One of the most common questions from developers and SEOs implementing structured data: "Should I use Article or BlogPosting? Does it actually matter?"

The short answer: it matters more than you think. Google explicitly recommends specific subtypes over the generic Article for different content types, and using the right one improves your eligibility for certain rich results like Top Stories.

💡 The Core Difference

Article is the parent type — it works everywhere. BlogPosting, NewsArticle, and TechArticle are all subtypes of Article. Using a subtype signals to Google what kind of article it is, potentially triggering different rich result types.

1. The Article Type Hierarchy

Article (parent)

├── NewsArticle

│ └── AnalysisNewsArticle, ReportageNewsArticle, ReviewNewsArticle, etc.

├── BlogPosting

│ └── LiveBlogPosting

├── TechArticle

│ └── APIReference

├── ScholarlyArticle

│ └── MedicalScholarlyArticle

└── SocialMediaPosting

2. When to Use Each Type

Article

Use when content doesn't cleanly fit a more specific type. Think: long-form educational content, pillar pages, evergreen guides.

Best for: Long-form guides, how-to content, educational articles, FAQ hubs

"@type": "Article"

BlogPosting

Use for personal blog posts, opinion pieces, time-sensitive content written in a personal or conversational voice. Not intended for hard news.

Best for: Personal blogs, marketing blogs, company updates, opinion content, case studies

"@type": "BlogPosting"

NewsArticle

Use for news reporting on current events. This is the key type for Top Stories eligibility. Requires Google News approval for Top Stories on non-AMP pages.

Best for: News publishers, journalism outlets, press releases with journalistic framing

"@type": "NewsArticle"

TechArticle

Use for technical documentation, tutorials with code, API guides, developer how-to content. Signals technical authority to Google.

Best for: Dev blogs, API docs, technical tutorials, code guides, engineering posts

"@type": "TechArticle"

3. Complete Article Schema Example

Regardless of which type you use, include these key properties:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "BlogPosting",
  "headline": "10 Mistakes That Kill Your Schema Markup (and How to Fix Them)",
  "description": "A deep dive into the most common schema markup mistakes made by developers and SEOs, with step-by-step fixes for each.",
  "image": [
    "https://example.com/schema-mistakes-1x1.jpg",
    "https://example.com/schema-mistakes-4x3.jpg",
    "https://example.com/schema-mistakes-16x9.jpg"
  ],
  "datePublished": "2026-02-01T08:00:00+05:30",
  "dateModified": "2026-02-15T10:30:00+05:30",
  "author": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "name": "Arjun Mehta",
    "url": "https://example.com/authors/arjun-mehta"
  },
  "publisher": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Example Blog",
    "url": "https://example.com",
    "logo": {
      "@type": "ImageObject",
      "url": "https://example.com/logo.png",
      "width": 600,
      "height": 60
    }
  },
  "mainEntityOfPage": {
    "@type": "WebPage",
    "@id": "https://example.com/blog/schema-markup-mistakes"
  },
  "wordCount": 2800,
  "articleSection": "SEO",
  "keywords": ["schema markup", "structured data", "SEO errors", "JSON-LD"]
}
</script>

4. Does the Choice Actually Affect Rankings?

Direct ranking impact: minimal. But there are indirect effects:

Top Stories: Only NewsArticle is eligible for Top Stories carousel. Using generic Article for news content may disqualify you.
Publisher trust signals: Google uses article type as one of many signals to understand your content's nature. A tech blog using TechArticle communicates topical authority.
E-E-A-T: Matching schema type to content type supports Google's ability to evaluate your expertise, experience, authority, and trustworthiness for that content niche.

