Schema.org Validator says green, Google says no — know the difference

Schema.org Validator says green, Google says no — know the difference

The single most common false-confidence error we see: teams validating on the schema.org Validator, seeing zero errors, and assuming eligibility. But schema.org checks spec syntax — Google's Rich Results Test checks Google's eligibility rules, which are stricter and feature-specific. A perfectly valid Course can be spec-clean and still rich-result-ineligible.

What it means for you: run both tools and treat them as different jobs. Schema.org confirms you didn't break the vocabulary; the Rich Results Test confirms Google will actually use it. Passing the first tells you almost nothing about SERP outcomes.

Watch this: the deprecated Structured Data Testing Tool is gone — anyone still bookmarking it is reading rules that no longer exist. Validate against today's two tools, not yesterday's one.