Faceted Navigation: An SEO Win Waiting to Happen

Faceted navigation is simply a diagnostic that allows users to refine their hunt results by applying aggregate filters astatine the aforesaid time.

Like category, color, size, and terms ranges.

Instead of endless scrolling, your customers find precisely what they want. With conscionable a fewer clicks.

Great for income and idiosyncratic experience? Absolutely.

But what galore don’t recognize is that faceted navigation is simply a monolithic SEO opportunity.

When you bash it right, these filtered pages assistance Google observe and recognize your astir invaluable content—leading to higher rankings and much integrated traffic.

In this guide, you'll learn:

• How to find and hole faceted navigation problems
• How to crook filtered pages into high-performing SEO assets

But first, let’s clarify:

What makes faceted navigation antithetic from regular filters?

Filter vs. Faceted Navigation

What’s the difference?

A filter shows you 1 diagnostic astatine a time. Faceted navigation lets you furniture aggregate filters for hyper-specific results.

Let’s interruption it down with examples.

Take Gousto’s look search. It’s basal filtering astatine work.

Choose 1 option. Like “Quick and Easy.” 

And you lone get that.

Now, cheque retired Airbnb's faceted navigation.

Say you’re searching for a New York compartment with 2 bathrooms, a pool, and a dedicated workspace.

With faceted navigation, you tin cheque disconnected each 3 filters astatine once.

And conscionable similar that! The hundreds of cabins go 63 cleanable matches.

Pretty sweet, right?

Well, not quite.

Why?

Because portion your visitors emotion this super-targeted search, hunt engines spot thing wholly different.

Let maine amusement you what I mean.

Faceted Navigation SEO Challenges

Here’s the occupation with faceted navigation:

Every clip a visitant clicks a filter, your tract dynamically creates a unsocial URL.

That happens for each azygous combination.

Let maine amusement you what this looks like.

When you commencement a search, it usually starts with a cleanable URL.

Like Take Much Better Adventures’ hunt URL:

Now, adhd 3 filters and the URL changes.

That’s 1 filter combo creating 1 caller URL.

Seems harmless enough.

But fto maine amusement you what's REALLY happening connected a emblematic online store:

You've got filters for:

• Colors
• Sizes
• Price ranges
• Styles
• Brands
• Materials
• Customer ratings
• Sale status

Now ticker what happens.

A shopper comes on and starts combining filters:

• Show maine reddish OR bluish items...
• In size tiny OR medium…
• Under $50...
• Just “Puffer…”

Each combination? A caller URL.

Each filter stack? You guessed it. More URLs.

Very quickly, this tin multiply into hundreds, thousands, oregon adjacent millions of unsocial URLs.

"Great!" you mightiness think. "More URLs means much chances to rank!"

Not quite.

Here's what really happens:

• Every filter operation creates astir identical pages (that’s duplicate content sabotaging your SEO)
• Search engines discarded clip crawling these variations (a.k.a. crawl waste, which is problematic for large sites)
• Your champion pages get buried nether each these filter combinations (classic scale bloat i.e., excessively galore near-duplicate pages successful Google’s index)

In short, not good.

So, let’s cleanable up the messiness earlier it wholly tanks your rankings.

Further reading: What Is Crawl Budget and Why Does It Matter for SEO

How to Optimize Faceted Navigation for Users and Bots

Your faceted navigation needs to enactment for some users and hunt engines.

What happens erstwhile you get this right?

Visitors find precisely what they want.

They enactment longer and prosecute much profoundly with your website.

And Google?

They’ve been wide astir this: User behavior affects rankings.

When Google sees visitors actively engaging with your pages alternatively than bouncing backmost to search?

They thin to reward those pages with amended rankings.

Here's however Leigh McKenzie, Head of SEO astatine Backlinko, puts it:

Faceted navigation occurrence comes down to balance. It should beryllium intuitive for users helping them find what they request quickly, portion staying optimized for hunt engines to debar issues similar duplicate oregon low-quality URLs. Get the equilibrium right, and you'll boost engagement and amended hunt motor visibility.

The challenge?

Your faceted navigation needs the close setup to marque this work.

Here's how:

Step 1. Find Faceted Navigation SEO Issues

First, cheque if faceted navigation is causing SEO problems.

Here’s how:

1. Find Your Faceted Navigation Pattern

Start by identifying your faceted URL pattern.

• Go to your site’s main class oregon hunt page
• Click 1 oregon much filters
• Watch what happens to your URL

Here's what you're looking for:

Every tract adds filter parameters differently. But they each travel a pattern.

For example, connected the Build with Ferguson’s bath faucets page, the basal URL is:

https://www.build.com/bathroom-faucets-sale-24/c132751

Now ticker what happens erstwhile you:

• Select "Faucet" arsenic merchandise type
• Choose "Vigo" arsenic manufacturer

The URL changes to:

https://www.build.com/bathroom-faucets-sale-24/c132751?facets=type_s:Faucet~manufacturer_s:Vigo

See that "?facets=" part?

 That's their filter indicator. Everything aft it shows which filters are active.

