Schema & Structured Data
Schema Markup Validator: what it does, what it costs
Validates schema.org markup as markup — without Google's opinions mixed in.
Schema Markup Validator at a glance
Every row is a verified field or an honest absence. A row is dropped rather than filled with an em dash, so the length of this table says how complete the record is.
| What it is | Validates schema.org markup as markup — without Google's opinions mixed in. |
|---|---|
| Category | Schema & Structured Data |
| Best suited for | Verifying schema correctness across any vocabulary type |
| Starting price | Free |
| Free plan | Yes |
| Free trial | None offered |
| Main strength | The authoritative validator for schema.org markup itself |
| Main limitation | Says nothing about Google rich result eligibility — a different question |
| Evidence | Primary-source researched |
| Closest alternatives | Google Rich Results Test, Google Search Console, Screaming Frog SEO Spider |
| Pricing checked | 20 August 2026 |
| Record checked | 20 August 2026 |
What Schema Markup Validator is
This is the tool that answers "is my markup correct" as opposed to "will Google do something with it". It validates any schema.org-based structured data embedded in a page, across all types, and deliberately omits Google-specific feature validation. That omission is the point: it tells you whether you have written valid schema, not whether you have written schema Google happens to use.
The distinction matters because it is the source of most structured data confusion. Google's Rich Results Test only reports on types Google can turn into a rich result, so perfectly valid markup for a type Google ignores appears to fail there — and markup that passes there can still be schema.org-invalid in ways that matter to other consumers. Increasingly those other consumers include AI systems reading your markup to understand your entities, which is a reason this tool has become more relevant rather than less.
Its history explains its name. This is where Google's old Structured Data Testing Tool went: Google removed the Google-specific validation from that tool and migrated it to schema.org's domain as the Schema Markup Validator, while the Google-features testing stayed behind in the Rich Results Test. Anyone looking for the SDTT wants one of those two, and which one depends on the question they are actually asking.
What you can use it for
- Validate schema.org markup of any type for correctness
- Check markup that Google's Rich Results Test does not cover
- Test a code snippet before it ships
- Debug structured data without Google-specific warnings obscuring the result
The features that matter for SEO
Each one says what it does and the SEO job it serves. A vendor feature list without that second half tells you nothing you could not read on their own site.
Validates all schema.org types
Checks any schema.org-based structured data, not only the types a search engine uses.
The only tool that covers the whole vocabulary. If you use a type outside Google's rich result set — and entity markup increasingly means you do — this is where it gets checked.
No Google-specific warnings
Omits Google feature validation from its output.
Keeps the two questions separate. Mixing "invalid schema" with "Google will not show a rich result for this" is how people end up rewriting correct markup.
URL or code snippet input
Accepts a live URL or pasted markup.
Snippet validation lets you check a template during development, which is when a markup error costs nothing to fix.
Run by schema.org itself
Operated by the community project that maintains the vocabulary.
As authoritative as validation gets for the standard itself — this is the specification's own reference implementation rather than a third party's reading of it.
Free with no account
Requires no signup or key.
Removes any reason not to check before shipping.
Pricing and limits
Starting price: Free Checked 20 August 2026 Vendor’s own pricing page
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | Operated by schema.org, the community project behind the vocabulary itself, rather than by a commercial vendor. No paid tier exists.
|
Strengths and limitations
Strengths
- The authoritative validator for schema.org markup itself
- Covers every type, not just search-engine-supported ones
- Free, no account, run by the standard's own project
- Validates pasted code as well as live URLs
- Increasingly relevant as AI systems consume structured data
Limitations
- Says nothing about Google rich result eligibility — a different question
- One page at a time, with no crawling or bulk validation
- No history, monitoring or alerting
- A JavaScript application, so its interface cannot be read by scripts or scrapers
- Valid markup here can still fail to earn anything in search
Who it is for, and who should skip it
Worth it if
- Verifying schema correctness across any vocabulary type
- Debugging markup where Google's warnings are getting in the way
- Entity and knowledge-graph work beyond rich results
Skip it if
- Your question is whether Google will show a rich result
- You need to validate markup site-wide
- You want monitoring rather than a point-in-time check
Alternatives to Schema Markup Validator
Each one answers when it is the better choice, which is the only thing a list of competitors is useful for.
- Google Rich Results Test Choose it when you need to know which Google rich results your markup can generate.
- Google Search Console Choose it when you want site-wide structured data reporting and error monitoring over time.
- Screaming Frog SEO Spider Choose it when you need to extract and validate structured data across thousands of URLs.
Sources and verification
Last verified 20 August 2026 0 days ago
Pricing 20 August 2026 Plans 20 August 2026 Features 20 August 2026
- Schema Markup Validator Official site verifies pricing, plans checked 20 August 2026
- Google Search Central — test your structured data Documentation verifies features checked 20 August 2026
What changed
- 20 August 2026 — Carries "Structured Data Testing Tool" as a former name, with the caveat that the history is a split rather than a rename — Google's feature testing stayed in the Rich Results Test while general validation moved here. Both listings explain the division so the old name resolves correctly either way.
Questions
Is this the same as the old Structured Data Testing Tool?
It is where that tool went. Google removed its Google-specific validation and migrated it to schema.org as the Schema Markup Validator, while Google-features testing continued in the Rich Results Test. So the SDTT effectively split in two, and this is the general-validation half.
Why use this instead of Google's Rich Results Test?
Because they answer different questions. This validates schema.org markup of any type for correctness. The Rich Results Test reports whether Google can generate a rich result. Valid markup for a type Google ignores will look like a failure there and pass here — correctly, in both cases.
Does valid markup mean I will get a rich result?
No. Validity is about the vocabulary, not about search features. For rich results you need Google's required properties for a supported type, which is what the Rich Results Test checks — and even then display remains Google's decision.