Google Revises URL Parameter Best Practices via @sejournal, @MattGSouthern

9 months ago 112

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Google updates Search documentation with standardized URL parameter guidelines, recommending "=" and "&" for optimal website crawling.

Google recommends utilizing "=" and "&" for URL parameters.
Non-standard parameter formats similar colons and commas should beryllium avoided.
While not straight impacting rankings, these guidelines assistance forestall crawling and indexing issues.

In a caller update to its Search Central documentation, Google has added circumstantial guidelines for URL parameter formatting.

The update brings parameter formatting recommendations from a faceted navigation blog station into the main URL operation documentation, making these guidelines much accessible.

Key Updates

The caller documentation specifies that developers should usage the following:

Equal signs (=) to abstracted key-value pairs
Ampersands (&) to link aggregate parameters

Google recommends against utilizing alternate separators specified as:

Colons and brackets
Single oregon treble commas

Why This Matters

URL parameters play a relation successful website functionality, peculiarly for e-commerce sites and contented absorption systems.

They power everything from merchandise filtering and sorting to tracking codes and league IDs.

While powerful, they tin make SEO challenges similar duplicate contented and crawl fund waste.

Proper parameter formatting ensures amended crawling ratio and tin assistance forestall communal indexing issues that impact hunt performance.

The documentation addresses broader URL parameter challenges, specified arsenic managing dynamic contented generation, handling league IDs, and efficaciously implementing sorting parameters.

Previous Guidance

Before this update, developers had to notation an aged blog post astir faceted navigation to find circumstantial URL parameter formatting guidelines.

Consolidating this accusation into the main guidelines makes it easier to find.

The updated documentation tin beryllium recovered successful Google’s Search Central documentation nether the Crawling and Indexing section.

Looking Ahead

If you’re utilizing non-standard parameter formats, commencement readying a migration to the modular format. Ensure due redirects, and show your crawl stats during the switch.

While Google has not said non-standard parameters volition wounded rankings, this update clarifies what they prefer. New sites and redesigns should adhere to the modular format to debar aboriginal headaches.

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SEJ STAFF Matt G. Southern Senior News Writer astatine Search Engine Journal

Matt G. Southern, Senior News Writer, has been with Search Engine Journal since 2013. With a bachelor’s grade successful communications, ...