URL structure checklist
Looking for a simple checklist to help improve your WordPress site's URL structure? Check out our top tips for creating clear, concise URLs that improve your SEO and make your site more user-friendly.
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URL structure checklist
Avoid repetititon
Don’t repeat words in your URLs, for example:- ❌ /armchairs/leather-armchars/
- ✅ /armchairs/leather/
Limit the number of directories
Stick to a maximum of 2/3 directories within your URLs. URL directories should indicate site structure, but they should not be used to show your full site structure. For example:- ✅ /mens/white-trainers/
- ❌ /mens/clothing/shoes/trainers/white/
Do this to reduce the chances you’ll need to do risky redirects in the future. Keeping directories and site structures separate will reduce the chance of needing to change URLs.Make sure to use both the key and value for parameters
- ✅ https://www.example.com/products?category=clothing&color=blue
- ❌ https://www.example.com/products?category
Use hyphens to separate words
- ✅ https://www.example.com/keyword-rich-url
- ❌ https://www.example.com/keywordrichurl
- ❌ https://www.example.com/keyword_rich_url
Keep URLs relevant to the page
- ✅ https://www.example.com/blue-widgets
- ❌ https://www.example.com/widgets-12345
Use lowercase letters
Use lowercase letters- ✅ https://www.example.com/lowercase-url
- ❌ https://www.example.com/MixedCaseURL
Avoid using stop words
- ✅ https://www.example.com/widgets-blue
- ❌ https://www.example.com/the-blue-widgets
Avoid using dynamic URLs
- ✅ https://www.example.com/static-page
- ❌ https://www.example.com/page.php?id=12345
Dynamic URLs can also cause issues with caching.Don't use hashes
- ✅ https://www.example.com/blue-widgets
- ❌ https://www.example.com/widgets#blue
It is acceptable to use # links to anchor to a particular page section. However, do not conceal content behind a hash.Localize them if possible
- ✅ https://www.example.com/de/produkte
- ❌ https://www.example.com/de/products
Use UTF-8 encoding, avoid non-ASCII characters
- ✅ https://www.example.com/caf%C3%A9
- ❌ https://www.example.com/café
Use subdomains, TLDs, or sub-directories with a gTLD for language/geo variants
- ✅ https://de.example.com/products
- ✅ https://example.de/products
- ✅ https://www.example.com/de/products
- ❌ https://www.example.com/products?locale=de
Avoid session IDs, use cookies instead
- ✅ https://www.example.com/products
- ❌ https://www.example.com/products?jsessionid=1234567890
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