5 Examples of Terrible Content That Ranks Remarkably Well

5 Examples of Terrible Content That Ranks Remarkably Well

Despite all the SEO best practices and quality guidelines pushed by search engines like Google, some poorly written or outdated content still manages to rank surprisingly high. Whether it’s due to domain authority, strong backlinks, or sheer luck, these examples show that SEO isn't always about quality — and they offer important lessons for content marketers.

1. Keyword-Stuffed Pages with No Value

There are countless pages from older websites that still rank because they were heavily keyword-optimized years ago. These pages read like a broken record, repeating the same phrase over and over with little useful information. Yet, thanks to their age and backlink profiles, they stay on top.

Takeaway: SEO success isn't permanent. If you're competing with low-quality but well-ranked content, focus on creating genuinely helpful, updated, and well-structured alternatives.

2. Outdated "How-To" Guides That Haven’t Been Updated in Years

Some “Top 10 Tips” or “Beginner’s Guide” style posts rank high but haven’t been touched in over a decade. Their information is often obsolete, tools are discontinued, and screenshots are blurry or missing — but their historical traffic keeps them alive.

Takeaway: Keep your content fresh. Regular updates and content audits can help you overtake outdated but well-ranked posts.

3. Thin Affiliate Pages with Barely Any Original Content

You’ve seen them: a few lines of product description copied from Amazon, a couple of generic pros and cons, and dozens of affiliate links. Despite the lack of depth, these pages still appear in top search results due to aggressive link building or being hosted on strong domains.

Takeaway: Authority and backlinks matter. But sustainable SEO comes from trust and user value — something thin pages often lack in the long run.

4. Forum Threads with No Clear Answers

In niche topics, outdated forum threads like those on Reddit, Quora, or Stack Overflow often rank for long-tail queries — even if the original question is never really answered. These threads might be years old with off-topic discussions or broken links.

Takeaway: Forums can dominate search results due to their community engagement and depth, even if the actual quality is poor. You can outperform them with structured, reliable, and expert-backed answers.

5. Clickbait Articles That Overpromise and Underdeliver

"10 Secrets That Will Change Your Life" — you click in, and it’s fluff. Still, thanks to CTR, emotional headlines, and aggressive social promotion, these articles sometimes get tons of backlinks and rank surprisingly well.

Takeaway: Headlines matter, but substance is key. Pair strong titles with strong content to get — and keep — rankings.