Google Discover SEO: Optimizing Content for the Feed

Discover Is Not Search

It's the opposite. In search, the user tells Google what they want. In Discover, Google tells the user what they want. Your content has to match Google's prediction of user interest — not respond to a query.

How Discover Chooses Content

Google's algorithm looks at:

• User interests (browsing history, app usage, search patterns)
• Topic freshness (new content heavily favored)
• Image quality (this is non-negotiable)
• Engagement signals (CTR, time on page, scroll depth)
• Entity authority (is your site a recognized source for this topic?)

From my experience a single article on a small blog get 500K Discover impressions because it hit the right topic at the right time. I've also seen massive publishers with 50+ articles in Discover daily.

Image Requirements (The Most Common Fail)

Your featured image must be at least 1200px wide and use max-image-preview:large in your meta tags. Without this, Google won't show your article in Discover.

The format: Use JPEG or WebP, keep it under 100KB. High-resolution, not pixelated. Google's system explicitly favors large, high-quality images. Square or 4:3 ratio works best.

Topic Selection

Discover works best for:

• Evergreen topics with current relevance ("how to" and "why" content)
• News-adjacent analysis (not breaking news, but explaining recent trends)
• Personal stories and first-person experiences
• Visual content (infographics, data visualizations, photo essays)

What doesn't work: Product pages, category pages, thin content, anything promotional.

Engagement Is Everything

Discover measures how users interact in-feed. If they see your article and scroll past, that's negative. If they tap through and stay for 60+ seconds, that's positive.

Optimization tips:

• Write headlines that create curiosity gaps (but don't clickbait — Google penalizes bait-and-switch)
• First paragraph must hook. Users decide whether to stay in 3-5 seconds.
• Use clear subheadings for scannability
• Add images every 200-300 words to break up text

The Entity Factor

Google Discover favors sites with topical authority. If you write consistently about climate tech, Google learns your site is a good source for that topic. Random articles across unrelated topics dilute your entity signals.

My advice: Pick two to three topics and go deep. Don't chase trending topics outside your niche. The algorithm sees through it.

Measuring Discover Traffic

Check Google Search Console > Performance > Search type filter > Discover. Look at impressions and average CTR. If your CTR is below 3%, your headline or image needs work. If impressions are low, your topic isn't being served — try a different angle.

One last thing: Discover traffic is volatile. A single algorithm update can cut impressions by 80% overnight. Don't build your entire traffic strategy around it. But as a growth channel alongside search? It's unbeatable.