5. Critical Fields You Must Always Include

Property	Why It Matters
headline	Required for rich results — must match the page's H1, max 110 characters
image	Required for rich results — at least 696px wide, preferably 1200px
datePublished	Required for rich results — tells Google when content was originally published
dateModified	Recommended — tells Google the content is actively maintained
author	Critical for E-E-A-T — include author name, ideally with a URL to their bio page
publisher	Required for rich results — include name and logo
mainEntityOfPage	Signals this schema is the primary entity of the page — use the page's canonical URL

6. Quick Decision Guide

Is it a news article about current events?NewsArticle

Is it a personal blog post or company blog entry?BlogPosting

Is it a technical tutorial, code guide, or developer documentation?TechArticle

Is it a live blog covering a real-time event?LiveBlogPosting

Is it an academic or research paper?ScholarlyArticle

None of the above? Or you're not sure?Article (generic — safe choice)

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Google treat Article and BlogPosting as the same type? ▼

For most rich result eligibility purposes, yes — both are eligible for article rich results (headline, image, date). The practical difference is intent signalling: BlogPosting tells Google the content is personal/opinion/blog-style, while Article is more neutral. The one place it matters significantly is Top Stories — only NewsArticle (not Article or BlogPosting) is eligible for the Top Stories carousel in Google Search.

My site covers both news and evergreen content. Can I mix schema types? ▼

Yes — and you should. Use NewsArticle for time-sensitive news reporting pages. Use Article or BlogPosting for evergreen guides and educational content. Mix based on what each individual page is, not what your overall site is. Google evaluates schema at the page level. Consistency within a page type matters; mixing across different pages is perfectly valid.

Does the headline property need to exactly match my H1 tag? ▼

Google recommends that headline be consistent with your H1. They do not need to be character-for-character identical but should say the same thing semantically. A slight difference like adding a year or changing word order is fine. A completely different headline in JSON-LD vs the visible H1 is a quality signal problem — Google may distrust the schema. Limit headline to 110 characters per Google's requirements.

What image dimensions are required for Article rich results? ▼

Google requires at least 696px wide for Article images to be eligible for rich results. Optimal is 1200×630px (1.91:1 ratio). Google recommends providing three image URLs at 1:1, 4:3, and 16:9 ratios in an array so they can select the best crop for different display contexts. All images must be publicly indexed (not blocked via robots.txt).

Should I include the author as a Person or Organization? ▼

Use Person for individually authored articles — include the author's name and a URL to their author profile page. Use Organization only if content is genuinely institution-authored with no identifiable individual. Google's E-E-A-T guidelines place significant weight on demonstrable author expertise. A Person author with a real bio page signals expertise far more strongly than a generic Organization. For YMYL content (health, finance, legal) this is especially important.

Is dateModified important, or is datePublished enough? ▼

Both matter. datePublished affects freshness ranking for time-sensitive queries. dateModified tells Google the content is actively maintained — critical for evergreen guides you regularly update. Without dateModified, Google may assume content is as stale as the datePublished date. Always update dateModified when making substantial content changes. For Top Stories specifically, datePublished is critical — Google will not show old articles in Top Stories regardless of dateModified.

Can I use TechArticle for all my technical blog posts? ▼

Yes, if the content is genuinely technical — developer tutorials, code examples, API documentation, engineering explanations. TechArticle inherits all the same rich result eligibility as Article. Using TechArticle on clearly technical content helps build topical authority signals for developer-focused topics. Do not use it as a generic label just because your audience is technical — reserve it for content that involves technical instructions, code, or system documentation.

Does Article schema affect how Google displays my snippet in search results? ▼

Yes, in several ways. With Article schema, Google can display a headline image thumbnail, byline, and publication date in search results — especially in news contexts and Google Discover. Without schema, Google extracts these from the page HTML, which is less reliable. The snippet text itself (description under the title) comes from meta description or page content, not from your schema description property. Article schema affects the rich result extras, not the core snippet text.

Validate Your Article Schema

Check your Article or BlogPosting schema for missing required fields and errors.

Validate Article Schema →

Related Guides

→ What is Structured Data?

The foundational guide to structured data and why it matters

→ What is JSON-LD?

How to write Article schema correctly in JSON-LD format

→ Google Rich Results Guide

Every rich result type including Top Stories and article features

→ Schema Markup Checker

Tools to validate your Article or BlogPosting schema

→ JavaScript SEO & Structured Data

Rendering article schema in Next.js and React apps

→ Schema Markup Audit

Auditing Article schema coverage across your entire site

Article vs BlogPosting Schema: Which One Should You Actually Use?