Google search ranking factors gain or lose importance over time.
A factor that had a big impact on Google a few years ago may not matter at all today.
A website’s URL is an example of such a ranking factor.
Given that the impact of a website’s URL on search rankings has changed over time, you may hear conflicting messages about its importance today.
Let’s look at the claims about URLs as a ranking factor, and then we’ll review what the evidence says.
Disclaimer: URL is a ranking factor
It is said that a website’s URL is a factor that affects Google search rankings and can be similar to optimization Optimize title tags.
More specifically, these claims show that strategic use of keywords in URLs can help sites rank for queries that contain those words.
For example, to rank for similar queries [air fryer recipes] Would it be helpful to have a URL containing air-fryer-recipes somewhere in the URL (eg example.com/air-fryer-recipes)?
Some believe that sites that include keywords in their URLs have a ranking advantage over sites with more generic URLs.
Does this claim make any sense?
This is what Google says.
Evidence: URLs as ranking factors
Evidence directly from Google suggests that URLs don’t play as big a role in search rankings as claimed.
Looking back at Google’s recognition of URLs as a ranking factor, it appears that the influence has diminished over time.
Google’s John Mueller in 2016 comfirmed Keywords in the URL are ranking factors.
However, he described the signal as “very small”.
“I believe it’s a very small ranking factor, so I wouldn’t really try to force it. Also, I don’t think it’s worth the effort to refactor your site so you can include keywords in the URL.”
Muller fixed The topic resurfaced in 2017, stating that “keywords in URLs are overrated for Google SEO”.
Instead, Mueller suggested choosing URLs for users, not search engines.
he Repeat similar advice In 2018, website owners shouldn’t worry about using keywords in URLs.
To be clear: this does not mean that URLs are not a ranking factor at all. This means that there are many more important factors to consider on top of optimizing URLs.
Mueller’s other statements made this clear, like this Starting in 2021, he says words in URLs are “a very, very lightweight ranking factor.”
“We used the words in the URL as a very lightweight factor. As far as I recall, it was mostly something we thought about when we didn’t have access to the content.
So if this is the first time we’ve seen this URL and we don’t know how to categorize its content, we might use the words in the URL to help us rank better.
However, once we have crawled and indexed the content there, we will have more information. Then this is essentially the same thing if the URL is German, Japanese or English. “
As Mueller said, once Content is indexedthe URL becomes less important.
URLs as Ranking Factors: Our Verdict
Google has confirmed that URL is the smallest search ranking factor.
When Google crawls a new site for the first time, it uses keywords in the URL to learn what the site is about.
This may play a small role in a site’s initial ranking.
Some SEO professionals also believe it can be used to help group pages (ie, group pages together under a folder, like using breadcrumbs).
Once a site’s content is thoroughly crawled and indexed, the SEO effect of a URL becomes minimal.
Featured image: Robin Biong/Search Engine Magazine
