The easiest way to add a meta description in WordPress is through an SEO plugin. Install Yoast SEO, Rank Math, or All in One SEO Pack from your WordPress dashboard under Plugins > Add New. Once activated, scroll below your post or page editor and you'll see a dedicated meta description box. Type your description there—aim for 150 to 160 characters so Google doesn't truncate it in search results. If you're using the block editor (Gutenberg), some themes and plugins surface the meta description field in the sidebar under the Document or SEO panel. Classic editor users see it as a box below the main content area. Either way, fill it in before you publish. Without a plugin, you need to hardcode the meta tag. Open Appearance > Theme File Editor, locate header.php, and insert a line like <meta name="description" content="Your description here"> inside the <head> section. This method works but breaks when you switch themes and requires manual edits for every page, so it's impractical at scale. Write unique meta descriptions for each page. Duplicate descriptions across multiple URLs waste an opportunity to target different search intents and can confuse Google about which page to rank. Focus on the primary keyword naturally woven into a compelling sentence that tells searchers what they'll find. Think of it as ad copy—you have one or two sentences to earn the click. At Ottawa SEO, we draft meta descriptions in bulk using spreadsheet templates when launching new sections of a site, then refine high-traffic pages based on Search Console click-through rates. If a page ranks on page one but CTR sits below 2%, we A/B test the meta description by rewriting it and checking back in three to four weeks. WordPress makes updates instant, so testing costs nothing but time. The plugin route is non-negotiable for any serious WordPress SEO workflow because it centralizes control, prevents theme dependency, and integrates with schema and Open Graph tags in one interface.