URL Optimization

The naming of your webpage url is very important for search engine optimization. Search engines realize that the filename or path of a webpage is a good indicator of the theme for a particular page.

Word of warning: If you have existing rankings that are generating traffic we do not recommend you change the urls for these pages. When you change a webpage url you are essentially starting over on the ground floor when it comes to gaining a search engine's trust. However, if you do change the url, you can setup a 301 redirect so that your old url just redirects to the new one.

Here is our growing list of recommended principles to follow for url optimization. All these rules come from extensive research and have been implemented in our Professional SEO Tool. Rather than optimizing your url manually, our tool will analyze your url and give you specific optimization suggestions to perform that are specific to a page. Signup Free for the easy way to optimize your url.

Length

Short, descriptive urls are optimal. It is very important the url for your webpage contains your keyword phrase and is no longer than 100 characters.

Calculate the length of your url with our URL Analyzer Tool.

Exact Matches in Path

When possible you should include an exact match within the url path of your webpage.

http://www.yoursite.com/your-keyword-phrase/

Generate SEO friendly URL's with our .htaccess Url Rewriter Tool.


I've Optimized my Url, What's Next?

Proceed to the Backlink Optimization guide to continue optimizing your site. Or choose another optimization guide.