Google URL Advice for 2026: How Builders Should Write Slugs
Google says keywords in URLs are an incredibly small signal. See how builders should write clean, short URL slugs for pages and posts.
Bilal
3 min read
Google posted a video about URLs on 15 October 2026. Gary Illyes and Cherry Prommawin covered ranking, hyphens, underscores and emojis.
So this guide turns their advice into a checklist for builders. First, a note. The summary comes from Search Engine Roundtable and other reports, so check Google’s own URL documentation too.
What Google Said About URLs
- Keywords in a URL or domain are an incredibly small signal, according to Search Engine Roundtable.
- Use hyphens, not underscores. Google treats underscore-joined words as one long word, according to Relevant Audience.
- Writing words with no separator, such as ‘greendress’, also falls short of Google’s advice.
- Google can detect spam in URLs.
- Emojis in URL paths get percent-encoded, which makes messy links, according to The SEO Wire.
Relevant Audience also notes that Google did not say it penalises underscore URLs.
What It Means for Builders
URLs help people more than rankings. A clear link looks trustworthy in an email or text message. So write each URL for a client first and a crawler second. Short URLs are also easy to read aloud and to share on WhatsApp. Also, keyword stuffing in a URL gains little and carries risk.
A Practical URL Standard
- Use three to five lowercase words, separated by hyphens.
- Add the service and place when it fits, for example ‘loft-conversions-leeds’.
- Skip dates, ID numbers, underscores and emojis.
- Avoid repeating keywords, because stuffing looks like spam.
- Keep one URL for each topic.
For more on local pages, read our guide to local SEO for construction companies. Also see our post on the Google spam update for the wider spam rules.
Should You Change Existing URLs?
Usually, no. If your URLs already use hyphens and plain words, you probably have nothing to fix. If a page ranks and its URL is readable, leave it alone. Changing a URL can cause a short-term dip while Google reprocesses the page.
Change a URL only when it is messy, very long or confusing. If you do, follow these steps:
- Add a 301 redirect from the old URL to the new one.
- Update every internal link that points to the old URL.
- Check your sitemap, then resubmit it in Search Console.
WordPress often redirects a renamed post slug. However, links inside your own content still point to the old address, so update them.
Audit Your URLs in 15 Minutes
- Open your sitemap and list every page URL.
- Flag URLs with underscores, numbers, dates or more than six words.
- Flag pages that compete for the same topic.
- Decide which URLs to leave and which to change.
- Then make the changes in small batches, and check Search Console afterwards.
How Bilal Web Studio Helps
We can audit your URLs, set up 301 redirects and fix internal links. This sits inside our SEO for construction companies service.
Book a free consultation at bilalwebstudio.co.uk or email [email protected].
Frequently Asked Questions
Do keywords in URLs help rankings?
Only a little. Gary Illyes called them an incredibly small signal, according to Search Engine Roundtable. So write URLs for readers.
Should I use hyphens or underscores in URLs?
Use hyphens. Google treats underscore-joined words as one long word, and its documentation recommends hyphens.
Can I use emojis in URLs?
You can, but they become long, percent-encoded links. Avoid them.
Will changing my URLs hurt my SEO?
It can cause a short-term dip. Change URLs only when needed, and always add 301 redirects.
