Canonical URLs: choose the preferred page address
A canonical URL is the preferred address for a page when identical or very similar content is available at several URLs. Your website can indicate its preference, but Google chooses the version it considers representative. A canonical does not physically redirect a visitor or hide private information.
Useful context
- List the addresses that appear to show the same content.
- Know which live domain and page address you intend customers to share.
How it works
Use a real example
A menu might be reachable through the main navigation and through an old address with an extra tracking parameter. Compare the actual content before deciding whether those are separate pages. Similar-looking URLs can sometimes represent genuinely different services, languages or locations.
Choose the useful public destination
Your preferred version should open normally and contain the content you want customers to find. It should not be a staging address, error page or login. Write down that destination so links, sitemap entries and page settings can agree.
Align the surrounding signals
Ask the site administrator to check the page’s canonical setting against internal links and redirects. A canonical pointing one way while navigation points elsewhere creates avoidable inconsistency. When an old URL is no longer needed, an appropriate redirect may better serve visitors.
Inspect what Google selected
Search Console’s indexed URL details can show the Google-selected canonical. Compare it with your expectation before changing anything. A different choice is a clue to investigate content and settings, not proof that the site needs all its page addresses rewritten.
What to check
- The preferred address is a working public page with the intended content.
- Navigation and sitemap examples use that same destination.
- A canonical has not been used to suppress an unrelated page.
Sources and further reading
Platform features can change. Check the provider’s current guidance before changing a live service.