YMYL pages are pages that can directly impact a person’s health, financial stability, safety, or overall wellbeing. The term stands for Your Money or Your Life and covers content where accuracy and trust are critical. Examples include medical advice, financial guidance, legal information, and pages that influence major life decisions.
Because YMYL pages can affect real world outcomes, search engines apply stricter quality evaluation standards. Content must be accurate, well sourced, and presented responsibly. Poor information on these pages can cause harm, which is why quality expectations are higher than for general informational content.
YMYL classification is intent based rather than industry limited. Any page that influences important decisions or personal outcomes can fall into this category regardless of niche or format.
Advanced
YMYL pages are evaluated using elevated trust and quality signals. These include author credibility, content accuracy, transparency, and consistency across the site. Search systems assess whether content demonstrates expertise and whether users can reasonably rely on it.
Advanced optimisation focuses on governance rather than tactics. Clear authorship, up to date information, citations, and strong site level trust signals are essential. Weak or misleading content on YMYL pages can suppress visibility across broader sections of a site.
Relevance
- Requires higher quality and trust standards.
- Influences ranking sensitivity and stability.
- Increases scrutiny during algorithm updates.
- Impacts user safety and confidence.
- Shapes compliance and content governance.
Applications
- Health and medical information pages.
- Financial advice and investment content.
- Legal guidance and rights information.
- Ecommerce checkout and payment pages.
- News covering major life events.
Metrics
- Ranking stability for sensitive queries.
- Engagement and trust indicators.
- Content freshness and update frequency.
- Visibility changes after updates.
- User satisfaction signals.
Issues
- Inaccurate information causes harm.
- Weak credibility reduces visibility.
- Outdated content increases risk.
- Poor transparency damages trust.
- Site wide impact from low quality pages.
Example
A financial advice site improved author transparency, updated outdated articles, and added clear disclaimers. Rankings stabilised for sensitive queries and user engagement increased due to improved trust signals.