White Hat vs. Black Hat SEO Explained

White hat SEO refers to above-board SEO tactics that are ethical, effective, and sanctioned by search engines. Black hat SEO techniques try to trick or mislead search engines into ranking content more highly. Find out what the experts say about both.

Let’s talk about something that doesn’t come up in a ton of digital marketing conversations: Accessories.

Hats, specifically.

OK, so we’re not talking about literal hats you wear — but these hats are important nonetheless.

The terms “white hat” and “black hat” are search engine optimization (SEO) techniques that marketers can use when optimizing a website.

They have to do with search engine rules, ethical considerations, and, ultimately, your ranking on the search engine results page (SERP).

Want to make sure you’re doing everything right when it comes to SEO, and nothing that Google or another search engine can penalize you for?

Keep reading for all the info you need, along with expert-level insights from HawkSEM Senior Lead Strategist Madison Scherner.

What is white hat SEO?

White hat SEO refers to search engine-approved techniques you can use to optimize your site and online presence. This means your site meets ethical SEO criteria through white hat SEO tactics like:

• Following the suggested eligibility search engine guidelines
• Creating content for real people, not just search engines
• Having long-term, multi-faceted content marketing and SEO strategies
• Guest posting on other relevant, credible sites (and vice versa)
• Including multimedia, such as images (with alt tags)

Scherner’s suggested white hat SEO techniques include:

• Internal linking optimization to support site architecture and relevance
• Earned link building (building links through PR, thought leadership, and high-value content)
• Schema markup to help search engines better understand and represent content
• Site speed and mobile UX improvements, which are increasingly ranking signals
• Ongoing technical audits and crawlability improvements to ensure accessibility

White hat SEO is all about putting in the work and taking the time to slowly but surely build up your brand’s credibility. (Image via Unsplash)

“When I first started in SEO, link buying was a huge practice,” says Scherner.
“Google didn’t penalize it nearly as strictly as they do today.”

Over time, she says the algorithm’s bots and crawlers have become better at detecting manipulative behavior.

However, the recent explosion of automation and AI-generated content has proved to be tricky.

“When used without human oversight or editorial judgment, I view it as a new form of black hat, especially when it’s deployed to publish content at a huge scale that lacks real value or relevance for users,” Scherner says.

“It may not trigger penalties immediately, but it goes against the spirit of what search engines are trying to surface.”

It’s like running a marathon: if you want to win the race, you’ve got to invest in all that it takes (eating right, consistently exercising, stretching, and resting) to get you there.

Pro tip: See Google’s guidelines, dubbed Google Search Essentials (formerly Webmaster Guidelines), here.

Black hat techniques attempt to trick search engines into thinking a site is more reputable or valuable than it actually is. (Image via Unsplash)

What is black hat SEO?

Think of black hat SEO like a “get rich quick” scheme: it involves skirting ethical boundaries and trying to game the system.

Black hat practices often attempt to trick search engines into thinking a site is more reputable or valuable than it actually is. Black hat SEO methods include:

• Keyword stuffing (inserting target keywords into your content in a way that sounds unnatural and/or excessive)
• Cloaking (presenting different content or URLs to users and search engines)
• Using link schemes like private blog networks (blogs created solely to generate backlinks to other sites)
• Buying links from link farms
• Misleading URL redirects (also called doorway pages)
• Low-quality content and duplicate content
• Spammy blog comments
• “Invisible” hidden text in meta tags or elsewhere in the code of your website

Other black hat techniques Scherner has seen include:

• Buying or trading links (especially spammy ones)
• Scraping and spinning content without adding original value
• Publishing AI content at scale without human editing or fact-checking

While some of these loopholes may work in the short term, most experienced marketers will warn you against black hat SEO tactics.

You risk “manual penalties, steady decline in rankings over time after hitting a high, and wasted investment,” says Scherner.

