: Does Google reward sites for using images from different domains, sub domains and CDN's? I believe that images on the same domain can contribute to search engine rankings (mainly Google), example:

@Kimberly868

Google has said that it sees "whatever.example.com" as a different site than "www.example.com" for instance. So, it would make sense that for SEO purposes, hosting the pictures on a sub domain would be a bad idea. However, Google at the same time actively promote the use of CDN's for performance purposes.

Google does not consist of just computers, but rather a lot of people who check the algorithms all the time, which is why I'm pretty sure that using a CDN should have no adverse effect on your SEO rankings.

But as always when it comes to SEO questions, it's a guessing game and the rules can change with Google's will (or ill-will)...

So to sum up:

cdn.example.com/image.jpg should rank as effectively as example.com/image.jpg I doubt it will boost the main example.com, however I don't think it'll hurt either.
It shouldn't rank differently.
Using a CDN shouldn't sacrifice ranking. Perhaps there might be a dip for a while until Google realizes you're using a CDN, but it should bounce back.

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