WebSite and SearchAction Markup After November 2024

The sitelinks search box is gone

Google announced in October 2024 that it would remove the sitelinks search box, the search field that could appear under a site's main result. Google said it would remove the feature "starting Nov 21, 2024", that the markup "doesn't need to be removed, but won't be used by Google", and that the change "doesn't affect rankings or other sitelinks." On November 29, 2024, Google's updates log recorded that the feature "is no longer available in Google Search results."

Many casino and sportsbook templates still carry SearchAction markup from that era. It is harmless and unused. Our workbench marks it with a note, not a warning.

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "WebSite",
  "name": "Northwake",
  "url": "https://northwake.example/",
  "potentialAction": {
    "@type": "SearchAction",
    "target": {
      "@type": "EntryPoint",
      "urlTemplate": "https://northwake.example/search?q={query}"
    },
    "query-input": "required name=query"
  }
}

What WebSite markup still does

Google's site names documentation says: "To indicate your site name preference, add WebSite structured data to your home page." Two properties are required: name, "The name of the website", and url, "The URL of the home page of the site", which should be the canonical home page. alternateName is optional: "Providing an alternative name using the alternateName property allows Google to consider other options." You can list several, in order of preference.

Placement is strict: "The WebSite structured data must be on the home page of the site." Subpages do not need it. Google also considers other content on the home page, so the visible brand name should match.

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "WebSite",
  "@id": "https://ledgerlane.example/#website",
  "name": "Ledger Lane Reviews",
  "alternateName": [
    "Ledger Lane",
    "LLR"
  ],
  "url": "https://ledgerlane.example/"
}

Domains, subdomains and folders

Site names "can appear for domain-level and subdomain-level sites", but Google "does not support site names at the subdirectory level." For gambling brands that matters with market editions: on.brand.example can have its own site name, while brand.example/on/ shares the main site's name.

What to do with SearchAction now

• Leave it if removing it means touching many templates for no gain. Google said it is not used.
• Remove it during the next template cleanup, so that markup describes only what matters.
• Do not add it to new sites for Google's sake.
• Keep your on-site search working and accessible; that serves readers whatever search engines do.

Sources

How SchemaReel chooses, reads and dates its sources is set out on the data sources page.

1. Google Search Central, Provide a site name to Google Search, last updated December 10, 2025.
2. Google Search Central, Latest Google Search documentation updates, entry of November 29, 2024.
3. Search Engine Journal, Google removes sitelinks search box documentation, reporting Google's statements, read October 26, 2026.
4. Google Search Central blog, Farewell, Sitelinks Search Box, October 2024.