Content Ladder

How To Use One Canonical Link Tag in Your Website

October 20, 2023 by Anupam pathak

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You might have seen the www version, https version, and HTTP version all directing to the same website. This raises the question: why does a single website have so many URLs? Does it impact SEO? In this article, we will delve into the importance of using one canonical link tag on your website. Also, how can it benefit your online presence?

What is a Canonical Link Tag?

A canonical link tag is a part of HTML that tells search engines which form of a URL is the best. This can help stop problems with duplicate content, which happens when different URLs have the same or very similar material.

Here are some examples of when you might want to use canonical link tags:

It’s used when you have more than one version of the same page, like a mobile version and a PC version.
When you have more than one page with the same information, like product pages that have different settings for each product.
When your blog posts are shared on more than one website, this is called linked content.
When you change the URL of a page and want to send people to the new URL, you use this code.

Why use a canonical link?

Using a canonical link tag is not just a best practice; it offers several tangible benefits for your website:

Avoid Duplicate Content Issues: Search engines can sometimes interpret multiple URLs for the same content as duplicate content. By specifying a canonical URL, you tell search engines which version of the content is the “official” one. Thus reducing the risk of duplicate content penalties.
Improve Website Performance: Multiple URLs can lead to confusion for both users and search engines. By streamlining your URLs with a canonical link, you can ensure that users and search engines are always directed to the most relevant and authoritative version of your content.
Enhance SEO Efforts: A canonical link consolidates the SEO value of various URLs into one. This implies that one primary URL receives all the backlinks, social shares, and other SEO-related metrics. Hence, it boosts its search ranking potential.
Speed Up Indexing: Search engines can index your content faster. When there’s a clear canonical link, they don’t have to waste time figuring out which version of the content to index.

5 Simple Steps to Fix Your Blog Indexing Issues

How do you use One Canonical Link Tag on your website?

Never resort to the redirection method by installing plugins like “redirect” or any SEO plugin to redirect. An excessive number of redirects can be detrimental to SEO. You might be tempted to think, “Let’s redirect the other URLs to a single https URL,” but I would advise against it. Instead, follow this simple method:

Use the following code:

<link rel=”canonical” href=”https://example.com” />

Replace “https://example.com” with your website’s primary URL.

Insert this code into the header or PHP section of your WordPress website.
Wait for a few hours.

Why 301 vs 302 Redirect Could Make or Break Your Website

Congratulations! The issue should now be resolved. By implementing the canonical link tag, you’ve taken a significant step in optimizing your website for both users and search engines.

Canonical link tags are a simple but effective way to prevent duplicate content issues and improve your website’s SEO.

What is a canonical tag in HTML?

A canonical tag, also known as “rel canonical”, is an HTML element that helps webmasters prevent duplicate content issues in search engines by specifying the “canonical” or “preferred” version of a web page. It’s a way of telling search engines that a specific URL represents the master copy of a page.

What is a canonical link?

A canonical link is the URL of the page that is considered to be the best source of information for a particular topic. It’s the URL you want search engines to display in their results when multiple versions of the same page exist.

Why is the canonical tag important?

The canonical tag is crucial for maintaining the SEO health of a website. Here’s why:
Prevents SEO Problems: Duplicate content can cause search engines to miss some of your unique content or dilute your ranking ability.
Ensures Correct URL Display: Without canonicalization, search engines might display the wrong URL as the “original” in search results.
URL Variations: Modern content management systems and dynamic websites can create multiple URLs for the same content. Canonical tags help search engines understand which version is the master copy.
Best Practices: Using canonical tags correctly can prevent potential SEO issues. For instance, it’s a good idea to proactively canonicalize your homepage, spot-check dynamic canonical tags, and avoid sending mixed signals to search engines.