URL Slug
A URL slug is the trailing portion of a URL path that identifies a specific page in human-readable text. In `inblog.ai/ko/blog/seo-guide`, the slug is `seo-guide`.
A URL slug is the trailing portion of a URL path that identifies a specific page in human-readable text. In inblog.ai/ko/blog/seo-guide, the slug is seo-guide.
Why It Matters
Slugs serve as the first signal of page content for both search engines and users. Google uses URL structure as a supplementary signal for topic identification, and slugs appear directly in search results—affecting click-through rates. Clean, descriptive slugs outperform meaningless URLs like /post?id=12345 in both SEO and user trust. Slugs are also difficult to change after publication, since modifying a URL breaks existing backlinks, shared links, and bookmarks.
SEO-Optimized Slug Best Practices
- Include target keywords: Place your primary keyword naturally in the slug.
- Keep it short: 3–5 words capturing the essence. Drop unnecessary articles, prepositions, conjunctions.
- Use lowercase: URLs are case-sensitive; stick to lowercase for consistency.
- Separate with hyphens: Use hyphens (-) between words. Avoid underscores or spaces.
- Avoid special characters: Use only letters and numbers.
- Skip dates:
/2026/04/seo-guidemakes content look outdated when updated later.
Slug Examples
| Bad Slug | Good Slug | Why |
|---|---|---|
/p?id=487 | /content-marketing-guide | Meaningful keywords |
/the-ultimate-complete-guide-to-seo-for-beginners-2026 | /seo-beginners-guide | Concise |
/Blog-Post-About-SEO | /blog-post-about-seo | Lowercase |
Changing Slugs After Publication
If you must change a published slug, always set a 301 redirect from the old URL to the new one. This preserves backlink SEO value and ensures users reaching the old URL are forwarded automatically.
Sources: