dateModified

dateModified · Recommended by Google

Appears in

Article

What is it?

dateModified records when an article was last updated. Search engines use this timestamp alongside datePublished to assess whether content is current. The value must be in ISO 8601 format.

Why this matters for AEO

AI answer engines use modification dates to rank freshness. When two articles cover the same topic, the one with a more recent dateModified gets preference for queries where recency matters. If an article about tax filing deadlines was published in 2022 but updated in 2026, the AI engine recognizes it as current information.

What the specs say

Schema.org: Date or DateTime. The date on which the CreativeWork was most recently modified or when the item's entry was modified within a DataFeed. schema.org/dateModified

Google: Recommended. "The date and time the article was most recently modified, in ISO 8601 format. We recommend that you provide timezone information; otherwise, we will default to the timezone used by Googlebot. Add the dateModified property if you want to provide more accurate date information to Google." Google Article docs

How to find your value

• Blog post — The "Last Updated" date on the page
• CMS — The "Updated On" or "Modified Date" field
• Webflow — The built-in "Updated On" field in CMS items
• WordPress — The post modified date in the editor

Format and code

Type: Date or DateTime

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Article",
  "headline": "JSON-LD Structured Data Markup for Articles",
  "datePublished": "2019-07-12T00:00:00+02:00",
  "dateModified": "2019-07-12T00:00:00+02:00"
}

Valid formats:

• "dateModified": "2026-03-04" (date only)
• "dateModified": "2026-03-04T09:20:00+08:00" (date with time and timezone, preferred)
• "dateModified": "2026-03-04T01:20:00Z" (UTC)

Invalid:

• "dateModified": "March 4, 2026" (not ISO 8601)
• "dateModified": 1709539200 (Unix timestamp, not accepted)

Webflow implementation

Static pages

In Page Settings > Custom Code > Before </head>:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Article",
  "headline": "Your Article Title",
  "datePublished": "2026-01-15T08:00:00+00:00",
  "dateModified": "2026-03-04T10:00:00+00:00"
}
</script>

Update the dateModified value each time you edit the page content.

CMS template pages

Reference the Webflow CMS "Updated On" field:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Article",
  "datePublished": "{{wf {&quot;path&quot;:&quot;published-on&quot;,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;Date&quot;} }}",
  "dateModified": "{{wf {&quot;path&quot;:&quot;updated-on&quot;,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;Date&quot;} }}"
}
</script>

In Schema HQ

The value is read from Webflow CMS "Updated On" date and maps it to dateModified. When you update a CMS item in Webflow and republish, the modification date updates automatically in the structured data.

Real examples

SiteAnalyzer (site-analyzer.pro):

{
  "@type": "Article",
  "datePublished": "2019-07-12T00:00:00+02:00",
  "dateModified": "2019-07-12T00:00:00+02:00",
  "author": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "name": "Simagin Andrey"
  }
}

Schema Pilot (schemapilot.app):

{
  "@type": "BlogPosting",
  "datePublished": "2026-03-04",
  "dateModified": "2026-03-04",
  "author": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Schema Pilot"
  }
}

Related fields

• datePublished
• headline
• author
• publisher

FAQ

Should dateModified match datePublished for new articles?

Yes. When an article has not been updated since publication, set dateModified to the same value as datePublished. Some implementations omit dateModified entirely for new content, but including it with the same value is also valid.

Does changing dateModified improve rankings?

Only if the content was actually updated. Google's John Mueller has stated that changing publishing dates without meaningful content changes will not improve rankings. Fake freshness signals can lead to ranking demotion.

What if my CMS does not track modification dates?

Add a custom "Last Updated" date field to your CMS. In Webflow, create a Date field in your collection and manually update it when you revise content. This gives you control over the modification timestamp independent of Webflow's automatic "Updated On" field, which changes on any save, not just content updates.