AEO · 4 December 2025 · 8 min read
Answer the question first: The 60 word rule
AI engines cite the first paragraph that fully answers the heading. The first 60 words now do most of the work.
The 60 word rule is simple: the first paragraph under any H2 should fully answer the heading in 60 words or fewer. If it does, AI engines lift it as the canonical answer. If it does not, they look elsewhere.
Why 60 words
60 words is the sweet spot for extraction. Long enough to add a number, a date, or a named entity. Short enough to fit inside answer cards and conversational AI replies without truncation.
Applying the rule without sounding robotic
The rule can produce flat, mechanical writing if applied carelessly. The fix is to treat it as a structural constraint on the first sentence or two, not on the whole page.
- Answer first, then let the rest of the section carry personality and nuance.
- Vary sentence length after the initial answer so the page does not read like a list of definitions.
- Use real examples and specific numbers rather than generic filler in the supporting sentences.
- Keep the heading itself natural, phrased the way a person would actually ask it.
Checking your existing pages
Auditing for this is quick because it only requires reading the first paragraph under each heading, not the whole page.
- Pull up your ten highest traffic pages.
- Read only the first paragraph under each H2 and count the words.
- Flag any paragraph over 80 words or one that does not answer the heading directly.
- Rewrite the flagged paragraphs first, since they carry the most traffic.
Questions
No, only the first paragraph directly under a question shaped heading. Later paragraphs in the same section can be longer and more exploratory.
No. It works alongside longer content. The first paragraph answers directly, and the rest of the section can still go into depth.
Answer the core of the question within the limit, then add the necessary nuance immediately afterwards rather than before the answer.