Fixing Metadata

Workflow

1. Identify pages with missing or incorrect metadata (titles, descriptions, canonical, OG tags)
2. Audit against the priority rules below — fix critical issues (duplicates, indexing) first
3. Ensure title, description, canonical, and og:url all agree with each other
4. Verify social cards render correctly on a real URL, not localhost
5. Keep diffs minimal and scoped to metadata only — do not refactor unrelated code

when to apply

Reference these guidelines when: - adding or changing page titles, descriptions, canonical, robots - implementing Open Graph or Twitter card metadata - setting favicons, app icons, manifest, theme-color - building shared SEO components or layout metadata defaults - adding structured data (JSON-LD) - changing locale, alternate languages, or canonical routing - shipping new pages, marketing pages, or shareable links

rule categories by priority

quick reference

1. correctness and duplication (critical)

• define metadata in one place per page, avoid competing systems
• do not emit duplicate title, description, canonical, or robots tags
• metadata must be deterministic, no random or unstable values
• escape and sanitize any user-generated or dynamic strings
• every page must have safe defaults for title and description

2. title and description (high)

• every page must have a title
• use a consistent title format across the site
• keep titles short and readable, avoid stuffing
• shareable or searchable pages should have a meta description
• descriptions must be plain text, no markdown or quote spam

3. canonical and indexing (high)

• canonical must point to the preferred URL for the page
• use noindex only for private, duplicate, or non-public pages
• robots meta must match actual access intent
• previews or staging pages should be noindex by default when possible
• paginated pages must have correct canonical behavior

4. social cards (high)

• shareable pages must set Open Graph title, description, and image
• Open Graph and Twitter images must use absolute URLs
• prefer correct image dimensions and stable aspect ratios
• og:url must match the canonical URL
• use a sensible og:type, usually website or article
• set twitter:card appropriately, summary_large_image by default

5. icons and manifest (medium)

• include at least one favicon that works across browsers
• include apple-touch-icon when relevant
• manifest must be valid and referenced when used
• set theme-color intentionally to avoid mismatched UI chrome
• icon paths should be stable and cacheable

6. structured data (medium)

• do not add JSON-LD unless it clearly maps to real page content
• JSON-LD must be valid and reflect what is actually rendered
• do not invent ratings, reviews, prices, or organization details
• prefer one structured data block per page unless required

7. locale and alternates (low-medium)

• set the html lang attribute correctly
• set og:locale when localization exists
• add hreflang alternates only when pages truly exist
• localized pages must canonicalize correctly per locale

8. tool boundaries (critical)

• prefer minimal changes, do not refactor unrelated code
• do not migrate frameworks or SEO libraries unless requested
• follow the project's existing metadata pattern (Next.js metadata API, react-helmet, manual head, etc.)

review guidance

• fix critical issues first (duplicates, canonical, indexing)
• ensure title, description, canonical, and og:url agree
• verify social cards on a real URL, not localhost
• prefer stable, boring metadata over clever or dynamic
• keep diffs minimal and scoped to metadata only