Featured Snippet Types: Complete Guide

Featured Snippet Types: Complete Guide to Every Google Snippet Format

TL;DR: Google displays four types of featured snippets: paragraph (70%), list (20%), table (8%), and video (2%). Each type requires different content formatting. The snippet type Google shows depends on the query intent — match your content format to the snippet type for your target query.

What Are the Four Main Featured Snippet Types?

Google’s featured snippets come in four distinct formats, each designed to answer different types of queries in the most useful way. As we discuss in Core Web Vitals Explained: LCP, INP, and CLS for SEO in 2026, this is a critical factor.

Understanding these types matters because you can’t win a list snippet with paragraph content, or a table snippet with a text block. You need to match your content format to the snippet type Google already displays (or would logically display) for your target query.

The four types differ in structure, content requirements, and optimization approach. Let’s examine each in detail.

What Are Paragraph Snippets?

Paragraph snippets are the most common type, making up approximately 70% of all featured snippets. They display a text block of 40-60 words directly answering the query.

Paragraph snippets appear for definitional queries (“What is blockchain?”), explanatory queries (“Why do leaves change color?”), and descriptive queries (“How does compound interest work?”). They answer questions that require a cohesive, prose-style response.

What Google looks for in paragraph snippet content:

• A clear, direct answer in the first 1-2 sentences after a relevant heading
• The answer should be self-contained — make sense without additional context
• Optimal length: 40-60 words (Google’s preferred extraction window)
• Natural inclusion of the query keywords
• Authoritative, factual tone

Optimization template:

## What Is [Topic]?

[Topic] is [clear, complete definition in one sentence]. [Second sentence
expanding with key detail or context]. [Optional third sentence with specific
example or data point].

[Additional paragraphs with comprehensive detail follow below]

Real example that wins:

## What Is Domain Authority?

Domain Authority (DA) is a search engine ranking score developed by Moz that
predicts how likely a website is to rank in search engine results. DA scores
range from 1 to 100, with higher scores corresponding to greater ranking
ability. It's calculated based on linking root domains, total number of links,
and other factors.

This works because it defines the term, explains the scale, and mentions what affects it — all in about 55 words.

What Are List Snippets?

List snippets make up about 20% of featured snippets and come in two sub-types: numbered (ordered) lists and bulleted (unordered) lists.

Numbered list snippets appear for sequential, step-by-step content: “How to change a tire,” “Steps to open a business,” “How to make sourdough bread.” The order of items matters — it’s a process.

Bulleted list snippets appear for non-sequential collections: “Types of cloud computing,” “Benefits of meditation,” “Best practices for remote work.” The items are parallel but not sequential. If you want to go deeper, Core Web Vitals for SEO and GEO (2026) breaks this down step by step.

Google extracts list snippets from two content patterns.

Pattern 1: HTML lists. If your page contains <ol> or <ul> elements immediately after a relevant heading, Google can extract them directly.

<h2>How to Start a Podcast</h2>
<ol>
  <li>Choose your podcast topic and format</li>
  <li>Select recording equipment and software</li>
  <li>Plan your first 5 episodes</li>
  <li>Record and edit your pilot episode</li>
  <li>Choose a podcast hosting platform</li>
  <li>Submit to Apple Podcasts and Spotify</li>
  <li>Launch and promote your first episodes</li>
</ol>

Pattern 2: H3 subheadings. Google can construct a list snippet from sequential H3 headings under an H2.

## How to Start a Podcast

### 1. Choose Your Topic and Format
Select a niche topic you're passionate about...

### 2. Select Recording Equipment
You'll need a quality USB microphone...

### 3. Plan Your First Episodes
Outline 5 episodes before recording...

List snippet optimization tips:

• Include 5-10 items (Google usually shows 5-8)
• Keep item text concise (8-15 words per item)
• Use parallel structure across items
• If your list has more items than competitors’ snippets, Google may prefer your more comprehensive list
• Start list items with action verbs for how-to content

What Are Table Snippets?

Table snippets account for approximately 8% of featured snippets. They display data in a structured grid format and appear for comparison queries, pricing queries, specification queries, and data lookup queries.

Google extracts table snippets from HTML <table> elements on your page. This means your content must use actual table markup — not just visually aligned text.

Queries that trigger table snippets:

• “iPhone 15 vs Samsung S24 specs”
• “Average rent by city 2026”
• “Social media image sizes”
• “Protein content in common foods”

Effective table structure:

<h2>Social Media Image Sizes in 2026</h2>
<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Platform</th>
      <th>Profile Photo</th>
      <th>Cover Photo</th>
      <th>Post Image</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Facebook</td>
      <td>170 × 170 px</td>
      <td>820 × 312 px</td>
      <td>1200 × 630 px</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Instagram</td>
      <td>110 × 110 px</td>
      <td>N/A</td>
      <td>1080 × 1080 px</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>LinkedIn</td>
      <td>400 × 400 px</td>
      <td>1584 × 396 px</td>
      <td>1200 × 627 px</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

Table snippet optimization tips:

• Use clear, descriptive column headers
• Include <thead> and <tbody> for proper semantic markup
• Keep cell content concise (1-5 words)
• 3-8 rows is optimal (Google truncates larger tables)
• Place the table immediately after the relevant H2 heading
• Include a caption or intro paragraph explaining the table’s content

Table snippets are particularly valuable because they also perform well with AI search engines. Tabular data is easy for AI to parse and cite accurately.

