How to Change the Page URL in WordPress

How-To Websites
How To Change The Page Url In Wordpress

Changing the URL of a page in WordPress is a simple yet powerful way to optimize your website for both search engines and user experience. Whether you’re rebranding, optimizing for SEO, or just making your URLs more user-friendly, WordPress allows you to easily modify page URLs through its user-friendly interface.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to change the URL of a page in WordPress and discuss some important considerations to keep in mind to avoid issues with broken links and SEO.

What is a URL in WordPress?

A URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the web address that points to a specific page on your WordPress website. In WordPress, the URL is often referred to as the permalink. By default, WordPress creates URLs based on the page title, but you can customize this to make it more relevant, shorter, or SEO-friendly.

Why Change the Page URL in WordPress?

There are several reasons why you may want to change the URL (permalink) of a page in WordPress, such as:

  • SEO Optimization: Shorter, keyword-rich URLs can improve your rankings on search engines like Google.
  • User-Friendly URLs: Clean, descriptive URLs are easier for users to remember and understand.
  • Rebranding or Restructuring: If you’re updating your website’s structure or changing page titles, you may want the URL to reflect those changes.
  • Remove Dates or Numbers: Some users want to remove dates or numbers from their URLs for a cleaner look.

Now, let’s explore how you can change the URL of a page in WordPress.

How to Change a Page URL in WordPress

Step 1: Edit the Page in WordPress

  1. Log in to your WordPress Dashboard: Start by logging in to your WordPress admin area (e.g., yourdomain.com/wp-admin).
  2. Go to Pages > All Pages: From the dashboard, navigate to Pages > All Pages to see a list of your existing pages.
  3. Edit the Page You Want to Change: Click on the title of the page whose URL you wish to change. This will open the page editor.

Step 2: Change the Permalink (URL)

  1. Find the Permalink Section: In the page editor, just below the title field, you will see the Permalink section. This section displays the current URL of the page.
  2. Edit the Slug: The URL is made up of two parts: the domain (e.g., yourdomain.com) and the slug (the part of the URL that comes after the domain). The slug is based on the page title but can be customized.
  3. Change the Slug: Click on the Edit button next to the URL. Modify the slug to match the new URL you want for the page. Keep the following best practices in mind:
    • Keep the slug short and relevant to the page content.
    • Use hyphens to separate words (e.g., new-page-url).
    • Avoid special characters or spaces.
  4. Save Your Changes: Once you’ve edited the slug, click OK to save the new URL. Then, hit Update or Publish to apply the changes.

Step 3: Set Up Redirects for the Old URL (Optional but Recommended)

After changing a page’s URL, it’s important to set up a 301 redirect from the old URL to the new one. This ensures that any visitors or search engines that access the old URL will be automatically redirected to the new URL, preserving your traffic and SEO rankings.

How to Set Up a 301 Redirect:

  1. Install a Redirection Plugin: There are many plugins available to help with 301 redirects, such as the Redirection plugin. To install it:
    • Go to Plugins > Add New.
    • Search for Redirection and click Install Now.
    • Once installed, click Activate.
  2. Create a New Redirect:
    • Go to Tools > Redirection in your WordPress dashboard.
    • In the Source URL field, enter the old URL of the page.
    • In the Target URL field, enter the new URL.
    • Click Add Redirect to save the changes.

This will ensure that anyone visiting the old URL will be automatically taken to the new one, avoiding 404 errors and maintaining your site’s SEO performance.

Step 4: Update Internal Links

If you’ve changed a URL for a page, any internal links pointing to that page may still be using the old URL. It’s important to check your site and update any internal links to reflect the new URL.

How to Find and Update Internal Links:

  1. Use a Link Checker Plugin: Plugins like Broken Link Checker can help you find and update internal links that are pointing to the old URL.
  2. Manual Update: Go through your important pages and blog posts to update any internal links pointing to the old URL. This can help improve the user experience and prevent broken links.

Best Practices for Changing Page URLs

When changing the URL of a WordPress page, keep these best practices in mind:

  • Short and Descriptive: Use concise URLs that accurately describe the content of the page.
  • Include Keywords: If possible, include relevant keywords in the URL to improve SEO.
  • Use Hyphens: WordPress uses hyphens to separate words in the URL. Do not use underscores or spaces.
  • Avoid Changing URLs Too Often: Changing URLs too frequently can confuse search engines and visitors, leading to a poor user experience or loss of SEO rankings.

Conclusion

Changing the URL of a page in WordPress is an effective way to improve your site’s SEO, enhance the user experience, or reflect changes in your site’s structure. By following the simple steps outlined in this guide, you can easily modify page URLs, set up redirects, and update internal links to ensure a smooth transition.

Whether you’re rebranding, optimizing for search engines, or just cleaning up your permalinks, WordPress provides the flexibility to customize your URLs to suit your website’s needs.

By setting up proper redirects and following best practices, you can avoid SEO issues and maintain the performance of your site after changing page URLs.

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