Etsy, connected the different hand, adds “?q=”:

https://www.etsy.com/search?q=baby+gift&explicit=1&is_discounted=true&is_merch_library=true&ship_to=ES&price_bucket=1&max=20

2. Check Your Crawl Data

Found your URL parameter pattern? Let’s spot if it’s causing problems.

Go to Google Search Console (GSC) to spot if Googlebot is wasting its crawl fund connected each those filter combinations.

First, unfastened Google Search Console.

Click “Settings.”

Scroll to “Crawling” > “Crawl stats.”

Click "OPEN REPORT" to presumption your crawl data.

Scroll to “By record type” and click “HTML.”

This volition amusement you Googlebot's crawl activity.

Look nether “Examples” and cheque for URLs matching your faceted URL patterns.

Finding excessively galore filtered URLs? 

That's a problem.

Googlebot is burning done your crawl fund connected pages that don't merit the attention.

3. Check Index Coverage

Next, cheque however galore of your faceted navigation pages Google’s indexing.

Go to “Indexing” > “Pages.”

Click “View information astir indexed pages.”

Scroll to the “Examples” section. And cheque if determination are URLs matching your faceted patterns.

Seeing excessively galore duplicate filtered URLs?

That’s trouble.

These pages could beryllium stealing ranking powerfulness from your superior content.

Another spot to cheque are your "Not indexed" pages.

Return to “Indexing” > “Pages.” Then, scroll to “Why pages aren’t indexed.”

Here, Google lists wherefore definite pages were crawled but not added to its index.

For example, click “Crawled - presently not indexed.”

Then, look astatine the illustration URLs.

If the URLs lucifer your faceted navigation patterns, it means Google is crawling them. But not indexing them.

That’s a occupation you privation to address. 

Why?

Googlebot has constricted clip connected your site. 

Every 2nd it spends crawling filter combinations is clip NOT spent connected your important pages.

Running a ample site? 

Then you truly request to wage attention.

Those wasted crawls tin impact which of your pages rank.

Further reading: Google Search Console: The Definitive Guide

Step 2. Clean Up Low-Value Faceted URLs

Have you recovered your site’s low-value faceted URLs successful Google’s index?

It's clip to get them retired of there.

You've got 4 ways to grip this.

1. Add Noindex Tags

Want to support immoderate pages retired of hunt results? The noindex tag helps you with that.

Here's the codification to adhd to your HTML:

<meta name="robots" content="noindex">

2. Block Crawler Access

Use your robots.txt record to halt hunt motor bots from crawling definite pages.

Simply adhd disallow rules similar this:

User-agent: *
Disallow: /filter-options/
Disallow: /*?color=

Want to spot this successful action?

Check retired Tiffany & Co.'s robots.txt file.

They artifact treble colour combinations from being crawled.

Here’s why:

These pages make endless URL variations that amusement near-duplicate contented and devour up their crawl budget.

3. Use Canonical Tags

Got aggregate URLs showing the aforesaid content?

Canonical tags archer hunt engines which mentation is the main one.

For example, let’s accidental you merchantability sweaters successful antithetic colors. This creates URLs like:

• yoursite.com/cardigans-sweaters/sweaters.html?color=blue
• yoursite.com/cardigans-sweaters/sweaters.html?=red
• yoursite.com/cardigans-sweaters/sweaters.html?=green

Using canonical tags, you tin constituent each these variations to a main URL with this code:

<link rel="canonical" href="yoursite.com/cardigans-sweaters/sweaters.html">

Here’s however H&M does this.

4. Clean Up Your Sitemap

Your sitemap tells hunt engines which pages are important.

Keep it focused.

• Add your invaluable filtered pages
• Remove low-value filter combinations
• Update it erstwhile you optimize caller pages

Pick Your Faceted Navigation Fix

Step 3. Find Faceted Navigation Opportunities

Fixed those SEO issues?

Great. 

Now comes the amusive part.

Let’s crook your faceted pages into premier existent estate.

Your goal?

Find filter combinations worthy optimizing for search.

What makes a operation valuable? Look for:

• High hunt volume
• Popular filter combinations

Let maine amusement you however Nike does this perfectly.

Check a wide class similar “Kids Shoes.”

Look astatine the canonical tag. It matches the URL exactly.

This shows Nike is concentrating the ranking powerfulness connected this main class page.

Now, adhd a marque filter similar "Jordan” to your selection.

This creates a caller URL.

Check the canonical. 

It matches this caller URL, too. 

Nike's treating this arsenic different important page.

Next, adhd different filter similar "Low Top" nether “Shoe Height.”

This creates yet different URL.

But here’s wherever it gets interesting.

The canonical tag points backmost to the broader “Kids Jordan Shoes” page.

What does this archer us?

Nike is sending the ranking powerfulness from this circumstantial filter operation backmost to fortify their main class page.

The takeaway:

Nike isn't trying to fertile each imaginable filter combination.

Some filtered pages? They optimize for search.

Others? 

They funnel their spot backmost to broader class pages (like sending "Kids Jordan Low Tops" powerfulness backmost to "Kids Jordan Shoes").

