URL Structure
URL structure is the way a website's page addresses are built, from the domain name to the folders and words after it. Google's URL guide asks for addresses that follow the web standard, use readable words instead of long ID numbers, separate words with hyphens rather than underscores, and don't use the part after a # to change content.
Source: Google Search Central, URL structure best practices for Google Search, checked October 29, 2026
What URL Structure means for your business
The words in a page address are for people as much as for Google. Google says readable words and hyphens help both tell what a page is about, so an address like /services/drain-cleaning says more than a long string of ID numbers. Google also asks for words in your audience's language.
The problem we'd look for first is too many addresses for the same thing. Google warns that complex addresses, especially ones with several parameters (the parts after a ?), can create lots of URLs that lead to the same or nearly the same content. Filters and tracking tags can do this without anyone noticing.
We wouldn't rename addresses that already work just to tidy them. Every change needs a permanent redirect from the old address, and links from other sites keep pointing at the old one. On a new site or a new section, we'd set a plain pattern once: one folder for each kind of page, short words, lowercase, hyphens between them. If your page addresses are a mix of ID numbers, dates and old campaign names, cleaning them up without breaking old links is work we'd plan with you before anything changes.
Last reviewed October 29, 2026. All terms
How AI answers it today
On October 29, 2026, Google's AI Overview explained the parts of a web address and gave some SEO tips, citing Google's URL guide, MDN, Semrush, Wikipedia and YouTube. ChatGPT gave a developer-style breakdown of the parts, mentioned SEO in one line, and cited nothing.
Our run through ChatGPT and Google's AI Overview, October 29, 2026. A sample, not what every buyer sees.
Related terms in crawlers and technical access
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