How to Enable Web Stories on Google: Quick Guide

What are Web Stories? #

Web Stories are visually rich, tappable stories made from a mix of video, audio, images, animation, and text — kind of like Instagram or Snapchat Stories but fully web-based and discoverable on Google Search and Discover.

Steps to Get Your Web Stories Showing on Google #

1. Create Your Web Story
   
   • Use no-code Story editor tools like Google Web Stories plugin (for WordPress), MakeStories, or others.
     
   • Or build manually using AMP story format if you have developer support.
     
   • Make sure your story follows Best Practices for Creating Web Stories.
     
2. Validate Your Web Story as Valid AMP
   
   • Use the Web Stories Google Test Tool to confirm your story meets AMP specs.
     
   • Use Chrome DevTools to preview responsiveness and experience on different devices.
     
   • Optional: Use AMP Linter in development for command line validation.
     
3. Verify Metadata
   Your Web Story must include required metadata to appear in Google previews:
   
   • publisher-logo-src (your logo)
     
   • poster-portrait-src (story cover image)
     
   • title
     
   • publisher (name of your site or brand)
     
4. Use the Google Test Tool to confirm metadata is correct.
   
5. Check Indexing Status
   
   • Use Google Search Console’s URL Inspection Tool to check if your Web Story is indexed.
     
   • If not indexed:
     
     • Link to your Web Story from your website.
       
     • Add your Web Story URLs to your sitemap.
       
     • Make sure the Web Story URL is canonical to itself (<link rel=”canonical” href=”your-story-url” />).
       
     • For multiple languages, implement hreflang tags to indicate localized versions.
       
     • Ensure URLs are not blocked by robots.txt or noindex meta tags.
       
6. Follow Web Story Content Policies
   
   • Avoid restricted content to stay eligible for appearance in Google Discover and Search.
     

Where Can Web Stories Appear? #

• Google Search: As single, tappable story results in all regions and languages.
  
• Google Discover: Especially in the US, India, Brazil — shown as tappable story cards.
  

Bonus Tips #

• Use engaging visuals and concise text to keep users tapping through.
  
• Ensure fast load time — AMP stories load quickly by design.
  
• Monitor performance and indexing in Google Search Console regularly.

Best Practices for Creating Web Stories #

Storytelling: Keep Your Audience Hooked #

• Video first: Use video as much as possible. It’s more engaging than text or images. Use images and text to support video, not replace it.
  
• Short & sweet: Avoid long text blocks. Keep text concise to maintain flow and interest.
  

Design: Make It Beautiful & Readable #

• Reduce text: Limit text to about 280 characters per page (like a tweet).
  
• Avoid blocking text: Don’t put text behind other content or use burned-in text. Burned-in text can get cut off or unreadable on different devices.
  
• Keep text visible: Make sure all text fits within the viewport on all devices (no overflow).
  
• Use animations carefully: Animations should enhance the story but avoid distracting or repetitive ones that cause fatigue.

SEO: Help Google Find & Show Your Story #

• High-quality content: Make your story useful, interesting, and complete to engage readers fully.
  
• Short titles: Keep titles under 70 characters (max 90 chars). Clear and descriptive wins.
  
• Indexing:
  
  • Don’t use noindex tag; this blocks Google from indexing your story.
    
  • Add Web Stories to your sitemap for easier discovery.
    
  • Ensure each story is self-canonical with <link rel=”canonical” href=”your-story-url” />.
    
  • For multilingual stories, use hreflang tags to specify language versions.
    
• Metadata:
  
  • Include meta title and description tags.
    
  • Use structured data (VideoObject, Article, etc.).
    
  • Implement Open Graph Protocol (OGP) and Twitter Card tags for social sharing.
    

Technical: Make It Work Perfectly #

• Valid AMP: Your Web Story must be a valid AMP page. Use the AMP Validator and fix any errors.
  
• No text in poster image: The poster image (preview thumbnail) shouldn’t have burned-in text that could hide your story’s title.
  
• Poster image specs:
  
  • Minimum size: 640 x 853 px (aspect ratio 3:4).
    
• Logo specs:
  
  • Minimum size: 96 x 96 px (aspect ratio 1:1).
    
• Accessibility: Follow accessibility tips so everyone can enjoy your story.

Web Story Content Policies on Google #

1. Copyrighted Content #

• Only use original content or content you have explicit permission to use.
  
• No copyright infringement allowed.
  
• Google may block Web Stories that violate copyrights.
  
• You are responsible for securing rights; Google doesn’t handle this for you.
  

2. Text-Heavy Web Stories

• Avoid stories with mostly text.
  
• Pages with more than 180 characters of text risk being disqualified.
  
• Use short, bite-sized videos (under 60 seconds per page) wherever possible.

3. Low-Quality Assets #

• Don’t use pixelated or stretched images/videos.
  
• Visual quality must not negatively impact viewer experience.

4. Lack of Narrative #

• Each Web Story should have a clear, cohesive theme or narrative connecting all pages.
  
• No random or disconnected content slides.

5. Incomplete Stories #

• Stories must be complete on their own.
  
• Don’t force users to click external links or apps to get essential information.

6. Overly Commercial Content #

• Stories primarily aimed at advertising products or services are not allowed.
  
• Affiliate links are allowed but should only be a small part of the story.
  
• Display ads can be included if they follow Google’s Story Ad Guidelines.
  
• Avoid spammy or aggressive marketing content.

Bottom line: Your Web Story should offer original, high-quality, engaging, and complete content — not just ads or heavy text — to get the best visibility on Google.