Google’s legacy structured data testing tool is now gone

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Google replaced it with a navigational page to direct you to the Google rich results tool or Schema.org tool.

The Schema.org tool. In May 2021, Schema.org published its own schema markup validator tool at validator.schema.org. This was the replacement for Google’s legacy structured data testing tool. The markup validator helps you validate the structured data on your site that is used for general purposes, outside of the Google rich results testing tool.

Why Google made the change. Google initially launched its structured data testing tool in 2015 and then, in 2017, the company launched the rich results testing tool. In July 2020 Google moved the rich results testing tool out of beta and with that announcement, the company said it would deprecate its structured data testing tool.

After backlash from the industry, Google decided to move the structured data testing tool from Google’s property to Schema.org. Then in May 2021, Schema.org published its very own tool. Today, Google replaced its own tool with this new landing page.

Variations between Google and Schema.org. Google’s rich results testing tool is designed to show you only the Google-supported structured data schema. But the Schema.org markup validator is more for “general purpose” and aimed at helping you debug many more structured data types, well beyond the Google supported ones. The Schema.org tool is designed to validate all Schema.org-based structured data that’s embedded in web pages, without Google feature-specific warnings.

Why we care. In case you are wondering where the old Google structured data testing tool went, now you know. You can now use Schema.org to test generic structured data or Google’s rich results tool to test Google-supported structured data. Of course, Google Search Console has tons of reporting for your structured data as well.