Google’s Search Quality Rater Guidelines single out a category of topics where low-quality information could cause real harm. They call it YMYL: Your Money or Your Life. On these topics, Google wants its results to come from sources with strong E-E-A-T, especially trust.
Which topics count
The guidelines describe YMYL as topics that could significantly affect:
- Health and safety: medical conditions, medications, dental treatments, mental health, dangerous activities
- Financial security: investing, taxes, loans, insurance, retirement, large purchases
- Society: voting, civic information, legal rights, news about important events
- Other life matters: major decisions such as housing or legal issues
Not every page on a YMYL site is YMYL, and not every topic that sounds serious is. A dentist’s page on “how to choose a toothbrush” is lower risk than one on “is it safe to take ibuprofen after an extraction”. The question raters ask is how much harm inaccurate content could do.
Why it matters for a real business
Brightside Dental’s site is mostly YMYL. Pages about treatments, sedation, aftercare and costs all affect patients’ health or money. A generic article that could have been written by anyone, with no named author and no clinical review, is unlikely to compete with the big medical sites and other practices that do show expertise.
Coastline Plumbing is less exposed, but some topics touch safety: gas water heater leaks, carbon monoxide risks, sewage exposure. Those pages benefit from the same care.
How to meet the higher bar
- Have qualified people write or review the content. Show their name, credentials and a link to their bio.
- Be accurate and specific, and cite reputable sources such as professional associations or official health guidance.
- Date your content and review it regularly. Show when it was last reviewed.
- Make the business transparent: who runs it, where it’s based, how to contact it.
- Avoid overpromising. “Painless, guaranteed results” claims on medical pages damage trust.
- Tell readers when to seek professional help rather than suggesting they handle risky situations alone.
Common mistakes
- Publishing AI-generated medical or financial advice without expert review
- Copying advice from other sites with no added expertise
- Leaving outdated information live, such as old prices, rules or treatment guidance
- Anonymous content on topics where credentials matter
Related changes
Google’s broad core updates often have their most visible effects on YMYL sites, because these are where Google’s systems lean hardest on signs of quality and trust. Many YMYL sites were also affected by the helpful content changes from 2022 to 2024.