URL structure should be descriptive, short, and use hyphens to separate words. Include a keyword where natural and avoid unnecessary parameters for clear indexing.
Are you using website addresses that look like a jumbled mess of numbers and symbols? Do you feel like your content is great, but search engines just do not get it? I understand the frustration when complex URLs hide your best pages.
Do not worry; I am here to share my 15 years of experience to help you fix this. We will talk about What is URL structure? and give you easy, actionable tips. These tips will make your website clearer for both Google and your visitors, improving your SEO right away.
What is URL Structure? A Blueprint for SEO
What is URL structure? refers to the logical organization and look of your website’s addresses. It is like the table of contents and chapter titles of a book, showing the hierarchy of your content. A good URL structure is short, descriptive, and uses clear, separated words (like this: /category/page-name).
This structure helps search engines understand the relationship between your pages and what each page is about. I always tell people to keep it simple, use hyphens to separate words, and include their main keywords. A simple, clean URL is easier for people to share and remember, which is great for user experience.
URL Structure Across Different Platforms
The way you set up your URL structure depends a lot on the CMS you chose for your website. Some platforms give you total freedom, while others set a strong, helpful foundation for you. I will walk you through how the popular systems manage this crucial SEO step.
URL Structure in Popular CMS Platforms
WordPress: WordPress offers the most flexibility through its “Permalinks” settings, letting you choose a clean, post-name-only structure (e.g., /article-title). I highly recommend avoiding the default date or number-based options to keep your content timeless. For advanced control, plugins like Yoast SEO give you even more power to customize the final part of the URL, which we call the slug.
Shopify: Shopify sets a very opinionated, structured URL path for specific page types, like /products/ or /collections/. You cannot remove these main category folders, so I focus on optimizing the final part, the product or collection name. Always keep that final slug short, descriptive, and keyword-focused for the best results.
Wix: Wix allows you to customize the URL slug for each page, which is a great improvement from their older system. They manage the main structure, but you need to manually ensure your page slugs are simple and clear. Use their built-in SEO tools to edit the address when you create a new page.
Webflow: Webflow gives you excellent control, especially with its CMS Collections, where you can define the URL path using different fields. You can build a clean hierarchical structure that clearly shows the relationship between your content pieces. This flexibility makes it a favorite for SEO professionals and designers who want full control.
Custom CMS: With a custom system, a developer defines the entire URL routing from scratch. This means you have ultimate control, but you must make sure the developer follows all the best SEO practices from the very start. I find it essential to plan the URL pattern before any pages go live to avoid costly changes later.
Industry Applications of URL Structure
A smart URL structure needs to fit the type of business you run to be truly effective for SEO. Let us look at how different industries can use this to their best advantage.
E-commerce Businesses
For an e-commerce site, I recommend a structure that follows a clear path from category to product, like /shoes/running/mens-air-max. This hierarchy helps search engines understand the flow and importance of your categories. A clear structure is especially crucial for internal linking and when a user lands deep within your site.
Local Businesses
Local businesses often benefit from including the city or service area in their top-level service pages, such as /plumbing-services/los-angeles. This directly tells both users and Google what service is offered where. Do not repeat the location keyword too many times, as simple clarity is always best.
SaaS (Software as a Service)
SaaS companies should use a logical structure to separate their informational content from their main commercial pages. A good setup uses subfolders like /features/ and /pricing/ for sales pages and /blog/ for articles. I always focus on including the core feature names in the URLs to capture high-intent search traffic.
Blogs and Content Sites
For a blog, a simple structure that avoids dates is usually the best approach: /blog/post-title-keyword. This ensures your articles do not look old and can be updated without creating a new URL. I advise using the target keyword in the slug to reinforce the topic to search engines.
FAQ Section: URL Structure Quick Answers
Q: Should I use hyphens or underscores to separate words in a URL?
A: You must always use hyphens (dashes) to separate words in your URLs because Google clearly sees them as word separators. Underscores often connect words, which makes your URLs harder for search engines to read.
Q: Is there an ideal length for a URL?
A: While Google says URLs can be very long, I recommend keeping them as short as possible, ideally under 60 characters. Shorter URLs are easier for people to read, share, and remember, which helps your click-through rates.
Q: Does changing an existing URL hurt my SEO?
A: Changing an existing, indexed URL will hurt your SEO unless you immediately implement a 301 redirect from the old URL to the new one. Use a 301 redirect to tell search engines that the change is permanent, saving your ranking power.
Q: What is a URL ‘slug’ and how should I optimize it?
A: The slug is the last part of the URL (e.g., /this-is-the-slug) that you control. To optimize it, I tell you to use two to three of your main keywords, separate them with hyphens, and make sure to use only lowercase letters.
