The question is not whether HowTo rich results still exist. The question is whether any non-obvious content vertical still earns them after Google’s staged deprecation through 2023. As of September 2023, Google removed HowTo rich results from both mobile and desktop SERPs, effectively deprecating the format across all device types. The answer, based on current observable SERP data, is that HowTo rich results have been functionally eliminated for all verticals. The few remaining edge cases are so sporadic and inconsistent that building an optimization strategy around them carries more risk than reward.
The Current HowTo Rich Result Display Landscape Beyond Recipes and DIY
Google’s HowTo rich result deprecation followed a two-stage process. The first stage, announced in August 2023, removed HowTo rich results from mobile search results. Given that mobile accounts for roughly 60% of all Google searches, this stage alone eliminated the majority of HowTo visibility.
The second stage removed HowTo rich results from desktop search results in September 2023. Google’s official documentation was updated to reflect this change, though the HowTo structured data documentation itself was not removed from the developer site.
Observable SERP data through 2024 and 2025 confirms that HowTo rich results no longer appear with meaningful frequency on any device type, in any vertical. Sporadic appearances have been documented in SERP monitoring tools, but these occur at rates below 0.1% of queries that previously triggered HowTo rich results. These appearances are likely artifacts of Google’s display systems rather than intentional rich result generation.
The verticals that previously generated the most consistent HowTo rich results, including software tutorials, financial procedures, administrative processes, and professional skill demonstrations, all lost HowTo visibility during the deprecation. No content vertical has been identified as retaining consistent HowTo rich result treatment after the full deprecation.
Position confidence: Confirmed. Google’s Search Central blog explicitly documented the HowTo rich result removal for both mobile and desktop.
Content Characteristics That Distinguished HowTo-Eligible Verticals
Before the deprecation, verticals that generated HowTo rich results most reliably shared specific content characteristics. Understanding these characteristics remains relevant for two reasons: they indicate what content benefits from step-by-step structured data formatting regardless of schema markup, and they may predict which content types benefit if Google reverses the deprecation.
Genuinely sequential processes with clear step ordering produced the most reliable HowTo display. Content describing processes where steps must be completed in a specific order (installing software, filing a tax return, assembling a product) outperformed content where steps were interchangeable or optional.
Discrete measurable steps with concrete completion criteria triggered display more consistently than vague or open-ended instructions. A step like “Click the Settings icon in the top right corner” produced better results than “Configure your preferences.”
Defined completion criteria signaled to Google that the content represented a finite process rather than an ongoing activity. Content describing how to accomplish a specific, bounded task (set up a home Wi-Fi network) generated HowTo rich results more reliably than content describing ongoing practices (improve your photography skills).
These content characteristics remain valuable for content structuring purposes even without HowTo rich results. Step-by-step content with discrete actions and clear outcomes performs well for featured snippet capture, PAA source selection, and AI Overview citation.
Mobile Versus Desktop Display Differences for HowTo Rich Results
The staged deprecation of HowTo rich results created a brief window in August-September 2023 where HowTo rich results appeared on desktop but not mobile. This window provided data on device-specific display behavior that informs understanding of how Google manages SERP feature rollouts.
During the mobile-only removal period, desktop HowTo rich results continued displaying with the expandable step carousel format, where users could click to expand individual steps within the SERP. This format was one of the most visually prominent organic listing enhancements available, occupying 2-4x the vertical space of a standard organic result.
The subsequent desktop removal eliminated this advantage entirely. No device type currently generates HowTo rich results with the expandable carousel format.
The lesson from the staged deprecation is that Google tests SERP feature changes on mobile first, likely because mobile’s higher search volume provides faster data collection for evaluating the impact on user behavior metrics. When a SERP feature is removed from mobile, desktop removal typically follows within weeks to months. This pattern should inform risk assessment for any SERP feature that shows signs of mobile reduction.
Implementation Requirements for HowTo Schema in Non-Standard Verticals
Despite the current lack of visible rich results, the HowTo structured data documentation remains active on Google’s developer site. This means Google continues parsing HowTo schema even if it does not display rich results from it.
For sites that choose to retain or implement HowTo schema for potential indirect benefits (entity understanding, AI citation, future feature restoration), the implementation requirements are specific.
Each step requires a HowToStep entity with a name (short step title), text (detailed instruction), and optionally image or video for visual steps. Steps must be ordered in a meaningful sequence using an array structure that preserves step order.
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "HowTo",
"name": "How to Configure DNS Settings",
"totalTime": "PT15M",
"step": [
{
"@type": "HowToStep",
"name": "Log into your domain registrar",
"text": "Navigate to your domain registrar's control panel and sign in with your account credentials."
},
{
"@type": "HowToStep",
"name": "Locate DNS management",
"text": "Find the DNS management or nameserver settings section, typically under domain settings or advanced settings."
}
]
}The totalTime property (in ISO 8601 duration format) and tool or supply properties add specificity that historically improved display probability. Whether these properties influence non-display benefits is unknown, but including them when accurate costs nothing and maintains complete schema implementation.
The Risk of Investing in HowTo for Verticals on Google’s Reduction Trajectory
Google’s deprecation of HowTo rich results follows the same pattern as FAQ rich results: initial introduction with broad eligibility, widespread adoption, growing misuse, progressive restriction, and eventual elimination or near-elimination.
This pattern suggests that investing significant resources in HowTo schema optimization carries high obsolescence risk. The schema type is not formally deprecated (documentation exists), but the primary value proposition, visible SERP enhancement, has been eliminated.
The risk assessment framework for HowTo investment weighs three factors. Current value is near zero for visible rich results. Future restoration probability is low given that Google’s trajectory has been toward reduction, not expansion, of SERP feature types. Indirect benefit potential is uncertain but theoretically possible through entity understanding and AI citation pathways.
For sites where HowTo schema can be generated automatically through CMS templates at near-zero marginal cost, retaining the schema is a low-risk bet on future value. For sites that would need to invest engineering resources in new HowTo implementation, the expected return does not justify the investment under current conditions.
The safer investment for instructional content is ensuring the step-by-step content structure is clear in the HTML heading hierarchy and content organization, independent of schema markup. This structural clarity improves featured snippet eligibility, passage extraction quality, and AI Overview citation rates through content quality signals rather than through a SERP feature type that Google has effectively deprecated.
Does Google still parse HowTo schema even though rich results are deprecated?
Google continues to parse and validate HowTo structured data. The documentation remains active on Search Central, and Search Console’s enhancement reports still flag HowTo markup errors. Parsing confirms Google processes the data for potential non-display purposes such as entity understanding and content structure analysis. Parsing does not guarantee any ranking benefit, but it confirms the markup is not ignored entirely by Google’s systems.
Could HowTo rich results return in a limited form for specific verticals?
Google has not signaled any intent to restore HowTo rich results. The deprecation followed the same trajectory as FAQ rich results: broad adoption, misuse escalation, and full removal. Historically, Google has not reversed SERP feature deprecations once completed across both device types. Planning around a potential restoration is speculative and should not drive current resource allocation decisions.
Should sites remove existing HowTo schema or leave it in place after the deprecation?
Sites with template-generated HowTo schema at near-zero maintenance cost should retain it. The markup costs nothing to keep and preserves optionality for future AI search features that may leverage step-by-step structured data. Sites paying meaningful maintenance costs for manual HowTo implementation should remove it and redirect engineering capacity toward schema types with active rich result generation, such as Product or Video schema.
