CreativeWork

CreativeWork is the parent type for all content in schema.org: articles, books, movies, photographs, software, datasets, web pages, music, podcasts, code, and more. With 121 properties of its own, it is the largest type in schema.org. Most of the time you should use a specific subtype (Article, Book, Movie), but generic CreativeWork is appropriate for content that does not fit any subtype: whitepapers, reports, infographics, slide decks, data visualizations.

The type hierarchy is Thing → CreativeWork. The properties that matter most are author, datePublished, publisher, headline or name, description, license, inLanguage, isPartOf (for series/collections), and citation (for works this references). Google reads CreativeWork for generic content features, but specific subtypes trigger richer results.

Full example of schema.org/CreativeWork json-ld markup

The markup is verified as valid with Rich Results Test from Google.

Highlight legend:Required by GoogleRecommendedOptional

schema.org/CreativeWork

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "CreativeWork",
  "name": "Xoo Code Inc. Annual Report 2025",
  "description": "Annual report covering Xoo Code Inc.'s structured data product line, customer growth, and the launch of the XooStructured IDE v3.0.",
  "url": "https://xoocode.com/reports/annual-2025",
  "datePublished": "2026-02-15",
  "author": {
    "@id": "https://xoocode.com#organization",
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Xoo Code Inc."
  },
  "publisher": {
    "@id": "https://xoocode.com#organization"
  },
  "inLanguage": "en",
  "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "image": "https://xoocode.com/reports/annual-2025/cover-16x9.jpg",
  "isPartOf": {
    "@type": "CreativeWorkSeries",
    "name": "Xoo Code Annual Reports"
  },
  "about": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "@id": "https://xoocode.com#organization",
    "name": "Xoo Code Inc."
  }
}
</script>

When to use CreativeWork vs a subtype

If your content is an article, use Article. If it is a video, use VideoObject. If it is software, use SoftwareApplication. Use generic CreativeWork only when no subtype fits. Examples: a corporate annual report, a slide deck, an infographic, a legal document that is not a LegislationObject, a research poster.

author, creator, and publisher

author is who wrote it. creator is who made it (broader: could be a production company). publisher is who published it. For most content, author and publisher are the ones that matter. Google reads both for the article knowledge panel and for E-E-A-T signals.

citation and isPartOf

citation lists works that this work references. isPartOf connects the work to a larger collection (a series, a journal, a website). hasPart is the inverse. These build the content graph that Google uses for related content and citation indices.

Minimal valid version

The smallest markup that still produces a valid CreativeWork entity. Use it as the floor. Reach for the advanced example above when you want search engines and AI agents to understand more about your content.

schema.org/CreativeWork (minimal)

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "CreativeWork",
  "name": "Xoo Code Inc. Annual Report 2025",
  "author": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Xoo Code Inc." },
  "datePublished": "2026-02-15",
  "description": "Annual report covering Xoo Code's 2025 product and growth milestones."
}
</script>

Google rich results this unlocks

Markup matching this example makes your page eligible for the following Google Search rich results. The primary target drives the required / recommended property classification in the advanced code block above.

No dedicated rich result (use subtypes for rich results)
Google docs

Common CreativeWork mistakes

Mistakes that pass validation but silently fail to earn rich results or mislead consumers walking the graph. Avoid these and your markup will be ahead of most sites in the wild.

01
Using CreativeWork when a subtype exists
Wrong
```
"@type": "CreativeWork" for a blog post or video
```
Right
```
"@type": "Article" for articles, "VideoObject" for videos, "Book" for books
```
CreativeWork is the generic parent. Specific subtypes trigger richer Google results: Article gets the article snippet, VideoObject gets the video thumbnail, Book gets the book panel. Use CreativeWork only when nothing else fits.
02
Missing author on a CreativeWork
Wrong
```
CreativeWork with publisher but no author
```
Right
```
"author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "..." } or { "@type": "Organization", "name": "..." }
```
author is the most important E-E-A-T signal on any content. Google reads it for the content knowledge panel and for authorship attribution. A CreativeWork without an author looks unattributed.

Schema properties in this example

CreativeWork name description url datePublished author publisher inLanguage license image isPartOf CreativeWorkSeries about

About the example data

A fictional Xoo Code annual report, a corporate publication that does not fit Article, Book, or any other specific subtype.

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