Keep the Same Content on Mobile and Desktop
Google indexes the mobile version of a website. Its guidance says the mobile and desktop versions should have the same primary content, headings, titles, meta descriptions, structured data, image alt text, and robots meta tags (Google Search Central).
What Google’s guidance says
Under mobile-first indexing, Google uses the mobile page as the basis for what it stores and ranks. If a section, heading, or piece of metadata exists only on the desktop layout, Google may never see it. The desktop version is not a backup source (Google Search Central).
The same guidance confirms that content placed inside accordions or tabs is fine. Hiding content behind a tap to save space is acceptable. Removing it is the problem.
What it means for a business website
Mobile layouts often get trimmed to look cleaner. A designer hides the service details, the testimonials, or the FAQ on small screens. A theme setting drops the image captions or the secondary headings. Someone writes a shorter title or skips alt text on the mobile template. Each of these changes can remove content from what Google indexes.
This happens without any visible error. The desktop site still looks complete when the owner checks it on a laptop, and the mobile site looks tidy. The gap only shows up as weaker search visibility for topics the hidden content covered.
The fix is to keep everything and change how it is presented. Long sections can collapse into accordions. Side-by-side panels can stack. Tables can scroll inside their own container.
What to do
- Compare each key page on a phone and a desktop and list any section, heading, or image that appears on only one.
- Restore missing content on mobile using accordions or tabs instead of removing it.
- Check that titles, meta descriptions, structured data, and alt text match across both versions.
- Review theme or page-builder settings that hide elements by screen size.
Sources
- Mobile-first indexing best practices. Google Search Central.