What is HowTo schema

Full definition

HowTo is a schema.org type that describes a guide with sequential instructions for completing a specific task. Each individual step is marked up using the HowToStep type, which carries three core properties: name (a short title for the step), text (a full description of what to do at that step) and an optional image (a URL pointing to a photograph or diagram of the step).

At the top level, the HowTo type accepts several properties beyond the array of steps: name (the title of the guide), description (a summary of what the guide achieves), totalTime (the estimated total duration in ISO 8601 duration format, for example PT2H30M for two hours and thirty minutes), estimatedCost (a MonetaryAmount object with currency and value), supply (an array of HowToSupply objects listing consumable materials) and tool (an array of HowToTool objects listing required equipment).

Unlike FAQPage, which is designed for question-and-answer content, HowTo is specifically for procedural content: repairs, installations, technical configurations and any process with a defined and ordered sequence of steps. The distinction matters because Google applies different rich-result treatments to each type.

Why it matters in 2026

Google can display HowTo rich results directly on the SERP, showing the steps with associated images. On mobile devices these results are visually prominent and can displace standard organic listings below the fold. For businesses in the trades and home-improvement sector — where users routinely search for installation, repair and maintenance instructions — HowTo is one of the highest-return structured-data types available.

AI systems use HowTo markup to extract and present instructions in structured form. A step defined with HowToStep is far easier for a language model to retrieve, paraphrase and attribute correctly than equivalent instructions embedded in undifferentiated body prose. The markup does not change what users see on your page — it changes how every machine processing that page understands its content.

How to implement

1. Identify the instructional content on the page that describes a process with a defined, ordered sequence of concrete steps.
2. Set the name property of the root HowTo object to the title of the guide as it appears on the page.
3. Add a description property summarising what the procedure achieves and who it is for.
4. Specify the total estimated duration with totalTime using ISO 8601 duration notation: PT followed by hours (H) and minutes (M), for example PT45M for 45 minutes.
5. List any consumable materials in the supply array using HowToSupply objects with a name property for each item.
6. List required tools in the tool array using HowToTool objects with a name property for each tool.
7. Create one HowToStep object per step in the step array, with name (step title) and text (full description). Add an image property if a photograph of that step is available on the page.
8. Validate the complete block using Google's Rich Results Test and confirm all steps are detected without errors.

Example

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "HowTo",
  "name": "How to bleed a radiator",
  "description": "Step-by-step guide to releasing trapped air from a central heating radiator to restore full heat output.",
  "totalTime": "PT15M",
  "estimatedCost": {
    "@type": "MonetaryAmount",
    "currency": "GBP",
    "value": "0"
  },
  "tool": [
    { "@type": "HowToTool", "name": "Radiator bleed key" },
    { "@type": "HowToTool", "name": "Dry cloth or small container" }
  ],
  "step": [
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Turn the heating on",
      "text": "Switch your central heating on and allow it to reach full operating temperature so that all radiators are warm. This pressurises the system and makes it easier to identify which radiators need bleeding."
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Turn the heating off and allow it to cool",
      "text": "Switch the heating off and wait approximately 20 minutes. Never bleed a radiator while the system is hot or under pressure, as water may spray from the bleed valve."
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Locate the bleed valve",
      "text": "The bleed valve is a small square-headed screw located at the top corner of the radiator, usually at one end. Place a cloth or small container beneath it to catch any water."
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Open the bleed valve",
      "text": "Insert the radiator bleed key into the valve and turn it slowly anticlockwise by a quarter to half a turn. You will hear a hissing sound as trapped air escapes. Hold the key in place until water begins to drip steadily from the valve."
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "name": "Close the valve and check boiler pressure",
      "text": "As soon as water flows steadily, turn the key clockwise to close the valve firmly. Check your boiler pressure gauge: if it has dropped below 1 bar, top up the system via the filling loop according to the boiler manufacturer's instructions."
    }
  ]
}

Related terms

Schema markup, FAQPage schema, Organization schema.