Best Practices for URL Length and Structure

By Alex Carter on October 7, 2024

URL length is an important factor that affects both usability and search engine optimization. Clear and concise URLs make it easier for users to understand the content of a page and help search engines process and rank web pages more efficiently. Long or complex URLs can create difficulties when shared, reduce visibility in search results, and negatively impact user experience. 

What Is a URL and How Does It Work?

A URL, or Uniform Resource Locator, is the address of a web page that indicates its location on the Internet. This address appears in the browser’s address bar. A typical URL includes the following elements:

• The data transfer protocol, such as https://
• The domain name
• The path leading from the domain to the specific page, which may consist of directories and subdirectories
• Optional parameters and anchors, such as those used in the GET method to retrieve resource content

The domain name is a key part of the URL. The sections following it can differ in length and structure, depending on the directory names and the target page. URL syntax allows the use of letters, numbers, and certain special characters.

Recommended URL Length and Browser Limits

Browsers commonly allow URL lengths of up to 2048 characters. However, just because a browser can handle lengthy URLs does not imply that search engines will parse them quickly. The ideal URL length is around 75 characters.

While search engines typically index pages with URLs longer than 75-120 characters, really lengthy URLs may have difficulty ranking.

Below are the maximum URL length limits for popular browsers:

• Google Chrome – 2,083 characters;
• Firefox – 65,536 characters;
• Safari – 80,000 characters;
• Internet Explorer – 2,083 characters;
• Edge – 2,083 characters.

When creating search network advertising, it’s critical to consider URL length constraints based on ad size requirements.

Testing Maximum URL Length Limits in Browsers

JavaScript Example Using Node.js for Server-Side URL Length Validation

// Node.js script to check URL length limits in browsers

const http = require(‘http’);

const url = require(‘url’);

const MAX_URL_LENGTH = 2083; // Example limit for Internet Explorer

const PORT = 3000;

http.createServer((req, res) => {

  const parsedUrl = url.parse(req.url, true);

  const urlLength = parsedUrl.path.length;

  if (urlLength > MAX_URL_LENGTH) {

    res.writeHead(414, { ‘Content-Type’: ‘text/plain’ });

    res.end(‘URL Too Long’);

  } else {

    res.writeHead(200, { ‘Content-Type’: ‘text/plain’ });

    res.end(‘URL is within acceptable length’);

  }

}).listen(PORT, () => {

  console.log(`Server running at http://localhost:${PORT}/`);

});

Python Script to Validate URL Length in Browsers

# Python script to check URL length against browser limits

import requests

MAX_URL_LENGTH = 2083  # Example limit for Internet Explorer

test_url = ‘http://localhost:3000/’ + ‘a’ * 2000

if len(test_url) > MAX_URL_LENGTH:

    print(‘URL Too Long’)

else:

    response = requests.get(test_url)

    if response.status_code == 414:

        print(‘URL Too Long’)

    else:

        print(‘URL is within acceptable length’)

PHP Script to Check URL Length and Server Response

<?php

$maxUrlLength = 2083; // Example limit for Internet Explorer

$url = ‘http://localhost:3000/’ . str_repeat(‘a’, 2000);

if (strlen($url) > $maxUrlLength) {

    echo ‘URL Too Long’;

} else {

    $response = file_get_contents($url);

    if (isset($http_response_header[0]) && strpos($http_response_header[0], ‘414’) !== false) {

        echo ‘URL Too Long’;

    } else {

        echo ‘URL is within acceptable length’;

    }

}

?>

These examples demonstrate how to test and validate URL length limits across different browsers using JavaScript (Node.js), Python, and PHP. Adjust the MAX_URL_LENGTH value based on browser requirements to avoid exceeding supported limits.

Effective Tips for Optimizing URLs for SEO

When constructing URLs, it’s critical to prioritize simplicity and relevancy to boost SEO performance. Short, keyword-focused URLs help web spiders better grasp the page content. Follow these recommendations for better URL structure:

Include Relevant Keywords

Use the main keyword in the domain name and page URL. URLs containing search queries are frequently bolded in search results to increase visibility. A well-crafted URL can affect visitors’ decision to click on a particular link.

Using tools like Google Keyword Planner can help identify the most relevant search terms to include in your URLs for better visibility and search performance.

Use Hyphens Instead of Underscores

For multi-word URLs, always use hyphens. Google treats hyphens as separators but sees underscores as connectors. For example, seo-tools is read as two words, while seo_tools is processed as a single term.

Ensure URLs Are Easy to Read

Clear and readable URLs are easier for users and search engines to grasp. A complicated URL may deter people from visiting and influence how the website gets indexed.

