SEO Showdown: Pinterest vs. Google — What’s the Difference?
When most people hear “SEO,” they tend to think of Google — and for good reason. It’s the world’s largest search engine, and ranking there can bring steady organic traffic to your blog.
But Google SEO isn’t the only way to grow your audience. Pinterest is also a powerful (and often underrated) search engine — especially when it comes to getting your content in front of the right audience and driving traffic to your blog.
If you’ve been pouring energy into Google SEO and still aren’t seeing the blog traffic or growth you expected, Pinterest might be the missing piece.
Pinterest is more than just a place to pin pretty pictures—it’s a visual search engine with its own algorithm, ranking signals, Home and Explore feeds, and best practices. And when you pair valuable content with a clear Pinterest SEO strategy, it can become one of the best ways to increase visibility, grow your audience, and drive organic traffic to your blogs and products.
Let’s break down the key differences between Google SEO and Pinterest SEO—and how using both can help you grow smarter (and faster) —and start driving more traffic from both platforms to your content.
What Is SEO?
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, which is a set of strategies that help search engines like Google and Pinterest find your content and suggest it to people searching for the topics your content covers.
But your content—whether it’s a blog post, Pin, or product—can’t be found or recommended by Google or Pinterest if it’s not easily searchable. That’s where an SEO strategy using keywords and optimization comes in. When done well, SEO helps search platforms find and recommend your content to the right audience.
But here’s the key: not all search engines work the same way. Google is text-based, while Pinterest is visual-first. One rewards authority over time; the other favors fresh, eye-catching content that matches user intent in the moment. They also utilize different algorithms and have different ways of indexing, ranking, and recommending content. Understanding those differences — and optimizing your content for both platforms — is what allows you to show up in more places, reach more people, and get better results from the content you’re already creating.
How Google SEO Works
Google is a text-based search engine, which means it "reads,” or crawls, the content on your site to understand what it is about. It scans headings, metadata, copy, and the overall structure — then uses hundreds of factors to decide where your content should show up, or rank, in search results.
The problem? Google also relies on ever-evolving algorithms, which can sometimes lead to dramatic changes in blog traffic.
These are some of the things Google is looking for when it crawls your blog:
Original, valuable content – Are you offering something fresh and helpful with your own unique voice and spin, or are you just rehashing what’s already out there, or relying heavily on AI-generated content?
E-E-A-T – Does your content show Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness?
Keyword relevance and stuffing – Are you using the terms people are actually searching for? Or maybe you’re stuffing your content with keywords in an attempt to get Google to notice, but your content isn’t very valuable?
Content structure – Is your post well-organized with clear headings, internal links, and easy-to-read formatting?
Backlinks – Are other high-ranking, high-authority sites linking back to your content?
Technical SEO – Is your site mobile-friendly, fast-loading, and easy to navigate?
Google SEO is powerful — but it’s also a long game. It can take months (sometimes longer) to see results, especially if you’re in a competitive niche or just starting out. But once your content ranks, it can drive steady, long-term traffic to your blog.
And with the rise of AI Overview, the way Google provides search results is changing fast. That makes it more important than ever to have a strong, adaptable SEO strategy that puts helpful, high-quality content front and center.
How Pinterest SEO Works
Pinterest, on the other hand, is both a visual search engine and a discovery platform. People come to Pinterest to get ideas, inspiration, and solutions — to explore what is possible, but not always to read a full article right away.
When your visuals are eye-catching and your keywords match what your audience is actively searching for, Pinterest becomes a powerful tool for driving organic traffic — especially to blog posts and digital products.
Unlike Google, Pinterest doesn’t care as much about backlinks or domain authority. Instead, Pinterest considers pin quality, pinner quality, engagement, saves, and clicks. This means Pinterest SEO has its own set of rules, and growing on that platform requires a different kind of strategy and focus.
Here are a few key factors that influence how your content performs on Pinterest:
Pin design – High-quality images, clear text overlays, on-brand designs, trending colors, and readable text overlays.
Keywords – Pinterest relies on keywords too — not just in pin titles and descriptions, but also in your board names and your profile.
