What Is a Canonical URL?
A canonical URL is the link element used in the canonical tag to define the master version of a set of duplicate or near-duplicate pages. Canonical URLs are important because they inform search engines which URLs should be indexed when a website has different versions of the same web page.
The canonical tag and its canonical URL are located in the <link> element which is placed in the <head> section of the HTML code. The canonical URL is added to the HREF attribute to specify the URL of the page that the link goes to.
Here’s an example canonical URL:
<link rel="canonical" href="https://domain.com/master-page/" />Visit the SEO Glossary
Go to the SEO Glossary to find more terms and definitions that relate to the field of search engine optimization.
The Editorial Staff at SEO Chatter is a team of search engine optimization and digital marketing experts led by Stephen Hockman with more than 15 years of experience in search engine marketing. We publish guides on the fundamentals of SEO for beginner marketers.
