Canonical Tag: What is it and why it matters

Last Updated April 22, 2024

Today, we are going to talk about a term that is crucial for your blog’s SEO – the Canonical Tag.

What is a Canonical Tag?

A canonical tag, also known as rel=canonical, is a piece of HTML code that helps search engines identify the main version of a page when there are multiple pages with identical or very similar content.

In simpler terms, it’s a way to tell search engines, “Hey, this is the main version of this page that I want you to index and show in the search results.”

For example, the canonical tag for your main blog page might look like this:

<link rel="canonical" href="https://yourblog.com/main-page/" />

Why Are Canonical Tags Important?

Avoid Duplicate Content: Search engines, like Google, don’t like duplicate content. It confuses them, and they might end up indexing and ranking the wrong version of your page. Canonical tags help you specify which version of the page you want to be considered as the main one.
Consolidate Link Equity: If there are multiple versions of a page, the backlinks to those pages will be divided among them. By using a canonical tag, you consolidate the link equity to the main page, which can help improve its ranking.
Improve Crawling Efficiency: Search engines have a crawl budget, which is the number of pages they will crawl on your site in a given time. By using canonical tags, you can help search engines to not waste their crawl budget on duplicate pages.

Best Practices for Using Canonical Tags

Use Absolute URLs: Always use the absolute URL in the canonical tag, not the relative URL. For example, use https://yourblog.com/main-page/ instead of /main-page/.
Self-Canonicalize: Even if a page doesn’t have any duplicates, it’s still a good practice to include a self-referencing canonical tag. This helps to avoid any confusion for search engines.
Be Consistent: Make sure that the URL used in the canonical tag is consistent across the site. For example, if your site uses https, make sure that the canonical tag also uses https.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Canonical Chains: A canonical chain occurs when Page A references Page B as the canonical, and Page B references Page C as the canonical. Always point the canonical tag directly to the main version of the page.
Multiple Canonical Tags: There should only be one canonical tag on a page. If there are multiple canonical tags, search engines might ignore them.
Non-Similar Content: Don’t use the canonical tag on pages with completely different content. It should only be used on pages with identical or very similar content.

Conclusion

Canonical tags are an essential tool for bloggers to manage duplicate content, consolidate link equity, and improve crawling efficiency. By using them correctly, you can help search engines understand your content better and improve your blog’s SEO.

How do I know when I should use a canonical tag on my blog posts?

Use a canonical tag when you have two or more URLs with the same or very similar content. For example, if your post is reachable at both https://yourblog.com/post/ and https://yourblog.com/post/?ref=newsletter, you should pick one as the main version.

You should also use a self-referencing canonical tag on important pages, even if you do not see duplicates yet. This tells Google clearly which URL is the official one and helps prevent problems if tracking parameters or alternate URLs appear later.

If you regularly update or repurpose posts, canonical tags help keep your main URL strong in search. This way, all link power and engagement signals point to the version you care about most.

What is the difference between a canonical tag and a noindex tag?

A canonical tag tells search engines which version of similar content is the main one. It says, "Index this main URL and treat others as copies." The duplicate pages can still be crawled, but their value is passed to the canonical URL.

A noindex tag tells search engines not to index a page at all. It removes that page from search results and does not tell search engines to pass signals to another URL.

Canonical tags are best for similar or duplicate content that you still want to rank through a single main page. A noindex tag is better for pages that should not appear in search, like thin tag archives, thank-you pages, or private content.

Can using canonical tags improve my SEO, or are they just for fixing duplicate content?

Canonical tags can improve SEO by focusing all ranking power on one main URL. Instead of splitting backlinks, social shares, and user signals across many copies, you point everything to a single strong page.

This makes it easier for Google to understand which URL should rank and reduces the risk of weaker pages outranking your best version. It can also help your chosen page climb higher in search results over time.

Canonical tags also save crawl budget, which is important on larger sites. When search engines waste less time on duplicates, they can crawl and index your new or updated posts faster.

How can RightBlogger help me manage canonical tags and other SEO basics?

RightBlogger helps by making your overall SEO workflow faster and more organized, so it is easier to use canonical tags correctly. For example, the AI Article Writer can create clear, focused content for one main URL, which reduces accidental duplicates.

You can also use tools like the Permalink Generator to plan clean, consistent URLs before publishing. When your URLs are stable, it is simpler to choose a single canonical version and stick with it.

RightBlogger's SEO Reports and optimization tools help you spot weak or overlapping content that may need canonical tags. This way, you fix issues early, keep your site tidy, and give search engines a clear picture of your most important pages.