No one can deny that SEO is essential for driving website traffic and boosting visibility online. While keywords and content often take center stage, your site’s technical setup—such as WordPress permalink settings—can significantly impact your rankings.
This guide provides step-by-step instructions for setting up the correct WordPress permalink settings, helping you make informed decisions whether you’re building a new site or optimizing an existing one.
Understanding WordPress Permalink Settings
Permalinks are the permanent URLs assigned to your blog posts and pages. Choosing the right WordPress permalink settings from the start ensures better readability for users and search engines.
To adjust permalink settings:
- Go to Settings in your WordPress dashboard.
- Select Permalinks.
Choosing the Right Permalink Option in WordPress
Here’s a breakdown of the available permalink structures in WordPress and which one works best:
- Plain: Avoid this. It uses random numbers and letters, offering no clarity for users or search engines.
- Day and Name / Month and Name: These include dates, making content appear outdated and requiring frequent updates with 301 redirects.
- Numeric: Like “Plain,” this provides no descriptive information about the page’s content.
- Post Name: This is the ideal option for most websites. It creates clean, descriptive URLs (e.g., example.com/blog-title), helping both Google and users understand your content.
For custom needs, WordPress also offers advanced structures, but “Post Name” is typically the best choice for simplicity and SEO.
Preserving SEO for Existing Websites After Permalink Changes
If your site already has a lot of content and uses a different permalink structure, changing it can cause 404 errors and disrupt links and SEO value. If your current structure is already set to “Post Name,” great! If not, follow these best practices to make the switch.
Use a Plugin for 301 Redirects
When changing WordPress permalink settings, 301 redirects preserve your SEO value by guiding users and search engines from the old URL to the new one.
- Paid Option: Premium tools like Yoast SEO Premium handle 301 redirects automatically.
- Free Option: The Redirection plugin allows you to set up manual redirects.
You can set up a 301 redirect in four easy steps:
- Install and activate the Redirection plugin
- Navigate to Tools > Redirection
- Enter the old URL in the “Source URL” field and the new URL in the “Target URL” field
- Confirm the redirect type is set to 301
Using Best Practices for SEO-Friendly URLs
If changing your overall permalink structure isn’t feasible, consider updating individual URLs to follow the “Post Name” format. For example, rewrite a URL like example.com/?p=123 to example.com/target-keyword. Don’t forget to set up 301 redirects for any changes.
How BKA Can Help With WordPress Permalink Settings
An optimized URL structure is worth the effort. Clean, descriptive WordPress permalink settings improve your site’s readability, make sharing easier, and help search engines better understand your content.
Struggling with URL optimization? At BKA Content, we offer comprehensive SEO services, including strategy, content creation, and link-building campaigns, to boost your site’s rankings. Book an SEO consultation today to start identifying what’s working, what isn’t, and how we can help you grow.
