Configuring URL Parameters in Webmaster Tools

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

It's been a while since we published this blog post. Some of the information may be outdated (for example, some images may be missing, and some links may not work anymore). Read the announcement.

We recently filmed a video (with slides available) to provide more information about the URL Parameters feature in Webmaster Tools. The URL Parameters feature is designed for webmasters who want to help Google crawl their site more efficiently, and who manage a site with—you guessed it—URL parameters! To be eligible for this feature, the URL parameters must be configured in key/value pairs like item=swedish-fish or category=gummy-candy in the URL https://www.example.com/product.php?item=swedish-fish&category=gummy-candy.

URL Parameter settings are powerful. By telling us how your parameters behave and the recommended action for Googlebot, you can improve your site's crawl efficiency. On the other hand, if configured incorrectly, you may accidentally recommend that Google ignore important pages, resulting in those pages no longer being available in search results. (There's an example provided in our improved Help Center article.) So please take care when adjusting URL Parameters settings, and be sure that the actions you recommend for Googlebot make sense across your entire site.

Written by Maile Ohye, Developer Programs Tech Lead