Quick answer
An empty title tag is a <title> element that exists but contains no visible text after trimming. It is different from a missing title element. Add one descriptive title that reflects the page, then check the final source and the browser tab; a title value can be rewritten in search results and is not a ranking guarantee.
What the issue means
The HTML title is used for the browser tab and is a source for search-result title links. An empty element often means a template variable failed, a CMS field was saved blank, or client-side code did not run before the crawler read the head.
Why it matters for SEO
Without a useful title, users have less context when switching tabs and search systems have less page-specific text from which to form a result title. Google may generate or rewrite a title from other visible headings and links, so the fix is about clear page identity rather than forcing a particular string into results.
How NOTABIS detects it
NOTABIS counts title elements in the crawled HTML and trims each element's text. The empty-title-tag finding is emitted when a title exists and at least one title is empty. No title element is reported separately as missing-title; more than one title is reported as multiple-title-tags.
The rule checks presence and non-empty text only. It does not score length, uniqueness, wording, or the title Google eventually displays.
How to check it yourself
- View source and locate every
<title>element. - Confirm the value contains readable text after whitespace is trimmed.
- Check the server response as well as the rendered DOM when scripts modify the head.
- Compare the title with the page's H1, purpose, and canonical URL.
- Check templates for blank variables and duplicate title output.
How to fix it
Render one stable, descriptive title from the page's actual content. Fix the data or template path that produced the blank value, escape special characters, and remove duplicate title elements. Re-test several URLs from the same template and then re-run the audit.
Use a title that helps a person identify the page, such as Winter tyre storage guide | Example Garage, rather than a string of repeated search terms.
When this is intentional or does not need fixing
An empty title is rarely useful on a public HTML document. A non-HTML response or a deliberately private route may be outside the page template being assessed, but do not leave public pages blank simply to defer a content decision.
Related issues
Read missing title tags, title tags present, multiple title tags, and title length. Google’s title-link guidance explains how titles can be rewritten or combined with other page text. When an audit finding does not need fixing covers contextual exceptions.
Run a NOTABIS audit
Run a NOTABIS SEO audit to find empty title elements and inspect the source evidence for each affected page.