Meta descriptions are still critical, but not in the way most people think. They're not a direct ranking factor and haven't been since 2009, but they matter enormously for click-through rate, which absolutely affects your rankings indirectly. When someone sees your result in Google, your meta description is often the deciding factor between clicking you or the competitor below you. Google rewrites meta descriptions roughly 63-70% of the time based on the specific query. They pull from your page content, structured data, or other on-page text when they think they can better match search intent. This doesn't make writing them pointless. When Google does use your description, you want it to convert. When they don't, they're still pulling from your page, so well-written page copy matters even more. Write meta descriptions as conversion-focused snippets, not SEO keyword dumps. Aim for 140-155 characters to avoid truncation on mobile. Include your primary keyword naturally because Google bolds matching terms in search results, which increases visibility. Focus on the specific value or answer your page provides. At Ottawa SEO, we write unique meta descriptions for every important page in our 500+ domain portfolio. For massive sites with thousands of pages, we use templates with dynamic variables for scale, but key landing pages and pillar content always get custom descriptions. We test different angles, track CTR in Search Console, and rewrite underperformers. The biggest mistake is leaving them blank. Google will cobble together something from your content, and it's usually terrible. Second biggest mistake is writing the same description for multiple pages or just restating your H1. Your description should complement your title tag, not repeat it. Think of the title as the headline and the description as the subheadline that closes the click. Bottom line: Meta descriptions won't rescue a page that doesn't deserve to rank, but they'll absolutely boost traffic to pages that do rank by improving your CTR 15-30% when written well.