How to write meta titles and descriptions?

Meta titles and descriptions work together: the title gets the click decision started and the description closes it. Google does not use the description as a ranking signal directly, but it dramatically affects click-through rate, and click-through rate feeds back into rankings over time.

Here are the rules that actually matter, stated plainly.

1. Keep the meta title under 60 characters. Anything longer risks getting cut off with an ellipsis in search results.
2. Put the primary keyword at the start of the title. This is where Google looks first and where the reader's eye lands first.
3. End the title with your brand after a pipe or dash separator. Not at the start, which pushes the keyword back.
4. Keep the meta description under 155 characters. Google's display width varies, but 155 is safe across devices.
5. Start the description with a clear value statement, not a restatement of the title. The reader already read the title, do not waste the description.
6. Include the primary keyword in the description once, naturally. This is how the keyword gets bolded in the search result, which increases click-through.
7. End the description with a verb: "Start free", "Compare plans", "See the guide". Descriptions that imply an action outperform descriptions that are pure summary.

A working example of a title and description pair. Title: "Free Meta Title Generator - Preview in Google SERPs | Ubenie". Description: "Generate meta titles that rank and fit the 60-character limit. Live preview shows exactly how your title will look in Google. Try it free, no sign-up needed." The title leads with the keyword and ends with the brand. The description adds concrete value the title did not promise (live preview, free, no sign-up) and ends with a verb.

Google will rewrite your meta tags about 60% of the time when they do not match the page content or look keyword-stuffed. If your titles keep getting rewritten, the fix is to make them more honest to the content, not to game the system harder.