in the Google search results?

There are many reasons why your videos might not show up in the search results. This article explores some of the common causes and provides some suggestions.

You’re not using Yoast SEO’s Video Plugin

Our Video SEO for WordPress plugin takes care of all of the technical heavy lifting required to help get your videos into Google. From video XML sitemaps, to configuration options, to responsive embeds and more. If you want to use video to attract more searchers and wow your audience, then this is a must-have.

It’s too soon

It can take time for Google to crawl, evaluable, and index your content. For popular websites with many links from other reputable websites, the process can happen within hours. If you have a smaller or less popular site, you might need to wait days – or even weeks – for Google to index your video content. You might just need to wait for a while.

The page isn’t indexable

If your page is hidden from search engines or is set to noindex, then Google probably won’t show your videos. You should check your Yoast SEO advanced settings for the page, and view the source code to check for any rogue meta tags.

The site or page isn’t high quality

The content around the video is an important clue to Google as to the value of the page, and of the video. If you’ve not put the work in to prove that Google should show your video to their users, then they’re unlikely to show it.

The video isn’t the main focus of the page

If the page is really long and has loads of content, then your video might get lost in the noise. Google needs to understand that the video is the main focus of the page, not just an ‘extra’.

Something else?

There are many reasons why Google might not feature a video, ranging from technical problems, to quality issues, and beyond. If you’re still struggling to diagnose why yours aren’t showing, we recommend exploring Google’s Video Best Practices documentation.