STRUCTURED DATA · SEO GLOSSARY
openingHoursSpecification (Schema Property)
The schema.org property on LocalBusiness (and subtypes including Restaurant) that specifies when a business is open — required for accurate hours display in the Google knowledge panel, local pack listings, and "open now" filtering. Uses OpeningHoursSpecification objects with dayOfWeek, opens, and closes in 24-hour format.
Definition
`openingHoursSpecification` is a property of `LocalBusiness` and its subtypes that communicates business operating hours to Google in a machine-readable format. It accepts an array of `OpeningHoursSpecification` objects, each containing: **`dayOfWeek`** — one or more days from the Schema.org vocabulary: "Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday", "Saturday", "Sunday". Also accepts "PublicHolidays" for holiday-specific hours. **`opens`** — opening time in 24-hour format: "09:00". **`closes`** — closing time in 24-hour format: "22:00". For businesses closed on a specific day: either omit that day from the specification entirely, or create an OpeningHoursSpecification for that day with `opens: "00:00"` and `closes: "00:00"`. For businesses open midnight to midnight: `opens: "00:00"` and `closes: "23:59"`. Split service hours (e.g., a restaurant open for lunch and dinner with a mid-afternoon break): create two separate OpeningHoursSpecification objects for the same day with different opens/closes values. The simpler `openingHours` property (a string like "Mo-Fr 09:00-18:00") is an alternative but `openingHoursSpecification` provides more granular control and is preferred for complex schedules. Accuracy requirement: the schema hours must match the actual operating hours and the GBP hours. A customer who arrives at a business that schema shows as open but GBP or a sign on the door shows as closed is a trust signal violation.
Why it matters for SEO
Correct `openingHoursSpecification` enables "open now" filtering in Google Search and Maps — a feature that users apply when they have immediate intent and need a business that\'s available right now. Businesses without correct hours schema are excluded from "open now" results, which are particularly high-conversion for restaurant, retail, and service queries. The knowledge panel displays hours from both GBP and on-site schema — inconsistencies between the two sources can result in a confusing or incorrect hours display. For restaurants, incorrect hours displayed by Google (from inaccurate schema or GBP) commonly result in negative reviews from customers who arrived during displayed "open" hours to find the restaurant closed.
How DeepSEOAnalysis checks this
DeepSEOAnalysis validates `openingHoursSpecification` in LocalBusiness/Restaurant JSON-LD for: presence of the property, correct 24-hour time format for opens/closes (AM/PM format fails validation), valid dayOfWeek values, and server-rendering. Common errors flagged: uses of "09:00am" instead of "09:00" (AM/PM format is invalid), missing days that appear to be operating days based on page content, and `openingHoursSpecification` absent when GBP hours are referenced in visible page text.
Useful tools and resources
GLOSSARY
Related terms
structured data
FoodEstablishment Schema
The schema.org type for food service businesses — a subtype of LocalBusiness that includes the Restaurant, Bakery, BarOrPub, CafeOrCoffeeShop, FastFoodRestaurant, and IceCreamShop subtypes — with properties specific to food service including servesCuisine, hasMenu, acceptsReservations, and openingHoursSpecification.
Read definition →structured data
LocalBusiness Schema
LocalBusiness schema is a Schema.org structured data type that describes a local business — name, address, phone, hours, geo coordinates, and more — enabling rich Knowledge Panel and Local Pack displays in Google Search. It is the foundation of structured data for local SEO.
Read definition →technical
Restaurant SEO
Local SEO practice applied specifically to food service businesses — optimising Google Business Profile, Restaurant schema, cuisine-type and location keyword targeting, review acquisition velocity, and mobile performance to rank in the local pack and organic results for dining-intent queries.
Read definition →technical
GBP Optimisation (Google Business Profile)
The ongoing management and improvement of a Google Business Profile listing to maximise visibility in local pack and Google Maps results — covering category selection, business information completeness, review management, photo updates, GBP posts, service listings, and Q&A management.
Read definition →structured data
Structured Data
Machine-readable annotations added to HTML — usually JSON-LD — that explicitly describe what a page is about to search engines and AI systems.
Read definition →See how your site scores on openingHoursSpecification (Schema Property).
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