SEO techniques for sites built with frameworks like React, Angular, or Vue, which require server-side rendering (SSR) or pre-rendering for better indexability.
Why JavaScript Framework SEO Matters
A significant portion of modern websites are built with JavaScript frameworks. While they offer a fantastic user experience with fast page transitions and rich, dynamic content, they can pose a major SEO problem if not implemented correctly. A search engine’s crawler may only see a blank page or a small amount of HTML, missing all the valuable content that is rendered by the JavaScript. This can lead to a site being completely invisible in search results. Therefore, ensuring your JavaScript is rendered correctly for crawlers is a critical part of your technical SEO and a non-negotiable step for any business that relies on organic traffic.
Across Different CMS Platforms
The SEO of a JavaScript framework depends on how the CMS serves the content.
WordPress
WordPress is not a JavaScript framework itself, but many developers use frameworks like React to build custom front-ends on top of a WordPress backend. To ensure these sites are SEO-friendly, you must use a method like server-side rendering (SSR) or pre-rendering to deliver a fully formed HTML page to search engine crawlers.
Shopify
Shopify’s standard themes are not JavaScript frameworks, but developers can use a framework to create a custom storefront that sits on top of Shopify’s API. This is a common practice for headless commerce. For these sites, it’s crucial to implement server-side rendering to ensure the e-commerce pages are crawlable and indexable.
Wix
Wix has made great strides in ensuring its platform is SEO-friendly. While you cannot use an external JavaScript framework, Wix’s platform has been designed to handle its dynamic content in a way that is compliant with search engine guidelines, so you typically don’t need to worry about the technical side of JavaScript SEO.
Webflow
Webflow is not a JavaScript framework, but it generates clean, semantic HTML that is highly SEO-friendly. While you can add your own JavaScript for custom functionality, the core content is always rendered on the server, which prevents the SEO issues commonly associated with pure JavaScript frameworks.
Custom CMS
With a custom CMS and a JavaScript framework, you have the most control but also the most responsibility. You can build your system to handle both server-side rendering (SSR) and client-side rendering (CSR). For SEO, SSR is the best approach, as it ensures that search engine crawlers are always served a fully-formed HTML page.
Across Different Industries
The way businesses handle JavaScript SEO depends on their reliance on rich, dynamic content.
E-commerce
E-commerce sites built with JavaScript frameworks need to ensure all their product pages, categories, and reviews are crawlable. The dynamic nature of e-commerce makes server-side rendering or pre-rendering an absolute necessity to prevent a complete lack of visibility.
Local Businesses
Local businesses often use a JavaScript framework for a fast, modern website. It is crucial to ensure that key pages, like their location, contact information, and hours, are easily crawlable and indexable for local search.
SaaS Companies
SaaS companies often use a JavaScript framework for their marketing pages and product dashboards. For SEO, it’s vital to ensure their marketing pages are pre-rendered or server-side rendered, while their user dashboards can be client-side rendered as they don’t need to be indexed.
Blogs
Blogs built with a JavaScript framework need to ensure their articles are easily crawlable and indexable. A popular strategy is to use pre-rendering to create static HTML versions of each article, which are then served to search engine crawlers.
Do’s and Don’ts of JavaScript Framework SEO
Do’s
- Do use server-side rendering (SSR). This is the gold standard for JavaScript SEO. It ensures that a search engine crawler always receives a fully-formed HTML page.
- Do use a clear internal linking structure. A good site structure with clear internal links helps crawlers find and understand all your content.
- Do use Google Search Console. The URL Inspection tool will show you exactly how Google sees your pages.
Don’ts
- Don’t use a pure client-side rendering (CSR) approach. This is the most common mistake and can lead to a page having little to no visibility in search results.
- Don’t block search engines from crawling JavaScript files. A search engine needs to access your JavaScript to properly render the page.
- Don’t forget to optimize your titles and meta descriptions. Just because your content is dynamic does not mean you can ignore these on-page SEO basics.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- A lack of server-side rendering (SSR): This is the number one mistake. It’s a fundamental issue that must be addressed to rank a JavaScript site.
- Discrepancies between the rendered and static HTML: Sometimes, a page that looks great to a user is a mess to a crawler. You must ensure that the rendered content is the same as the static content.
- Failing to check for crawling errors: Use Google Search Console’s URL Inspection and Coverage reports to check for crawling errors and fix them immediately.
FAQs
Is JavaScript bad for SEO?
No, JavaScript is not inherently bad for SEO. The problem lies in how a website is built. When implemented with server-side rendering or pre-rendering, a JavaScript site can be just as SEO-friendly as a traditional HTML site.
What is the difference between client-side rendering and server-side rendering?
Client-side rendering (CSR) means the browser downloads a blank HTML page and then uses JavaScript to build the content. Server-side rendering (SSR) means the server builds the full HTML page and sends it to the browser. For SEO, SSR is far superior.
What is a “headless CMS,” and how does it relate to JavaScript SEO?
A headless CMS is a backend system that provides content via an API, without a front-end. A JavaScript framework then uses this API to build the front-end. This is a common practice and requires server-side rendering for SEO.
How do I test if my JavaScript site is crawlable?
The best way is to use Google’s URL Inspection tool in Google Search Console. It will show you a screenshot of how Google sees your page and a list of any rendering issues it found.
Can a website be both fast and SEO-friendly?
Yes. The entire point of modern JavaScript SEO is to build a fast website that is also fully crawlable and indexable. By using server-side rendering and other optimization techniques, you can achieve both speed and SEO success.
