How Long Should Your Website Content Be for SEO and AEO?

One of the most common questions we get asked is: How long should my blog article be for SEO?

• The short answer: It depends.
• The long answer: It depends on the topic, your audience, and where you want your content to appear (search engines or answer engines).

It’s tempting to chase word counts. You’ve probably seen businesses pushing 2,000+ word articles, believing that longer equals better. That strategy may have worked in the early days of SEO. However, we’re now operating in a new era where Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is reshaping how content is discovered and consumed.

Let’s break down how word count impacts both engagement and searchability, and what that means for your content marketing strategy.

The Role of Content Length and Engagement Rate

In our internal analysis of 100 blog articles, we found that content between 600 and 900 words consistently achieved the highest average engagement time. That sweet spot seems to offer the right balance: long enough to deliver meaningful value but short enough to capture the reader’s attention. It might also help that shorter articles are easier to skim and determine whether an article is worth the time.

In the same analysis, we found that articles under 500 words may be too thin, leaving readers with more questions than answers. In comparison, articles over 1,200 words had higher bounce rates, even when broken up with images and visuals.

So what does this all mean for your articles?

1. Target 600 – 900 words:

• Great for storytelling and keeping readers engaged.
• Allows room to explain without rambling.
• It’s ideal for modern audiences who expect clarity, speed, and authority.

2. Short Articles That Don’t Rank (Well) Can Still Drive Traffic

In traditional SEO, short articles (anything under 300 words) typically underperform. Why?

1. Lack of Depth: Search engines look for comprehensive answers. Thin content often lacks the substance needed to satisfy search intent.
2. Spam Risk: Short content with poor structure and few keywords can be flagged as low quality.
3. Poor Indexing: Because of the previous two points, these articles may never be crawled or indexed properly, especially if your site has technical issues.

That said, AEO introduces a nuance. Sometimes, short-form content can be surfaced by answer engines (such as ChatGPT or Perplexity) when it’s precise, authoritative, and relevant. That’s impressive and really challenges SEO/AEO professionals to publish content of varying lengths.

3. Higher Engagement Time Plays a Critical Role Important in Ranking

Average engagement time and conversions go hand in hand for search engines. A user who stays on your site for 30+ seconds is far more likely to convert than one who leaves after 5 seconds. Search engines understand this concept well and reward websites that do so effectively with higher rankings. Therefore, a strong content marketing strategy should maximize engagement time.

A Few Guiding Principles for Content Development

1. Always Publish Content That Meets Your Customer’s Expectations

Search and answer engines all say the same thing: publish website content that’s designed for your customers, not for search engines. So when publishing content, keep the following in mind:

• If customers want a direct answer to their question, get it found through AEO.
• If customers want a quick overview of a complex topic, optimize your content to appear as an AI Snippet.
• If customers want reasons to trust your brand, focus on  SEO and social proofing.

In addition, age is a significant factor in content strategy. Studies have shown that users of answer engines like Copilot are 34% more likely to be ages 16 – 24, while search engine users are more likely to be older. The key is to keep all relevant factors that impact your customer expectations at the forefront when developing content. 

2. The Common Goal of SEO and AEO? Deliver Structured Value

Whether you’re optimizing for search engines or answer engines, your end goal should be the same: deliver meaningful, well-structured content to customers. That means:

• PageSpeed: Optimize for speed because slow sites are penalized in search rankings.
• Technical SEO: Confirm indexing, no duplicate content, and proper canonicalization.
• Schema Markup: Implement schemas to help crawlers better understand your content.
• Authority and Trust: Find quality backlinks and consistently publish reliable, helpful content.

When you get these right, you’ll definitely improve your content’s search and answer engine rankings.

3. Don’t Forget About Bing (Yes, Really)!

Companies that take SEO and AEO seriously don’t overlook Bing, because answer engines like ChatGPT generate responses from Bing’s search index. And if your content isn’t indexed on Bing, you’re missing a significant marketing channel with over 1 billion users (Bing, Copilot, LinkedIn, and video games).

Here’s how to fix that:

• Set up Bing Webmaster Tools (it’s free).
• Submit your sitemap and fix any indexing errors.
• Scan your sitemap and review recommendations.

Even with a greater emphasis on Bing, you should still use Google Search Console. Just ensure you optimize both as part of your overall SEO and AEO strategy.

The Bottom Line

There is no magic word count that guarantees SEO or AEO success. But if you want a rule of thumb, 600 to 900 words is generally the most effective range for engagement, clarity, and conversion. Write with intent. Structure your content to answer, not just explain. And make sure your site is technically optimized to support your strategy.

Need help building content that performs across both SEO and AEO?

As a Columbus marketing agency, we specialize in data-driven content marketing strategies built for the future of search! Contact us today for a free consultation around SEO, AEO, web design, and more!