Now we know: Here are Google’s top 3 search ranking factors

Wondering what factors help you rank better on Google? For the first time, we have a top three list: links, content and RankBrain.
We knew last year that RankBrain was said by Google to be the third most important ranking factor, but Google refused to say what the first two were. Yesterday, in a Q&A with Google, Andrey Lipattsev, a Search Quality Senior Strategist at Google, said the other two factors were links and content:
I can tell you what they are. It is content. And it’s links pointing to your site.
He wouldn’t say which was more important, so the top three list now looks like this:
1 & 2: Links & Content
3: RankBrain
Of course, Google looks at many other factors, such as those on our Periodic Table Of Ranking Factors. Links, Content and RankBrain themselves each are made up of many subfactors. But these are the overall top three, officially confirmed by Google itself.
Here is the video embed:
Explore more on
Add Search Engine Land as a preferred source on GoogleEditorial disclosure
Search Engine Land is owned by Semrush. We remain committed to providing high-quality coverage of marketing topics. Unless otherwise noted, this page’s content was written by either an employee or a paid contractor of Semrush Inc.