Glossary
What is Canonical URL?
A canonical URL is the preferred address of a page when the same content is reachable at several. It tells search engines which one to index.
Many sites serve the same content at more than one address: with and without www, with tracking parameters, with a trailing slash or without. A canonical URL is the one you want search engines to treat as the real page.
How it's set
Add a <link rel="canonical" href="https://example.com/page"> tag to the <head> of each version, pointing at the preferred address. A page should usually point to itself.
Why it matters
Without it, search engines have to guess which version to index, and ranking signals such as links can be split across the copies.
Good practice
- Use absolute URLs.
- Keep it consistent with your sitemap and internal links.
- Don't point the canonical at a page that redirects or returns an error.
- It's a strong hint, not a command: search engines may choose differently if signals conflict.
The meta tag generator writes the canonical tag for you. When Seovyn publishes to a destination that supports it, the article's canonical address is derived from your website and its page type, such as /blog/….
Related
- SitemapA sitemap is a file that lists the pages of a site you want search engines to find, often with the date each last changed.
- IndexingIndexing is when a search engine stores a page in its database so it can appear in results. A page that isn't indexed can't rank.
- Meta tag generatorWrite the title, description, canonical, Open Graph and Twitter tags for a page and preview the social card.