While often overlooked, SEO-friendly URLs play a pivotal role in determining how well your site ranks and how much organic traffic it attracts. Clear, descriptive URLs help search engines understand the content of your pages, making it easier for them to index and rank your site appropriately.
In this blog, we’ll guide you through the essential steps to create SEO-friendly URLs that will boost your search rankings and enhance your site’s performance. You’ll find actionable, straightforward steps grounded in industry best practices to help you optimize your site structure for long-term success.
What Are SEO-Friendly URLS?
SEO-friendly URLs are web addresses designed to be easily readable by both users and search engines. This means they are clear and concise and include relevant keywords that describe the page’s content.
An easily readable URL is structured in a way that helps users quickly understand what to expect from the page and allows search engines to interpret and index the content more effectively. This clarity enhances user experience and improves the page’s search engine visibility.
How To Create SEO-Friendly URLs (+ Examples)
- Write for the User, Not for Google
- Know What To Avoid
- Include Relevant Keywords
- Use Hyphens To Separate Words
- Keep it Concise
- Create Logical URL Paths
- Minimize Click Depth When Applicable
- Plan Your Blogs in a Subfolder
1. Write for the User, Not for Google
Ultimately, you need to write the URL (and SEO-friendly content in general) for humans, not bots. As seen in the example below, the shorter URL is more pleasing to the human eye.
Which would you prefer to read?
Though Google will read and interpret either of the two URLs, it is more likely to rank the shorter URL over the messier one, given it meets user intent and other ranking factors like keyword targeting and SEO-friendly content.
2. Know What To Avoid
When creating SEO-friendly URLs, there are a few things you should steer clear of:
- Dates: Avoid adding dates in URLs (like 2024/08/15/page-title). They can make your content look outdated and might hurt your SEO over time. Dates can also make updating URLs more complicated.
- Uppercase Letters: URLs are case-sensitive, so Page-Title and page-title are seen as different URLs. Stick to lowercase to keep things simple and avoid link issues.
- Special Characters: Special characters like !, @, or # can mess up how browsers and search engines read URLs. Use hyphens (–) or underscores (_) to keep your URLs clean and easy to understand.
- “Stop” Words: Words like “and,” “the,” or “of” don’t add much to your URL and can make them unnecessarily long. Focus on the main keywords that clearly describe your page.
By avoiding these, you’ll create straightforward URLs that help boost your site’s SEO.
3. Include Relevant Keywords
Incorporating relevant keywords into your URLs is crucial for improving your site’s SEO. Keywords in URLs help search engines understand what your page is about and can also increase the likelihood that users will click on your link. The key is to use keywords that accurately reflect the content of your page to avoid common mistakes like overstuffing or making the URL too long.
For example, a blog subcategory landing page on hair care might look like:
4. Use Hyphens To Separate Words
When creating URLs, using hyphens (–) to separate words is important. Hyphens make URLs easier for users and search engines to read. Without hyphens, words can blend together, making the URL hard to interpret, which can negatively impact your SEO.
5. Keep It Concise
Concise URLs are easier to read, share, and remember. They provide a clear indication of the page’s content without unnecessary clutter. Long, complex URLs can be confusing and may get truncated in search results or social media posts, making them less effective.
6. Create Logical URL Paths
Logical URL paths help search engines understand your website’s structure and make it easier for users to navigate. A logical URL path reflects the hierarchy of your content and provides context about the page’s topic. By organizing your URLs in a way that mirrors the structure of your website, you can enhance both user experience and search engine optimization.
7. Minimize Click Depth When Applicable
We know that pages farther away from the home page are deemed “less important,” but this does not mean “less rank-able.”
Ideally, your main category and subcategory pages should be about 3–4 clicks away from the homepage. This structure is still suitable for a large site and won’t negatively impact SEO, as long as it’s consistent and clean.”
Breaking it up helps simplify the message while keeping the meaning intact.
8. Reflect Subfolder Categories in Your URL Structure
Now that we understand what impacts an ideal URL structure, let’s go over how to implement it.
Let’s say your website plans on having a pretty well-built out blog with the categories and subcategories seen below:
Start by organizing each category within a /blog/ subfolder like:
This structure is very functional — as in a user can remove part of the URL and get back to the landing page before it. Plus, it clearly tells the user and Google where they are within the site and how the content is related.
Below is an example of a website’s blog, its subcategories, and how the URLs could be structured in three different ways:
- Default “category” subfolder
- Custom Category Subfolder
- Additional subfolders
Default “Category” Subfolder
- Definition: ADD
- Best for: Some larger websites, like e-commerce marketplaces, will actually have this reflected as /category/ in their URLs to help organize products and content. Similarly, with certain WordPress themes, your blog posts can be organized within custom categories that you set up.
- Consideration: This may sound appealing for our super-structured folks, however, sometimes this defaults to creating a /category/ subfolder within your URL, instead of a custom /blog/ one (if that’s what you wanted).
Depending on your site theme and customizations, you would have to manually alter this default URL structure through the WordPress permalink settings, Yoast plugin settings, or through .htaccess.
Ideally though, if this structure works for your website, each category landing page would be between two to three clicks away from the homepage. This means that every subcategory page should be no more than four clicks away.
Pros:
- This lets you organize and archive all blog category content within that “/category/” subfolder. If you’re using the landing pages for link equity and hosting actual content, this would also create ease of reporting and page tracking.
