YMYL: when Google holds you to higher standards
type: NewsArticle
description: This article provides a comprehensive technical framework for identifying and classifying "Your Money or Your Life" (YMYL) content on websites, which Google holds to higher quality standards due to its potential impact on users' health, finances, safety, or well-being. It serves as both an installation manual and audit reference, detailing the specific categories Google considers YMYL, the required author and reviewer credentials, and the structural code requirements needed to achieve compliance. The framework includes client variables for business classification, content inventory, and regulatory compliance posture, with implementation guidance for various web development stacks.
date published: 2026-05-24T01:03:53+00:00
date modified: 2026-05-24T01:32:03+00:00
language: en
is accessible for free: true
article body: Originally published atPart of ThatDevPro's open SEO + AI framework library.[thatdevpro.com].[ThatDevPro]is an SDVOSB-certified veteran-owned web + AI engineering studio. Open-source AI citation toolkit:[github.com/Janady13/aio-surfaces]. **Your Money or Your Life — Content Sensitivity Classification & High-Stakes Quality Standards** A comprehensive installation and audit reference for identifying YMYL content on a website, applying the elevated quality standards Google requires for it, and protecting both users and the business from the legal, regulatory, and ranking consequences of YMYL violations. This document is dual-purpose: installation manual and audit document. Cross-stack implementation note: the code samples in this framework are written in plain HTML for clarity. For React, Vue, Svelte, Next.js, Nuxt, SvelteKit, Astro, Hugo, 11ty, Remix, WordPress, Shopify, and Webflow equivalents of every pattern below, see[. For pure client-rendered SPAs (no SSR/SSG) see]`framework-cross-stack-implementation.md` [. For Tailwind-specific concerns (purge, dynamic classes, dark-mode CLS, focus accessibility) see]`framework-react.md` [.]`framework-tailwind.md` ## 1. Document Purpose & How to Use This Document ### 1.1 What This Document Is This is the canonical reference for classifying website content under Google's YMYL framework and implementing the elevated quality standards YMYL content requires. Every category Google considers YMYL is documented here. Every signal Google's Search Quality Raters look for in YMYL content is specified. Every code block, schema, and structural requirement needed to meet the YMYL bar is included. ### 1.2 Three Operating Modes **Mode A — Install Mode**: Building YMYL-compliant infrastructure into a new or existing site. Follow Sections 2 → 17 in order. **Mode B — Audit Mode**: Evaluating an existing site for YMYL classification and compliance. Skip to Section 12. **Mode C — Hybrid Mode**: Audit then install for failing items. ### 1.3 How Cl…
publisher: Web Pulse
keywords: developer-tools
mentions: Google
mentions: ThatDevPro
citation: CreativeWork