Canonical URL

A canonical URL is the version of a page you tell search engines is the master copy, set with a element in the page's head. When the same content can be reached at several addresses, the canonical tag consolidates signals onto the one you choose.

Reviewed October 5, 2026. Prices are quoted per project; nothing on this page is a published price list.

Why it matters

The same page often exists at several addresses: with and without www, with and without https, with tracking parameters. Without a canonical, search engines must guess which to show, and the signals split between the copies.

How to set it

One self-referencing canonical per page — the tag points at the page's own clean URL. Every Firmitas page carries one, and our https and www variants redirect to the apex so there is only one address in practice.

Common mistakes

Canonicalising to a different page that itself canonicalises elsewhere (a chain).
Canonicalising to a URL that returns 404 or redirects.
Forgetting the tag after a redesign, so old and new URLs compete.

Canonical vs redirect

A canonical is a signal to crawlers; a redirect is an instruction to browsers. If a URL has truly moved, redirect it. Canonicals are for pages that legitimately exist at more than one address.

Questions

Does a canonical redirect visitors?

No. It is a signal to search engines, not a redirect — visitors still land on the URL they opened. If people should land elsewhere, use a real redirect.

What if two pages are similar but not duplicates?

If both deserve to rank, leave them separate with their own canonicals. Canonicalising near-duplicates tells search engines one is a copy, which can suppress the one you wanted kept.

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