FAQ pages and FAQ schema: where they still help
For owners and marketers who added FAQs for the old Google dropdowns and are unsure whether to keep them. After reading, you will know what changed, what still works, and how to set up FAQs that earn their space.
FAQ pages still help, but not for the reason they used to. Since 2023, Google shows FAQ rich results only for well-known government and health sites, so most businesses no longer get expandable questions under their listing. Clear question-and-answer content still feeds featured snippets, People Also Ask and AI answers, and valid FAQPage schema still helps machines read it. Say a fitness studio answers its 12 most-asked booking questions on one page: those answers can still be quoted, just not as dropdowns.
The FAQ dropdowns in Google are gone for most sites
Google narrowed FAQ rich results in 2023, so most businesses no longer see them. A rich result is a search listing with extra features, and the FAQ version showed questions that expanded right under your link. Many sites added FAQ blocks just to get that extra space.
Google now shows FAQ rich results only for well-known, authoritative government and health websites. In the same period it retired HowTo rich results, which showed steps in the listing. If your FAQs were added only for those dropdowns, that reason no longer applies.
The question-and-answer content still does real work
Well-written FAQs remain useful because answer engines still read them. A clear question followed by a short, direct answer is exactly the shape that featured snippets, People Also Ask boxes and voice assistants quote. AI tools that write answers also tend to pick up clean question-and-answer pairs.
FAQs help people too. They remove doubts right before a purchase or booking, and they cut repeat questions to your staff. A good FAQ can earn its place on a page even if no search engine ever quotes it.
Schema is now a label for machines, not a display trick
FAQPage schema is still worth adding when your page has real FAQs, because it labels the content clearly. Schema, also called structured data, is a small block of code that describes a page's content in a standard vocabulary from schema.org. The common format is JSON-LD, which sits in the page code and is invisible to visitors.
FAQPage markup tells search engines and other tools that a page contains questions and their answers. It does not guarantee any special display. Follow the basic rules: the marked-up questions and answers must match what visitors can see, each question should have one answer written by you, and pages where users post questions and answers, like forums, should use QAPage markup instead. Test your markup with Google's Rich Results Test or the Schema Markup Validator.
Put FAQs where the question gets asked
FAQs work best on the page where a customer has the question, not on one catch-all page nobody visits. A question about shipping times belongs on product pages and the checkout help page. A question about recovery time belongs on the treatment page.
Keep each page's list focused: five to ten real questions, drawn from your inbox, reviews, chat logs and staff. A central FAQ page is still fine as a directory, but each answer should live where it helps most.
Avoid the FAQ habits that now hold pages back
Some FAQ habits from the dropdown era add clutter without helping anyone. Clean them up when you review your pages.
- Questions nobody asks, written only to repeat a keyword.
- The same FAQ block copied across hundreds of pages.
- Answers that are sales pitches instead of answers.
- Answers that say 'contact us' instead of giving the information.
- Schema that marks up questions not visible on the page.
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Questions people ask
Should I remove FAQPage schema now that the dropdowns are gone?
No need, if the FAQs are real and visible. Valid markup does no harm and still helps machines understand the page.
Can a med spa or clinic still get FAQ rich results as a health site?
Unlikely. Google limited them to well-known, authoritative government and health sites, which in practice means large, established institutions.
Is a single FAQ page still worth having?
Yes, as a directory for customers. Just make sure the key answers also appear on the product or service pages where people have the question.