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Creative Works
schema.org spec

HowTo

Instructions for accomplishing a task. Each step has its own structured properties.

What it is

HowTo describes a multi-step procedure. Each HowToStep can include text, an image, a name, and a URL fragment. As of August 2023, Google deprecated the HowTo rich result for most content (still supported for educational content in some markets), but the markup remains valuable for AEO/LLM citations and structured data signal.

Required properties
  • name
  • step
Recommended properties
  • totalTime
  • estimatedCost
  • supply
  • tool
  • image
  • video
JSON-LD example
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "HowTo",
  "name": "How to Tie a Bowtie",
  "totalTime": "PT5M",
  "step": [
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Drape the bowtie",
      "text": "Place the bowtie around your neck...",
      "image": "https://example.com/step1.jpg"
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Cross and loop",
      "text": "Cross the longer end over the shorter end..."
    }
  ]
}
</script>
Google rich result support

Rich result largely deprecated August 2023. Still ingested by LLMs and used for knowledge graph.

When to use it
  • Tutorials
  • Recipes (use Recipe instead)
  • Repair guides
  • Procedural content