Glossary · C
Canonical URL
A canonical URL is the single address an organization declares as the authoritative version of a page, so that engines consolidate signals there rather than across duplicates.
Extended definition
In more detail.
Duplicates arise from trailing slashes, query parameters, tracking codes, HTTP and HTTPS, www and apex domains, and printable or paginated versions. The canonical tag points every variant at one address. Conflicts between canonical tags, redirects, sitemaps and hreflang confuse engines and dilute the page’s standing. Canonical hygiene is checked on every release.
In our work
Where it appears.
Canonical, redirect and duplicate hygiene is part of llms.txt and machine-readable indexes and of every migration.
By David Selakovic · Published 2026-10-16 · Revised 2026-10-16 · Reviewed every 180 days