Pro tip: If a marketing manager or agency is promising short-term gains without risk, Scherner says that’s a major red flag. Search engines and LLMs are evolving, and while a black hat technique might work today, it could easily trigger a penalty tomorrow. You’re better off focusing on long-term SEO practices built on trust, transparency, and real value.

What are the effects of using black hat SEO?

Since black hat techniques are for the benefit of the search engine algorithm and not users, it’s common for people to have a bad user experience when dealing with these sites or links.

Not only that, but those who leverage black hat SEO are at risk of getting dinged by Google in the form of “manual actions” and algorithm updates.

Manual actions are a one-to-one situation where a person reviewing on behalf of Google flags your site for violating its guidelines. At worst, this can cause your site to be prevented from appearing in any Google search results whatsoever.

As far as updates go, seasoned marketing pros know that Google’s algorithm is changing and evolving almost constantly.

These changes are usually implemented to help searchers get the most accurate results for their searches.

These updates are also implemented to combat various black hat techniques, which is why leveraging them could cause your search engine ranking to tank during the next surprise update.

Note: While black hat techniques are found to be unethical, they’re generally not against any law from a legal standpoint.

Put simply, there’s no “one weird trick” that’ll magically shoot your company to the top of the SERP. (Image via Unsplash)

What is gray hat SEO?

The term “gray hat SEO” (aka “grey hat SEO”) means your SEO includes methods that may be ethically questionable but aren’t currently penalized by Google.

It’s important to note, however, that these methods could be banned in the future, which is why it’s critical to keep a close eye on algorithm changes and penalty updates.

Posting fake reviews (whether positive or negative) or paying for reviews could be considered gray hat. While not technically black hat, these tactics are extremely frowned upon.

And it’s relatively common for people to purchase expired domains and link or redirect their sites from them — this also falls under the gray hat category.

All domains carry some sort of link equity, so those who buy one and redirect it to their main domain will absorb all of the site’s old links.

While this may earn your site a bunch of links quickly, it’s a risky move that you could end up being penalized for, especially if the purchased domain had nothing to do with your current business.

Working with a trusted marketing partner can be especially crucial in these gray-area situations.

“Having a professional looking at trends in industry niches, watching the growth data around terms and categories, and creating long-term strategic plans to combat challenges like zero-click search or a clunky sales funnel” can be the difference between your rankings soaring or tanking, says Scherner.

“Find a partner who cares about your business and stick with them. Fast, risk-free reward is often promised but rarely fulfilled and sustained.”

How can white hat SEO be implemented effectively?

Now that you know the ins and outs of white, black, and gray hat SEO, you can be more proactive about ensuring that you’re taking advantage of all the white hat (and possibly some gray hat) techniques at your disposal.

These techniques are not only search engine-approved, but they’ll make for a better user experience for those visiting your website and help you build a more long-lasting marketing strategy.

They’ll also offer a more accurate, professional look at who you are as a brand, which will allow you to stand out.

Some of the most effective white hat SEO methods include:

• Being transparent about your company and its offerings
• Creating well-written, high-quality content based on keyword research that speaks to your target audience, not just search engines
• Not over-promising, inflating statistics, or misquoting clients
• Making sure your web pages have fast load times
• Ensuring your site is educational, easy to navigate, and optimized
• Not falling for quick SEO wins that sound too good to be true (they probably are!)

Need more help with your SEO efforts? That’s why we’re here.

The takeaway

Put simply, there’s no “one weird trick” that’ll magically shoot your company to the top of the SERP. Quality SEO takes time to cultivate if you want to see long-term success.

And that’s OK! Even if you’re feeling impatient about your SEO results, know that you’re not alone.

“Google isn’t fighting spam, it’s rewarding quality,” says Scherner.

“Align with user intent, offer real value, and be ready to pivot when the time is right, and you will be happy with the outcome not only from search engines, but also from all of the other omnichannel services that filter into your website.”

With time, effort, creativity, and some white hat techniques at your disposal, you can rest assured that you’re doing everything you can to garner more organic traffic — the right way.

This article has been updated and was originally published in December 2019.