What does the sitelinks search box actually do?

When Google is confident a site has a working internal search feature, it can show a search box directly beneath the homepage's result in search results, letting users search your site without leaving Google first. WebSite JSON-LD with a potentialAction SearchAction is what tells Google that feature exists and how to construct the search URL.

Why does the search URL template need the literal text {search_term_string}?

Google's crawler treats {search_term_string} as a placeholder it substitutes with whatever a user types, so the template has to contain that exact string, e.g. https://example.com/search?q={search_term_string}. If it's missing or misspelled, the SearchAction is invalid and Google simply won't show the search box, even though the rest of the JSON-LD is fine.

Do I need to add this to every page or just the homepage?

Google's documentation says to add WebSite markup with the SearchAction to your site's homepage; it applies to the domain as a whole, not to individual articles or product pages, so one instance on the homepage is what Google looks for.

Can I get a sitelinks search box even without adding this markup?

Sometimes, since Google can infer a working search feature from other signals on large, well-established sites, but adding explicit WebSite/SearchAction JSON-LD is the documented, reliable way to signal it rather than hoping Google infers it. Even with correct markup, Google decides whether to actually display the search box; it isn't guaranteed.

Website Schema Generator - WebSite JSON-LD with Sitelinks Search Box

Overview

Introduction

A sitelinks search box, the little search field Google sometimes shows directly under a homepage result, is driven by a single piece of markup on your homepage: WebSite JSON-LD with a nested SearchAction describing how to build a search URL from a query.

Hand-writing it means remembering the exact nested EntryPoint shape and the query-input string format, both easy to get subtly wrong. This generator builds the correct structure from a name, URL, and search URL template.

What Is Website Schema Generator?

A form-driven generator for WebSite JSON-LD, the schema.org type used to describe a website as a whole (as opposed to a single page or article), plus its optional potentialAction SearchAction for sitelinks search box eligibility.

The core WebSite fields (name, url, description) are always included; the SearchAction block is only added when the search-box toggle is on and a search URL template is supplied.

How Website Schema Generator Works

Name, url, and description map directly to their WebSite properties. When the SearchAction toggle is enabled, the tool wraps your search URL template in the nested target/EntryPoint/urlTemplate shape Google's documentation expects, and appends the fixed query-input string that tells Google which placeholder maps to the user's search term.

The output updates live as you type, and validates that your search URL template actually contains the literal {search_term_string} placeholder before allowing the SearchAction block to be generated.

When To Use Website Schema Generator

Adding baseline WebSite identity markup to a new site's homepage.

Enabling a sitelinks search box for a site that already has a working internal search feature reachable by a query-string URL.

Retrofitting structured data onto an existing homepage that has never had any JSON-LD.

Often used alongside Structured Data Validator, Organization Schema Generator and Software Application Schema Generator.

Features

Advantages

Builds the exact nested target/EntryPoint/urlTemplate shape the SearchAction spec requires, instead of the flatter (and invalid) shape people often write by hand.
Validates that the search URL template contains the required {search_term_string} placeholder before generating output, catching the single most common SearchAction mistake.
Produces valid minimal WebSite markup even with the search box toggle off, for sites that just want basic site identity JSON-LD.

Limitations

Doesn't verify that the search URL template actually returns search results when the placeholder is substituted; that's on you to test.
Adding this markup doesn't guarantee Google will display the sitelinks search box; Google makes that call independently based on its own signals.
Covers the WebSite type only, not the related Organization type that's often paired with it on a homepage; use the Organization Schema Generator alongside this for a fuller homepage markup set.

Examples

A homepage with sitelinks search box markup

Input

Name: Acme Devtools
URL: https://example.com
Description: Free browser-based developer tools.
Search box: enabled
Search URL template: https://example.com/search?q={search_term_string}

Output

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "WebSite",
  "name": "Acme Devtools",
  "url": "https://example.com",
  "description": "Free browser-based developer tools.",
  "potentialAction": {
    "@type": "SearchAction",
    "target": {
      "@type": "EntryPoint",
      "urlTemplate": "https://example.com/search?q={search_term_string}"
    },
    "query-input": "required name=search_term_string"
  }
}
</script>

The SearchAction is nested under potentialAction with the required EntryPoint shape and query-input string.

Best Practices & Notes

Best Practices

Place this markup on the homepage only; it describes the site as a whole, not an individual page.
Make sure the search URL template, with {search_term_string} replaced by a real query, actually returns matching results when tested manually.
Keep the name field identical to your site's actual brand name as shown elsewhere on the page, since mismatches undermine the entity signal this markup is meant to send.
Use HTTPS URLs throughout; a mixed-scheme urlTemplate on an HTTPS site is a common reason Google treats a SearchAction as untrustworthy.

Developer Notes

The target property is emitted as a nested { "@type": "EntryPoint", "urlTemplate": ... } object rather than a bare URL string, because that's the form shown in Google's own sitelinks search box documentation; some third-party validators tolerate a bare string for target, but matching Google's documented shape exactly is the safer choice.

Website Schema Generator Use Cases

Enabling a sitelinks search box on a site's homepage for the first time
Adding baseline WebSite identity JSON-LD to a newly launched site
Auditing and rebuilding an existing SearchAction block that was hand-written incorrectly

Common Mistakes

Forgetting the literal {search_term_string} placeholder in the search URL template, which silently makes the whole SearchAction invalid.
Adding this markup to every page instead of just the homepage, which doesn't help and adds unnecessary duplicate JSON-LD sitewide.

Tips

Run the generated output through the Structured Data Validator tool in this category to confirm Google can parse the SearchAction correctly.
If your site doesn't have an internal search feature yet, leave the search box toggle off and generate plain WebSite markup instead; add the SearchAction later once search exists.

Website Schema Generator