Cons:
- Let’s be real — the URL will be longer when navigating to the subcategory landing pages — and even longer once a user gets to an actual blog post. This increases the click depth for blog posts to about 4+ clicks away from the homepage.
Custom Category Subfolder
You’ll see that the URLs can be condensed to avoid repeating the main keyword like in /blog/hair/hair-trends, and this still makes for a very clean, functional URL.
Pros:
- The URL is immediately shortened. This is equally as effective for the user and for Google’s understanding of a site’s structure.
Cons:
- The only con here may be that it may be less direct if you need to track the actual subcategory landing page performance since they won’t be nestled under a universal /category/ subfolder.
Additional Subfolders (Are They Needed?)
Maybe your website is smaller and won’t need multi-level blog categories. Plenty of large sites have succeeded without using subcategory folders at all, and this may be a great option for you if your main interest is driving link equity to your blog content.
It could look something like what we list below, or the subcategories can not exist at all, which would mean all link equity goes straight to the written content living under /blog/.
Pros:
- Skipping the subfolders is a clean way to focus on the blog content and drive link equity and rankings straight to the blogs and/or the top-level category pages.
- The category subfolders function strictly for site navigation, and no SEO or user experience is lost.
Cons:
- The main con here is really a matter of preference. If your subcategories matter for your site content and structure, you may consider keeping subfolders throughout your URL structure.
- This URL structure is also less functional, in that the user cannot remove the last trail of the URL string and return to the previous landing page.
However, implementing breadcrumbs is an SEO best practice anyways and should be used regardless of the URL structure.
Great SEO URL Structure Examples
Want to see how to do it? Here are some examples of well-crafted, SEO-friendly URLs that follow best practices. These examples show how simple tweaks can make your URLs more effective for both search engines and users.
Zoom
Let’s have a look at this URL from Zoom:
https://www.zoom.com/en/blog/how-to-prioritize-tasks/
This URL gets a lot of things right:
- It includes relevant keywords like “how to,” “prioritize,” and “tasks.” These words clearly tell both search engines and users what the content is about, helping it rank better for related searches.
- The URL is concise and to the point. It avoids unnecessary fluff and sticks to the essential information, making it easy to read, remember, and share.
- The words are separated by hyphens, which keeps everything clean and readable. No need to guess where one word ends and another begins!
Norton
Let’s take a look at this URL from Norton:
https://ca.norton.com/blog/how-to/computer-maintenance
Norton has done a fantastic job structuring this URL:
- Norton uses subfolders like “blog” and “how-to” to neatly organize their content. This makes the URL more user-friendly and signals to search engines that the page is part of a specific category or section. It’s a smart way to structure a blog and helps users and search engines navigate the site more effectively.
- The URL includes the keywords “computer” and “maintenance,” which indicate what the page is about. This helps the page rank better in search results for those specific terms.
- The URL is straightforward and to the point, avoiding unnecessary details that could clutter the link. It’s easy to read, share, and remember — exactly what you want in an SEO-friendly URL.
Rainbow Restoration
Let’s break down what makes this URL from Rainbow Restores so effective:
https://rainbowrestores.com/blog/category/fire-safety
Rainbow Restores does an excellent job of creating logical URL paths that make it easier for both users and search engines to navigate their site:
- This URL follows a clear, logical path that reflects the hierarchy of the site’s content. Starting with “blog,” it’s immediately clear that this is part of their blog section.
- Then, it drills down into the “category” subfolder and finally lands on “fire-safety,” which tells you exactly what this particular section is about. This organization helps search engines understand the site’s structure and what this specific page focuses on.
- The URL provides context about the page’s topic right within the link. Using descriptive terms like “category” and “fire safety” makes it easy for users to know exactly where they are on the site and what kind of content they can expect to find.
URL Optimization FAQ
Curious about how to optimize your URLs for better SEO? Here are some common questions and straightforward answers to help you get it rig
Which URL Works Best for SEO?
The best URLs for SEO are short, descriptive, and include relevant keywords. They should be easy to read for both users and search engines, avoiding unnecessary elements like dates or special characters.
But in practice, the most honest answer we can give is that it depends.
There are three main things to consider:
- How big your site is, and how built out your blog category and subcategory pages will be
- Where the majority of your site content will live (i.e. /blog/)
- How you will be prioritizing content to drive traffic and rankings
Does URL Structure Affect SEO?
Yes, URL structure plays a crucial role in SEO. A well-organized URL that reflects the hierarchy of your content helps search engines understand your site better, leading to improved visibility and ranking.
How Do You Check URLs for SEO?
You can check URLs for SEO by ensuring they are concise, keyword-rich, and free from unnecessary clutter like special characters or stop words. Tools like Google Search Console or SEO auditing software can help you analyze and optimize your URLs.
Need Help with Site and URL Optimization?
Optimizing your URLs is one of the simplest yet most effective ways to boost your site’s SEO. By keeping your URLs short and sweet, using the right keywords, and organizing them logically, you can greatly impact your search rankings and user experience.
It can be straightforward if you have a plan, but if you’re looking to take things to the next level, getting expert help might be the way to go.
Our team offers first-class SEO support and services, including tailored strategies, ongoing support, and one-off project implementation. Want to see how far your site can go? Let’s chat about how we can help you optimize for success!
