URL Parameters & SEO Guide
URL parameters (query strings) are useful for users but confusing for search engines. Without proper handling, they can cause massive duplicate content issues and waste your crawl budget.
Anatomy of a Parameterized URL
https://
Protocol
The secure communication method.
example.com
Domain
Your website address.
/shoes
Path
The specific page or category.
?
Start
Signals the start of parameters.
color
Key
The variable name.
red
Value
The specific setting.
&
Separator
Separates multiple parameters.
sort=price
Active
Modifies page content.
Active (Modifying)
Changes the content shown on the page.
- sort=price_asc
- filter=blue
- page=2
- limit=50
Passive (Tracking)
Does NOT change content. Used for data.
- utm_source=google
- sessionid=123
- affiliateid=abc
The SEO Nightmare: Duplicate Content
Why parameters are dangerous. Search engines see every URL variation as a separate page.
If you have 3 filter options (Color, Size, Sort), they can combine in dozens of ways. Googlebot might crawl all of them, wasting resources on identical content.
Main Page
?sort=1
?sort=2
?sort=3
Ghost Duplicates (x100+)
The Solution Console
How to fix parameter issues. Choose a strategy to see the code implementation.
Recommended For:
Best for: Sorting & Filtering. Tells Google 'This is just a copy, rank the main page instead.'
CODE
<link rel="canonical" href="https://example.com/shoes" />