Why does Google prefer JSON-LD over Microdata?

JSON-LD doesn't pollute the rendered HTML, is easier to template and maintain, scales to multiple entities per page via @graph, and is less likely to conflict with other code on the page.

Can I have multiple JSON-LD blocks on one page?

Yes. Google parses every script tag with type application/ld+json and merges them. Multiple separate blocks are easier to maintain than one giant block.

Does JSON-LD have any impact on page performance?

Negligible. JSON-LD is parsed by the browser but doesn't affect rendering. Modern engines parse it asynchronously.

Should I use @graph or separate blocks?

Separate blocks for unrelated entities. @graph for entities that reference each other (e.g., Article + Author + Publisher all in one block). Both are valid; separate is easier to maintain.

How do I generate JSON-LD?

Manually for one-off cases, programmatically for templated sites. ThatDeveloperGuy's free Schema Markup Generator at /tools/schema-generator/ produces valid JSON-LD for the most common types.

Glossary · Schema + Structured Data

JSON-LD

JSON-LD (JSON for Linked Data) is the W3C standard format for embedding structured data in web pages. JSON-LD uses standard JSON syntax with a `@context` field linking to a schema vocabulary (typically Schema.org). Google explicitly prefers JSON-LD over alternatives like Microdata and RDFa for structured data implementation.

Also called: JSON-LD structured data, JSON Linked Data · Last updated: May 27, 2026 · By Joseph W. Anady

Why it matters.

JSON-LD became a W3C Recommendation in 2014 and Schema.org's preferred format soon after. The advantages over inline alternatives are substantial: JSON-LD lives in a separate `