Google Revises URL Parameter Best Practices

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By Muhammad Hussain

Google updated the search documentation by revising the URL parameter guidelines. It suggests using “=” and “&” for better website crawling.

Key Takeaways

  • Google advises to use “=” and “&” to separate multiple key-value pairs
  • Avoid using non-standard parameter formats, such as commas and colons.
  • It helps in preventing indexing and crawling problems.

search bar showcasing URL.

Google added a URL parameter guideline in a recent search central document update. 

The update makes it easier to access by adding parameter formatting ideas from a blog post about faceted navigation into the main URL structure guidelines.

URL parameters influence website functionality, particularly for content management systems and e-commerce websites.

They keep a complete record of tracking codes, session IDs, and product filtering and sorting.

Despite their potency, they may cause SEO issues such as crawl budget waste and duplicate content.

How to Optimize URL Parameters? Key Updated Features

You need to follow the Google guidelines to optimize your URL parameters, resulting in best SEO practices.

Let’s have a quick overview of best practices to optimize the URL before understanding key updates.

1. Keep your URLs simple and short.

2. Include keywords in the URL.

3. Use hyphens to separate words.

4. Avoid using stopwords like “and,” “or,” and “of.”

5. Create URLs that describe the page content.

6. Use lowercase letters in your URLs.

7. Avoid dynamic URLs that contain long strings of arguments.

8. Use HTTPS in your website URL for security.

9. Ensure that your URLs are mobile-friendly.

To have in-depth knowledge, you can explore how to optimize your website URL in detail.

Key features that are updated in the documentation include:

  • The use of equal to sign “=” to separate key-value pairs.
  • Use ampersand “&” to add additional parameters.

Example:

https://example.com/category?category=dresses&sort=low-to-high&sid=789

It’s an alternative, as Google recommended to avoiding,

  • Colons and brackets
  • Single or double commas

Proper parameter formatting ensures improved crawling efficiency and avoidance of common indexing issues that degrade search performance.

The documentation addresses more general URL parameter difficulties, such as handling session IDs, controlling dynamic content generation, and properly using sorting parameters in practice.

Google made it clear with this update that it prefers standard URL parameters, even though they haven’t stated that using non-standard criteria will lower ranks. Switching to a standard format prevents future issues, new websites, and redesigns.

The new Google updates are modifying the SEO practices. Recently, Google announced the removal of the sitelinks search box in November due to the declining feature use.

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