What Are Video Snippets?

Video featured snippets are the rarest type (~2%) and display a YouTube video with a suggested timestamp for the relevant answer section. (We explore this further in Why Every Page Needs an FAQ Section for GEO.)

Video snippets appear for queries where a visual demonstration is more helpful than text: “how to tie a bow tie,” “yoga sun salutation tutorial,” “how to parallel park.”

How Google selects video snippets:

• The video must be on YouTube (Google rarely selects other video hosts)
• The video should have chapters/timestamps that mark relevant sections
• Video title and description should match the query
• The video transcript (auto-generated or uploaded) must contain relevant content

Video snippet optimization:

• Add timestamp chapters to your YouTube video description
• Include the target question in your video title
• Upload a proper transcript rather than relying on auto-captions
• Create a dedicated blog post embedding the video with text content for both text and video snippet opportunities

Video snippets are a niche opportunity. Focus on them if you already have a YouTube channel; don’t create videos solely for snippet opportunities.

How Do You Know Which Snippet Type to Target?

The simplest approach: search for your target query and see what snippet format Google currently shows.

If Google shows a paragraph snippet, optimize your content with a concise paragraph answer. If it shows a list, create list content. If it shows a table, add a table. If no snippet appears, evaluate the query type to predict which format Google would display.

Query-to-snippet mapping:

When the current snippet type seems mismatched to the query (e.g., a paragraph snippet for a clearly step-by-step query), this is an opportunity. Create content in the more appropriate format, and Google may switch to your better-formatted answer.

Can You Win Multiple Snippet Types for One Topic?

Yes, and this is a powerful strategy. A comprehensive article can win featured snippets across many related queries, each in the appropriate format. This relates closely to what we cover in Internal Linking for SEO and AI Visibility.

For example, an article about “Home Solar Panels” could win:

• Paragraph snippet for “What are solar panels made of?”
• Table snippet for “Solar panel cost by type”
• List snippet for “Steps to install solar panels”
• Paragraph snippet for “Are solar panels worth it?”

Each H2 section targets a different query and uses the appropriate format. The article’s comprehensiveness signals authority, which helps it win across multiple queries.

Implementation strategy:

1. Research all snippet opportunities around your core topic (20-30 queries)
2. Group by snippet type
3. Create one comprehensive article with sections formatted for each query’s snippet type
4. Use question-style H2 headings that match the target queries

This approach is more effective than creating separate pages for each snippet opportunity because the comprehensive page builds stronger topical authority.

What’s the Connection Between Snippet Types and AI Search?

Each featured snippet type has a corresponding AI citation pattern.

Paragraph snippets → AI text citations. Content that wins paragraph snippets uses the same concise, direct answer format that AI engines prefer. The 40-60 word answer block is ideal for AI extraction.

List snippets → AI step citations. AI engines frequently cite step-by-step content, extracting ordered lists to answer “how to” queries. List-formatted content is easy for AI to parse and present.

Table snippets → AI data citations. AI engines excel at citing tabular data because it’s structured and unambiguous. Tables are cited at higher rates than running text for comparison queries. For more on this, see our guide to People Also Ask: Dominate PAA Boxes (2026).

Video snippets → AI video references. As AI assistants add multimedia capabilities, video content cited in traditional search is increasingly referenced in AI responses as well.

The overlap means that optimizing for specific snippet types simultaneously optimizes for AI citation of the same content format. One optimization effort, two visibility channels.

How Do You Track Snippet Performance by Type?

Different tracking approaches work for different snippet types.

For paragraph and list snippets: SEMrush and Ahrefs both track featured snippet positions and identify the snippet type. Set up position tracking with SERP feature filters to monitor your snippet wins by type. Our Link Building in 2026: SEO & AI Strategies guide covers this in detail.

For table snippets: Most SEO tools track these alongside other snippet types. Manual verification is occasionally needed because some tools don’t distinguish table snippets from paragraph snippets.

For video snippets: Track in YouTube Analytics (impressions from Google Search) and in your SEO tool’s SERP feature tracking.

Key tracking metrics:

• Total snippets held by type
• Snippets gained/lost this month by type
• Snippet CTR by type (approximated through Search Console data)
• Competitor snippet share by type

Review monthly. If you’re winning paragraph snippets but losing list snippets, your list formatting may need work. If you’re not winning any table snippets, check whether your tables use proper HTML markup.

Key Takeaways

1. Four snippet types: paragraph (70%), list (20%), table (8%), video (2%) — each requires specific formatting
2. Match your content format to the snippet type Google shows for your target query
3. Paragraph snippets need 40-60 word direct answers; lists need HTML ol/ul; tables need HTML table markup
4. One comprehensive article can target multiple snippet types across related queries
5. Each snippet type corresponds to an AI citation pattern — optimize once for both channels
6. Track snippet performance by type monthly to identify which formats need improvement

-audit-checklist)

• How Do AI Search Engines Decide What to Cite?