Creating URLs is part and parcel of creating and maintaining a website. If you are adding lots of blog articles or products to your site on a regular basis, you might want to consider what the best URL structure is for SEO. Although ideally, your URL structure should be implemented when you first build your website, life doesn’t always go to plan. So, here is my simple guide on how best to structure URLs for your website and a few tips on how to implement best practices.
What is a URL
Let’s start this conversation by explaining what a URL is. A Uniform Resource Locator, or URL for short, is more commonly known as a “web address”. It specifies the location of a resource (such as a web page) on the internet. A URL is usually designed to be readable text for humans so they can easily navigate through sites. It has several components that make up a full URL. These include:
- Protocol, which indicates how a browser should retrieve information about a resource such as HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, etc.
- Subdomain, which directs users to a particular site or area of a site. Many sites use www. as their subdomain, or may choose to have a separate subdomain for a shop. However, this is optional as not all sites need or want a subdomain. This website, for example, does not use a subdomain.
- Domain Name, which is the main web address that is unique to you and your company (mine is middleton-marketing). This may or may not include a subdomain, see details below.
- Top-Level Domain, which usually signifies a country but can be a whole host of words nowadays. The most popular examples are .com, .co.uk, .net etc.
- Path, which is the end of a URL and is an internal path to a particular page on a website. This can be as short as one word or a phrase comprising of several pages deep. A forward-slash (/) is usually used to indicate another layer in the path.
All this together gives you the URL in this format.
protocol://subdomain.domain-name.top-level-domain/path
And if we were to take the page you are on at the moment as an example, it is split like this:
https://middleton-marketing.co.uk/blog/url-structure-for-seo
If my website was run off a subdomain, such as the most common www, then it would look like this:
https://www.middleton-marketing.co.uk/blog/url-structure-for-seo
As you can see, the URL being made up of these different parts allows for all websites to be completely individual and ensure visitors are going to the right place on the internet.
How important is URL structure for SEO
URL Structure and content is a ranking factor for Google. It is therefore an important element to focus on for your SEO strategy. Google even provide guidance on creating the best URL structure. The basic premise is that a site’s URL structure should be as simple as possible. It should be easy to read for users, logical in its hierarchical organisation and be as short as is reasonably feasible.
This is an easier to understand URL:
https://www.examplecompany.com/womens-dresses/blue-panda-print-aline-dress?size=10
Than this:
http://www.examplecompany.com/index.php?product_id=3sda&sid=3a5ebcgerew4aa6f849f730f1
What is the best URL structure for SEO
There are several considerations for creating the best URL structure for SEO.
URL Length
The maximum number of characters for a URL is 2,048. If it’s more than this, it won’t be displayed by a browser. But it’s highly unlikely it will get this large and if it is, then there is clearly some naming issues with your URL pathways. Ideally, I would say that a URL should be no longer than 100 characters. This is to ensure it is not cut short on a Search Engine Results Page (SERP) and so reduce the appeal of your Organic Listing on Google.
URL Path
A page closer to the homepage may get a slight authority boost vs. pages buried deep down in a site’s architecture, creating shorter pathways is key. A good example is blog articles that can have many different path types such as date, category or blog home. See the length changes in these examples:
https://middleton-marketing.co.uk/blog/url-structure-for-seo (60 characters)
https://middleton-marketing.co.uk/blog/on-page-seo/url-structure-for-seo (72) characters)
https://middleton-marketing.co.uk/blog/2021/03/url-structure-for-seo (68 characters)
I choose to keep my blog path to just ‘blog’ to keep my site as simple as possible. This is especially important when my articles may have a longer title/URL.
Keywords in URL
In years gone by, people incorrectly thought that all domain names should have the keyword in, so you would find companies buying up vast amounts of domains to create landing pages or just never using them. Not only was this a waste of time, since it was never a major ranking factor, but it could also damage your main website’s ranking since other domains/sites of your own were attempting to compete. At the same time, companies were wasting money on the annual domain and hosting charges for these subsites, not to mention the work involved to maintain sites. Today, Google has confirmed that having a keyword in a URL is only a very small ranking factor. As a factor, it should therefore be considered when creating URLs but not to the detriment of other factors.
URL String
The URL string, which is similar to the path, is another relevancy signal. How the site is structured with the use of categories can help Google understand what your site and its pages are about. As with the example in the section, How important is URL Structure for SEO, a string that can be read and understood by humans is of way more value to users and search engines than a random string of numbers and letters. The only thing to consider is if you were presented with your URL without any prior knowledge of your site, would you know where you will land if you clicked it as a link. If the answer is no, it’s time to rewrite and restructure your URLs.
Benefits of a good URL structure
The benefits of a good URL structure are clear when you consider the best practices.
Ranking Factor
It’s a ranking factor for Google, as well as other search engines. If you are serious about your SEO strategy, you should consider updating your URLs in line with these best practices.
Link Building Factor
If your page has a quality URL, it will provide a relevant anchor when the URL is shared on different sites. This is especially true for forums and blogs where users who post your website might not be considering making this free bit of advertising completely Google-friendly. By having an easy to read URL, Google will be able to recognise more relevancy between forum posts and your website. This will boost your ranking further and increase any link juice you get.
Better User Experience
To me, there is no better reason to improve your site architecture than for the good of your website’s users. Anything that is good for customers, is good for Google. So, working on a URL structure that is clear to your audience will ensure:
- They can easily navigate around the site
- They can find the products and services they want quicker
- It provides a more enjoyable browsing experience by taking any extra thinking out of how to get to the correct page.
A Word of Warning
What to avoid when changing URL structure
One important thing to consider before doing any work on changing the structure of the site is to make sure any pages affected are redirected to the new URL. If you don’t do this, you will end up with lots of 404 error pages, which could tank your site’s rankings. Although a URL change may seem simple, you need to ensure it migrates properly for the sake of your customers and for search engines. If you are not sure how to do Redirects, please get in touch with an experienced web developer or Technical SEO specialist before you make any changes.
Need to change your URL structure?
If after reading this article, you realise you need to change your URL structure, please get in touch. I can help you determine the best structure for your site, implement the changes on your site and provide the administration needed to ensure rankings are not affected and your site continues to perform. I can provide this as a one-off service or as part of an SEO audit or Website Audit. Get in touch to set up a meeting. Let’s grow your business together.