How Long Should Content Be For AI Search Engines?

Content is a key component of AI search success. It’s what gets cited in results and drives traffic to your page.

So, that begs the question: What’s the ideal length for content to rank in AI engines?

Vamos falar sobre isso.

• Is There a Perfect Content Length for AI Search?
• Is It Possible for Content to Be Too Long for AI Search?
• How Do I Create Content That Gets Cited in AI Engines?

Is there a perfect content length for AI search?

Nope, there really isn’t.

As Abby Fields shares, It’s not so much about content length, but rather, meeting search intent:

Insights from our experts at

“There is probably no ‘perfect’ word length to aim for when creating content or optimizing it for AI search! I think this has been the case for traditional SEO as well.

The most important thing is to make sure your content answers search intent. Do you have all the content you need to answer the user’s question and provide the information they need? The search intent will determine the length, rather than the other way around.”

Abby Fields SEO Consultant

Sarah Berry supports that notion, adding:

Insights from our experts at

“While there was a correlation in the days of the “ten blue links” with higher word counts (think 1,200 to 3,000 words) ranking better in search results, I think committing to that length at this stage in premature.”

Sarah Berry Lead SEO Consultant

Personally, I think the notion of a word count is built a lot on coincidence and not necessarily a marker for success in search. It’s not that content ranked well in search because it was 1,500 or 2,000 words. It was just good quality content that happened to be that length for most content.

So, again, it supports the notion that good quality content that matches search intent is what will rank and get visibility in AI search engines, rather than meeting a word count.

Is it possible for content to be too long for AI search?

So, while there isn’t a set word count you need to hit for content to get visibility and citations in AI engine, it is possible to create content that’s too long.

Here’s the trap that companies fall into:

1. They learn that AI engines want comprehensive and informative resources
2. They interpret that as “long” resources and create content that’s filled with tons of information
3. The content becomes bloated and isn’t actually helpful to what users want to know

Here’s something to consider: 55% of AI Overview citations come from the first 30% of content — only 21% come from the bottom 40% of content.

Stay with me on this one.

If you’re stuffing your content with less than helpful information (just for the sake of covering it), that top 30% of content that is most likely to get cited may be stuffed with irrelevant and less than helpful information. That means that you might be blowing your opportunities to get cited.

That’s why it’s so important that you’re only covering information that is genuinely helpful for the user. Not only will it keep users more engaged, but it will help increase chances that your most important information gets cited.

Abby supports this notion:

“Content that’s too long usually has ‘filler’ content — in other words, content that isn’t directly related to the search intent and isn’t the main focus of the page. If you can cut that content out and your page still meets the search intent and is helpful, then your page is likely too long and straying from the core purpose.”

How do you know if content is too short or thin?

According to Abby, there are a few indicators that content is too thin or short:

“Content that has very short, broad answers and basic explanations can be seen as too thin. Ideally, you want content to be valuable, which usually means explaining topics thoroughly in a way that the reader can understand. Plus, if your page is missing content that addresses search intent, it’s an indicator that it’s a little on the shorter side.”

Basically, if you’re creating content that’s covering the topic a little too broadly and not really diving into any details, it’s going to be thin and not viewed as helpful to AI engines.

So if we go back to Sarah’s earlier example about roof replacement costs, a thin piece of content may only cover how much it costs to replace a roof and leave it at that. But users want to know more than that — they want to know what factors influence the cost, for example.

So if you aren’t covering that vital information, you’re going to have content that’s too thin and not considered helpful enough for AI engines to cite it.

How do I create content that gets cited in AI engines?

Here’s what Sarah says you should focus on:

1. Answering user intent

Answering the user intent first (think the inverted pyramid model) will help you have a better shot at earning citations and mentions. Think about questions make sense to answer and how deep you should go when answering those questions.

It’s really important to think about the subject matter and what information makes the most sense at that point in time.

So, for example, a page about roofing replacement costs doesn’t have to go so in-depth to start talking about finding and vetting roofing companies. Instead, it can keep the focus on costs of roof replacements, what factors you have to consider, and other closely-related information.

2. Structuring content for crawlers

Getting your content cited and mentioned in AI search results requires you to structure that content for crawlers. You can achieve this by:

• Organizing content with H2s, H3s, and H4s
• Leveraging bulleted and numbered lists
• Using tables to summarize information

3. Making content citeable

Making content citeable can help AI engines see your content as valuable enough to cite in search responses.

You can make content more citable by:

• Including data points that can’t be found elsewhere (especially original data)
• Integrating expert quotes that are original, unique thoughts
• Leveraging specific examples or stories

When you’re specific with your content, you give AI engines a reason to cite you. You can even try out the 1:80 rule (or a modified version of it) where every 80 words, there is one fact or statistic that can help get you cited in AI engines.

Stay in the know on all things AI search

From content to AI search optimizations, staying on top of topics like these is paramount for success. If you want to stay in the know, subscribe to our email newsletter for the latest in AI search news!

AI search is changing fast. Are you keeping up?

Get expert breakdowns and insights on the latest AI search trends and changes.

Correio eletrónico(Obrigatório)