That's precisely what you should purpose for:

• Focus SEO worth connected high-traffic filter combinations
• Keep different filtered pages for navigation only

But however bash you take which combinations to optimize for SEO?

Let maine amusement you 2 ways.

1. Find High-Volume Search Phrases

First, usage SEO tools similar Semrush and Ahrefs to find filter combinations radical hunt for.

Here's however to bash this with Semrush.

Say you tally a wellness website.

Go to “Keyword Research” > “Keyword Magic Tool.”

Type a wide class keyword, similar "supplement."

Click “Search.”

In the model that opens, benignant the results by clicking “By volume” successful the near column.

Look what we found:

• Iron supplements: 60.5K searches
• Iron supplements for women: 8.1K searches
• Liquid robust supplements: 6.6K searches

See what's happening here?

These numbers amusement existent hunt demand.

The takeaway?

If you’ve got filtered pages matching these high-volume terms, they’re premier candidates for optimization.

2. Check Your Internal Search Data

Here's a goldmine you mightiness beryllium missing:

Your users archer you precisely what they privation done your site's hunt bar.

Here's however to find these insights successful Google Analytics:

Go to “Reports” > “Life cycle” > “Engagement” > “Events.”

Search for “view_search_results” successful the database of Events.

Click it to get interior hunt data.

Then, scroll down to “search_term.” This lists the apical hunt queries connected your site.

These presumption uncover the filter combinations shoppers look for erstwhile they’re connected your site.

Before You Optimize: Ask These Questions

Step 4. Create Dedicated Landing Pages

Once you find your high-value combinations, it's clip to optimize them for search.

Basic SEO optimizations use here.

• Set self-referencing canonical tags
• Add people keywords to H1 tags
• Include keywords successful rubric tags and meta descriptions
• Add unsocial contented truthful it stands retired from akin pages

Apart from these basal optimizations, besides marque definite to:

• Build internal links to these pages
• Keep them crawlable
• Add them to your sitemap

Let maine amusement you however Sephora does this.

Go to their "Night Creams" class page.

Now adhd these filters:

• Skin Type: "Dry" and "Sensitive"
• Formulation: "Cream"

This creates a targeted page: "Night Creams for Dry Sensitive Skin."

Look however they optimize it:

• The breadcrumb and H1 some update to "Night Creams for Dry Sensitive Skin" 
• The keywords prominently show astatine the apical of the page

Check the HTML.

• The canonical tag points to this URL
• The meta rubric and statement see the people phrase

And the results?

Google "night creams for adust delicate skin."

You'll find Sephora ranks successful the apical three.

They adjacent look successful Google's AI overviews.

That's the powerfulness of due optimization.

Now, your move:

Take a leafage from Sephora's playbook.

Pick your astir invaluable filtered pages.

Then, crook them into afloat optimized landing pages that fertile erstwhile radical are acceptable to buy.

Step 5. Monitor and Optimize

Here's a mistake we spot each the time:

People acceptable up faceted navigation and ne'er look astatine it again.

Bad move.

Why? Because hunt behaviors and trends perpetually change.

Your SEO strategy needs to support up.

Here’s what to way aft you acceptable up your faceted navigation.

Best Practices for Optimizing Faceted Pages

1. Build Your Dream Team

Faceted navigation isn't conscionable an SEO project. You'll need:

• SEO specialists to place opportunities and debar issues
• Developers to grip method implementation
• UX/CRO experts to support the idiosyncratic acquisition smooth

Your goal?

A setup that balances idiosyncratic acquisition with SEO value. Without unnecessary glitches.

Further reading: SEO Roadmap: How to Create One + Free Template

2. Check Platform Limitations First

Every CMS has restrictions.

For example:

• Shopify has constricted URL customization options retired of the box
• Some restrict canonical tag implementation
• Others bounds your power implicit robots.txt

The solution?

Talk to your developers earlier planning. Make definite your ideas really enactment connected your platform.

Further reading: Shopify SEO: The Complete Beginner’s Guide

3. Master Your URLs

Faceted URLs get messy fast. But cleanable URLs assistance Google recognize your tract better. 

Here’s however to bash it right.

Keep parameters wide and consistent. Like this:

yoursite.com/mens-shoes?color=black&size=10

Avoid URL bloat.

yoursite.com/mens-shoes?color=black&size=10&sort=popular&view=grid

Why? 

Because parameters similar benignant and presumption don't request caller URLs.

For much guidance, cheque Google's faceted navigation champion practices (it’s a spot old, but it’s inactive relevant.)

Further reading: How to Create SEO-Friendly URLs

Ready to Make Your Faceted Navigation Drive More Traffic?

Here's the bottommost line:

Your tract (or your client’s) astir apt has hundreds of filtered pages conscionable sitting determination close now.

Unused. Unoptimized. Untapped.

Follow the steps supra and these faceted navigation pages tin assistance boost rankings and thrust much integrated traffic.

Just don’t forget.

Get those canonical tags right.

Our usher connected canonical URLs walks you done precisely how. Clear steps. Real examples. Zero confusion. Check it retired now.