Does the favicon need to be on the root directory of my website for Google Search?

While placing the favicon in the root directory (e.g., `yourdomain.com/favicon.ico`) is a common and simple practice that Google readily finds, it's not strictly mandatory. As long as the favicon is declared correctly in your HTML's `` section with a valid and accessible URL pointing to its location, Google can find it, regardless of whether it's in the root or a subdirectory.