Glossary

Open Graph

Definition: Open Graph is a protocol developed by Facebook that uses meta tags to control how URLs appear when shared on social media platforms.

The Open Graph protocol was introduced by Facebook in 2010 and is now used by virtually every social media platform — Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter/X, Slack, Discord and others — to determine how a shared URL should look in a post or message. Without Open Graph tags, platforms will guess at a title, description and image, often with poor results.

Essential Open Graph Tags

<meta property="og:title" content="What is SSL? A Beginner's Guide" />
<meta property="og:description" content="Learn how SSL certificates work and why HTTPS matters for security and SEO." />
<meta property="og:image" content="https://example.com/images/ssl-guide.jpg" />
<meta property="og:url" content="https://example.com/ssl-guide" />
<meta property="og:type" content="article" />

Image Recommendations

  • Minimum size: 1200 × 630 px for optimal display on most platforms.
  • File format: JPG or PNG.
  • Keep important content away from edges (may be cropped on some platforms).

Twitter Card Tags

Twitter uses its own twitter: meta tags (e.g. twitter:card, twitter:title) but falls back to Open Graph tags if Twitter tags are absent.

Free Tools