Complete Guide to BreadcrumbList Schema

What Is BreadcrumbList Schema

BreadcrumbList schema reports where the current page sits in site structure as structured data. In search results, it displays a navigation path such as "Home > Category > Page Title" instead of the URL.

TL;DR

BreadcrumbList: ① Desktop only since January 2025 (not shown on mobile) ② Required: itemListElement array > ListItem > position, name, item ③ position starts at 1 ④ Last item (current page) can omit item URL ⑤ Absolute URLs recommended.

January 2025 Change

Sites with mobile-focused traffic should adjust expectations accordingly. However, the schema itself still has value for strengthening site structure understanding.

Property Reference

Based on Google official documentation.

BreadcrumbList

ListItem (each level)

Minimal Example (3-Level Hierarchy)

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
  "itemListElement": [
    {
      "@type": "ListItem",
      "position": 1,
      "name": "Home",
      "item": "https://kroffle.com"
    },
    {
      "@type": "ListItem",
      "position": 2,
      "name": "Schema Guide",
      "item": "https://kroffle.com/guides/schema"
    },
    {
      "@type": "ListItem",
      "position": 3,
      "name": "Complete Guide to BreadcrumbList Schema"
    }
  ]
}

The last item (current page) is valid with name only, without item (URL).

Recommended Example (Used with Article)

Pattern of bundling Article + BreadcrumbList on the same page with @graph.

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@graph": [
    {
      "@type": "BlogPosting",
      "@id": "https://kroffle.com/guides/schema/breadcrumb#article",
      "headline": "Complete Guide to BreadcrumbList Schema",
      "datePublished": "2026-06-04T09:00:00+09:00",
      "author": {
        "@type": "Person",
        "name": "Jane Smith"
      },
      "publisher": {
        "@type": "Organization",
        "name": "Kroffle"
      },
      "inLanguage": "ko-KR"
    },
    {
      "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
      "itemListElement": [
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 1,
          "name": "Home",
          "item": "https://kroffle.com"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 2,
          "name": "Schema Guide",
          "item": "https://kroffle.com/guides/schema"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 3,
          "name": "Complete Guide to BreadcrumbList Schema"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Adaptation for the Korean Market

On Korean sites, the name field can be written in Korean. URLs (item) should keep English slugs as standard.

Common Mistakes

Wrong example: Starting position at 0

{ "position": 0, "name": "Home", "item": "https://example.com" }

Correct example: position must start at 1

{ "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://example.com" }

Wrong example: Using relative path URLs

"item": "/guides/schema"

Correct example: Absolute path URLs

"item": "https://kroffle.com/guides/schema"

Validation Methods

1. Google Rich Results Test: https://search.google.com/test/rich-results
2. Schema Markup Validator: https://validator.schema.org

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Do breadcrumbs appear on mobile too?
A. Since January 2025, breadcrumb rich results have been removed from Google mobile search results. They display on desktop only.

Q. Must I add BreadcrumbList to every page?
A. Applying to all internal pages except the homepage is recommended. Bulk application on category, tag, and individual post pages is efficient.

Q. Must I implement both HTML breadcrumb and schema breadcrumb?
A. Implementing both is recommended. HTML breadcrumb is for user experience; JSON-LD schema is for machine readability. Matching information increases trust.

References

• Google official BreadcrumbList documentation: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/breadcrumb (verified June 2026)
• Schema.org BreadcrumbList: https://schema.org/BreadcrumbList