AEO · 15 April 2026 · 9 min read
How to write extractable paragraphs for AI engines
Extractive AI engines reward a specific paragraph shape. Once you see it you cannot unsee it.
Extractable paragraphs share three traits: they answer the heading directly, they stand alone without surrounding context, and they sit between 40 and 60 words. Hit those three and your extraction rate climbs in weeks.
The formula
Work through these steps in order. Each one builds on the last, so resist skipping ahead even if a step feels familiar.
- Frame the H2 as the literal user question.
- Open the paragraph by restating the question as a definitional answer.
- Add one supporting sentence with a number, date, or named entity.
- Close with a one sentence implication or boundary condition.
What to avoid
This breaks down into a handful of concrete points. Work through them one by one and note any that apply to your own site.
- Hedging openers ("It depends", "In some cases").
- Pronouns referring to a previous section.
- Long parenthetical asides.
- Marketing flourishes that obscure the answer.
Worked example
Take the heading 'What is Core Web Vitals?'. A weak opener drifts into history and context first. A strong extractable answer states the definition immediately, then adds one supporting fact.
- Weak: 'Over the years, Google has introduced several performance metrics that website owners should be aware of.'
- Strong: 'Core Web Vitals are three Google metrics, LCP, INP and CLS, that measure loading speed, responsiveness and visual stability. Google uses them as a minor ranking signal.'
- The strong version names the entity, defines it, and adds a number or fact in under 60 words.
Rolling this out across a site
Retrofitting every page at once is rarely realistic. Prioritise by traffic and by how directly the page maps to a single question, since those pages see the fastest extraction gains.
- Start with your top 20 pages by organic impressions.
- Rewrite the first paragraph under each H2 to the 40 to 60 word formula.
- Re check after 60 to 90 days using a fixed set of prompts across the main AI engines.
- Roll the pattern out to the next tier of pages once the top set shows a lift.
Questions
No, it applies to the paragraph directly under a heading that is phrased as a question. Supporting paragraphs afterwards can be longer.
Generally not. Clear, direct answers tend to read well for people too, provided the supporting detail still follows rather than being cut entirely.
Most sites see measurable change within 60 to 90 days, though this depends on how often the page is recrawled and how competitive the query is.