Engagement – Pinterest takes cues from how users interact with your pins: are they saving, clicking, or tapping through?
Freshness – Pinterest prefers new, original pins over repins. Fresh content is more likely to appear in search and the home feed. However, repins can still play a supporting role in a Pinterest SEO strategy.
Trends –Current trends and seasonal topics often get a visibility boost, especially when timed well.
Key Differences Between Pinterest SEO and Google SEO
Understanding how Pinterest and Google utilize searches and rank can help you create a successful strategy for each. Here’s how they compare:
Type of Content
Google SEO focuses on text-based content like blog posts, articles, and product pages.
Pinterest SEO is all about visual content — think pins, graphics, and high-quality images.
Search Intent
Google users are often looking for answers, information, or a specific website (informational, transactional, or navigational searches).
Pinterest users are typically browsing for inspiration, ideas, or solutions they may not even know they need yet — it’s more discovery-driven.
Keyword Locations
Google looks for keywords in your page titles, headings, copy, and metadata.
Pinterest uses keywords in pin titles and descriptions, board names, your profile, and pins themselves.
Ranking Factors
Google SEO depends on things like backlinks, domain authority, and content quality.
Pinterest SEO focuses on engagement (saves, clicks, etc.), keyword relevance, and strong visual designs.
Time to Rank
Google is a long game — it can take months, or longer, to rank, especially for new content, especially if the content isn’t optimized or strategic.
Pinterest can bring results faster, sometimes within a few weeks or months of pinning.
Content Longevity
Google can deliver long-term traffic if your content is evergreen and stays relevant.
Pinterest content can resurface over time, but fresh pins are prioritized and perform better.
Technical SEO
Google SEO requires attention to things like site speed, mobile optimization, and structured data.
Pinterest hosts your content on its platform, so technical SEO isn’t a factor.
Pinterest + Google: A Smarter SEO Strategy
Pinterest and Google aren’t just two separate SEO strategies — they actually work better together. Each platform plays to different strengths, but they both aim to connect people with your helpful and valuable content.
Google SEO helps your blog content rank in traditional search results and brings long-term, steady traffic over time — especially for evergreen topics.
Pinterest SEO helps you get in front of people who are in discovery mode — often before they even know exactly what they’re looking for. It’s a powerful way to drive faster visibility for visual content like blog posts and digital products.
When you optimize for both, you’re not doubling your work — you’re making the most of the content you’ve already created and opening up new ways for people to discover it. That’s how you build a smart, well-rounded SEO strategy that keeps growing your organic traffic over time.
How to Optimize for Both Google and Pinterest
You can create content that works separately for each platform—but supports your overall SEO strategy.
Here are a few tips to help you make the most of both:
Do keyword research for each platform
What performs well on Google might not trend on Pinterest (and vice versa). Take time to explore what your audience is searching for on both.Repurpose blog posts into multiple pins
Don’t just share once and move on. Create multiple fresh pin designs for each blog post using keywords that match Pinterest search intent.Align with search intent
If someone’s searching for “easy dinner ideas,” both your pin and your blog post should clearly deliver on that promise.Use on-brand, optimized designs
High-quality images with clear text overlays help your pins stand out and encourage more clicks to your blog.Pay attention to analytics
Google Search Console and Analytics, and Pinterest Trends and Analytics are packed with insights. Keep an eye on what’s actually working so you can do more of it.
Ready to Get More Out of Your Content?
Pinterest and Google SEO aren’t competing strategies — they’re a powerful pair when used together. By tapping into both platforms with thoughtful, optimized content and SEO strategies, you can boost visibility, reach new audiences, and drive more organic traffic to your blog and digital products.
The best part? You don’t need to start from scratch. You can take what you’ve already created and build smart systems to make it work harder across both search engines.
If you’re feeling stuck or unsure where to start, a strategic audit or support services can help. Whether it’s dialing in your Pinterest SEO, optimizing your new or old blog content for Google, or making sure both work together, getting expert eyes on your strategy can save you time — and get you better results faster.
Want help building an SEO strategy that works across platforms? Let’s talk.