Definition

E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness — the quality framework Google uses to assess content, and a strong proxy for what makes AI engines trust and cite a source.

E-E-A-T — Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness — is the framework from Google's Search Quality Rater Guidelines for judging content quality. It is not a single score but a lens, and it maps closely to what makes AI engines treat a source as credible.

The four signals

  • Experience — first-hand, lived knowledge of the topic
  • Expertise — demonstrable skill or qualification
  • Authoritativeness — recognition as a go-to source by others
  • Trustworthiness — accuracy, transparency, safety (the most important)

How to demonstrate it

Named authors with real bios, cited sources and dates, transparent methodology, consistent entity signals. These same markers raise the odds of an LLM citation.

Frequently asked questions

Is E-E-A-T a ranking factor?

It is not a single direct ranking signal but a framework Google’s systems and raters use to assess quality. Strong E-E-A-T correlates with both better rankings and a higher chance of being cited by AI.

What does the extra E in E-E-A-T mean?

Google added Experience in late 2022 to the original E-A-T, emphasizing first-hand, lived knowledge of a topic alongside formal expertise.