Schema Markup Examples for AEO

Schema markup is the most direct way to communicate your content’s meaning to AI engines. While AI can parse natural language, structured data removes ambiguity and it tells AI exactly what your content is, who created it, and what entities it references. These are the schema types that matter most for AEO, with copy-ready examples.

Why Schema Matters More for AEO Than SEO

For traditional SEO, schema helps with rich snippets and knowledge panels. For AEO, schema is more fundamental. It’s how AI engines build their understanding of your content’s entities, relationships, and trustworthiness. Pages with proper schema are cited 2-3x more often than equivalent content without it.

FAQPage Schema

Best for: Any page with question-and-answer content AEO impact: High - directly matches AI’s Q&A format

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "FAQPage",
  "mainEntity": [
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What is Answer Engine Optimization?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is the practice of optimizing content to be surfaced and cited by AI-powered answer engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "How is AEO different from SEO?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "SEO optimizes for search engine rankings. AEO optimizes for AI citation. SEO focuses on keywords and backlinks; AEO focuses on content structure, authority signals, and answer clarity."
      }
    }
  ]
}

Tips:

• Keep text under 300 characters for optimal extraction
• Question must match the on-page text exactly
• 5-10 questions per FAQPage is ideal
• Don’t use HTML in the text field

Article Schema

Best for: Blog posts, guides, news articles AEO impact: High - establishes content type and author authority

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Article",
  "headline": "The Complete Guide to Answer Engine Optimization",
  "description": "Learn how to optimize your content for AI citation...",
  "image": "https://yoursite.com/images/article-hero.jpg",
  "datePublished": "2026-02-05",
  "dateModified": "2026-02-05",
  "author": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "name": "Author Name",
    "jobTitle": "Head of Content",
    "url": "https://yoursite.com/team/author-name",
    "worksFor": {
      "@type": "Organization",
      "name": "Your Company"
    }
  },
  "publisher": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Your Company",
    "url": "https://yoursite.com",
    "logo": {
      "@type": "ImageObject",
      "url": "https://yoursite.com/logo.png"
    }
  },
  "mainEntityOfPage": "https://yoursite.com/blog/article-slug/"
}

Tips:

• Always include both datePublished and dateModified
• Author Person with jobTitle and worksFor builds EEAT signals
• Use Article for general content, NewsArticle for news, BlogPosting for blogs

Product Schema

Best for: E-commerce product pages AEO impact: Very high - directly cited in product recommendation queries

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Product",
  "name": "Wireless Noise-Cancelling Headphones XR-500",
  "description": "Premium wireless headphones with 40-hour battery life, active noise cancellation, and IPX5 water resistance.",
  "brand": {
    "@type": "Brand",
    "name": "AudioTech"
  },
  "image": [
    "https://yoursite.com/xr-500-front.jpg",
    "https://yoursite.com/xr-500-side.jpg"
  ],
  "sku": "XR500-BLK",
  "offers": {
    "@type": "Offer",
    "price": "79.99",
    "priceCurrency": "USD",
    "availability": "https://schema.org/InStock",
    "priceValidUntil": "2026-12-31",
    "url": "https://yoursite.com/products/xr-500"
  },
  "aggregateRating": {
    "@type": "AggregateRating",
    "ratingValue": "4.6",
    "reviewCount": "284",
    "bestRating": "5"
  },
  "review": [
    {
      "@type": "Review",
      "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alex R." },
      "datePublished": "2026-01-15",
      "reviewRating": {
        "@type": "Rating",
        "ratingValue": "5"
      },
      "reviewBody": "Best noise cancellation I've used at this price point. Battery lasts over 2 days of regular use."
    }
  ]
}

Tips:

• Include aggregateRating - AI heavily weights review data
• sku or gtin helps AI uniquely identify your product
• Keep description factual with specs, not marketing copy
• Update availability and price when they change

HowTo Schema

Best for: Step-by-step guides and tutorials AEO impact: High - matches “how to” query format

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "HowTo",
  "name": "How to Add FAQ Schema to Your Website",
  "description": "A step-by-step guide to implementing FAQ schema markup.",
  "totalTime": "PT15M",
  "step": [
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Identify your FAQ questions",
      "text": "Select 5-10 questions your audience frequently asks. Use Google's People Also Ask, support tickets, and AI engine queries as sources.",
      "url": "https://yoursite.com/guide#step-1"
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Write concise answers",
      "text": "Write a 30-50 word direct answer for each question. The answer should be complete and standalone.",
      "url": "https://yoursite.com/guide#step-2"
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Generate the JSON-LD markup",
      "text": "Create FAQPage JSON-LD using the schema.org FAQPage type. Ensure each question and answer pair is included as a mainEntity.",
      "url": "https://yoursite.com/guide#step-3"
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Add to your page and validate",
      "text": "Add the JSON-LD script to your page's head section. Test with Google's Rich Results Test to confirm proper implementation.",
      "url": "https://yoursite.com/guide#step-4"
    }
  ]
}

Tips:

• Include totalTime - AI uses this in answers
• Each step name should start with an action verb
• text should be a complete instruction, not a fragment

Organization Schema

Best for: About pages, homepage AEO impact: High - establishes entity identity

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Your Company",
  "alternateName": "YourCo",
  "url": "https://yoursite.com",
  "logo": "https://yoursite.com/logo.png",
  "description": "Your Company is a [category] that [what you do] for [who you serve].",
  "foundingDate": "2024",
  "founders": [
    {
      "@type": "Person",
      "name": "Founder Name",
      "jobTitle": "CEO"
    }
  ],
  "sameAs": [
    "https://linkedin.com/company/yourco",
    "https://twitter.com/yourco",
    "https://github.com/yourco"
  ],
  "contactPoint": {
    "@type": "ContactPoint",
    "contactType": "customer service",
    "email": "hello@yoursite.com"
  }
}

Tips:

• sameAs links validate your entity across platforms
• description should be a clear, one-sentence entity definition
• Include founders with credentials for authority
• Add numberOfEmployees if it strengthens trust

BreadcrumbList Schema

Best for: Every page on your site AEO impact: Medium - helps AI understand site hierarchy

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
  "itemListElement": [
    {
      "@type": "ListItem",
      "position": 1,
      "name": "Home",
      "item": "https://yoursite.com"
    },
    {
      "@type": "ListItem",
      "position": 2,
      "name": "Blog",
      "item": "https://yoursite.com/blog/"
    },
    {
      "@type": "ListItem",
      "position": 3,
      "name": "Article Title",
      "item": "https://yoursite.com/blog/article-slug/"
    }
  ]
}

Validation and Testing

After implementing schema:

1. Google Rich Results Test: Paste your URL to verify schema is valid
2. Schema.org Validator: More thorough validation against the full spec
3. Check AI engines directly: Ask ChatGPT/Perplexity about your topic and see if you get cited

How Genrank Helps

Genrank’s Parseability dimension specifically evaluates your schema implementation. The audit identifies missing schema types, incomplete properties, and opportunities to add structured data that would improve your AI citation rate.