Avoid Using Cyrillic Characters

Cyrillic characters are automatically encoded into long strings, making the URL unreadable. Stick to Latin characters and numbers to keep URLs clean and clear.

Use Robots.txt to Block Unwanted Pages

Manage indexing by disallowing specific pages in the robots.txt file. This prevents search engines from crawling duplicate content or unnecessary sections of your website.

Stick to Lowercase Letters

Always use lowercase characters in URLs. Uppercase letters can cause search engines to see duplicate pages with identical content, leading to indexing problems.

Keep URLs Concise (3-5 Words)

Long URLs may not fully display in search results, reducing keyword visibility. Aim for URLs that contain no more than 3-5 relevant words to maintain clarity and SEO strength.

Include Mobile URLs in the Sitemap

Ensure search engines recognize that your pages are mobile-friendly by listing mobile URLs in your sitemap. This helps improve mobile search rankings.

Avoid Using Spaces in URLs

Spaces should never appear in URLs. They cause encoding issues and can lead to errors. Many content management systems automatically replace spaces with plus signs or %20, but it’s best to avoid them entirely for a cleaner and more efficient URL structure.

How URL Length Affects Usability and SEO

URL Length and User Experience

The length of a URL impacts how users interact with it. Long URLs often extend beyond the browser’s visible address bar and may appear complicated. When copied into documents or shared on other platforms, these links can wrap into multiple lines, making them harder to use.

Short URLs with just two or three clear and memorable words tend to look more appealing and are easier to share. They also encourage higher click-through rates. Manually entering a long URL into the address bar is time-consuming and prone to errors.

URL Length and SEO Performance

Shorter URLs generally perform better in terms of SEO and user convenience. In breadcrumbs, the recommended maximum URL length is 200 characters.

Since user behavior influences search rankings, having clear, well-structured URLs improves engagement and boosts a website’s visibility. A concise and informative URL contributes to better performance in search results.

Best Practices for URL Structure

Simplifying Complex URLs

Large websites often generate long URLs due to multiple categories and subcategories to optimize and reduce the number of nested directories.

For example:

• Complicated URL: mysite.com/1/2/3/4/5/item100.html
• Optimized URL: mysite.com/catalog/item100.html

Simplified links enhance user experience and improve SEO performance.

Using SEF (Search Engine Friendly) URLs

SEF URLs are intended to be understandable and helpful to both users and search engines. They contain relevant keywords, reflect the page content, and help with promotion. SEF URLs also allow control over URL length and the use of language that matches the website content.

Configuring URLs in CMS Platforms

Most content management systems (CMS) provide options for customizing URLs:

• OpenCart often generates URLs based on the H1 page title;
• Joomla offers a SEF URL setting that needs to be enabled;
• WordPress users can apply the Yoast plugin to create optimized, keyword-rich URLs.

Well-structured URLs improve SEO by providing clarity, relevance, and keyword integration. URLs also appear in the browser’s address bar and search snippets, so keeping them concise ensures the important parts are visible and impactful.

How to Use Keywords in URLs Without Overloading

Placing Keywords in URLs

Google recommends using three to five relevant keywords in a URL to maintain clarity and avoid keyword stuffing. Adding too many keywords reduces their individual impact and may harm search rankings. Any URL parameters should be placed at the end of the link to avoid cluttering the main structure.

Example: A healthy eating website has a subpage on the benefits of including superfoods in your everyday meals.

A well-structured and concise URL could look like this:

www.healthyeats.com/nutrition/benefits-of-superfoods.html

Common Issues with Automatically Generated URLs

Content management systems (CMS) often create URLs based on specified parameters. For online shops, this can result in long, complex URLs, particularly when product features such as color or size are included directly in the link.

Example: An electronics store sells a smartphone model “TechPro Max.” A customer selects a black color and 128GB storage. The automatically generated URL might look like:

www.electrostore.com/smartphones/techpro-max-black-128gb.html

To make the URL shorter and cleaner, it can be simplified to:

www.electrostore.com/techpro-max-black-128gb.html

Another option is to keep filters as parameters instead of adding them to the main URL path, preventing unnecessary length without affecting functionality. These parameter-based URLs should also be set as non-indexable if they don’t add SEO value.

Additional Tip: Extremely long URLs can create issues when link titles are auto-generated from the URL. It’s better to manually edit titles or adjust the automation to prevent displaying unwieldy link names.

Conclusion

Keeping URLs clear, concise, and well-structured helps improve both user experience and search engine optimization. Short and readable URLs are easier to share, understand, and process by search engines. Following recommended length limits, using relevant keywords, avoiding unnecessary parameters, and maintaining a simple structure supports better indexing and visibility in search results. Proper URL optimization also reduces the risk of technical issues and improves the overall organization of a website.