Is trailing slash harmful?
Have you ever wondered why some URLs end with a slash and others don’t? Well, this small difference can make a difference to your site’s SEO. It refers to the so-called trailing slash. Let’s take a look at its significance.
Why is trailing slash important for SEO?
As defined in our glossary and friendly URLs post, trailing slash is the technical term for a slash (“/”) at the end of a URL. For example, “https://www.przyklad.pl/” has a trailing slash, while “https://www.przyklad.pl” does not. A trailing slash at the end of a URL can affect how search engines index your site. Correct use of the trailing slash can help avoid duplicate content problems and improve usability for users.
Technical aspects of trailing slash
How does trailing slash affect page indexing?
Search engines treat URLs with and without a trailing slash as two different pages. This can lead to duplicate content problems, which will negatively affect SEO.
Difference between URL with and without trailing slash
In fact, “https://www.przyklad.pl/” and “https://www.przyklad.pl” are two different addresses. Search engines may treat them as two different sources.
How to implement trailing slash on the website?
To add a trailing slash, you can use your server settings or the appropriate CMS plugins. It is important to be consistent in its use.
Do you always need a trailing slash?
Not always. It all depends on the structure of your site and your SEO goals. The important thing is to be consistent in its use.
Impact of trailing slash on UX and visitors
Positive aspects for users
A slash at the end of a URL can help users navigate the site and lets them know they are visiting a specific page, not a directory. A simple example is, for example, the product category on an online store /furniture-garden/ or the entry category /updates/. In another situation, some users may be confused when two similar URLs lead to different content. Therefore, it is important to be consistent here.
How to avoid trailing slash errors?
Best practices and monitoring tools
It is recommended to choose one version (with or without trailing slash) and follow it. Use 301 redirects to ensure that traffic is directed to the right URL. Here, it is good practice to monitor errors in Google Search Console, which are a clear signal of what needs to be improved on the website. This will help avoid the occurrence of possible complications that affect the visibility of the site, and optimize the Crawl Budget, which is of great importance in terms of indexing the website in search engines.
