If you're wondering how to edit permalink in WordPress Elementor, you're not alone. Whether you're aiming for SEO-friendly URLs or just need a cleaner link structure, editing permalinks correctly is crucial for both performance and user experience. Here's a complete guide to help you manage, change, and optimize permalinks while using Elementor.
Understanding How Permalinks Work in WordPress
Permalinks are the permanent URLs used to link to posts, pages, and other content. WordPress allows customization of these URLs through the permalink settings page, affecting the structure of your entire website. Having a well-defined permalink structure improves your website's navigation, SEO, and overall usability.
- Default structure: Includes post IDs and is not SEO-friendly, e.g., example.com/?p=123
- Post name: Clean and readable, ideal for blogs and content-focused websites, e.g., example.com/sample-post
- Custom structure: Lets you define slugs using available tags like category or post name to suit your niche
How to Edit Permalink for Pages in Elementor
Elementor itself does not control permalinks but works alongside WordPress. To change the URL of a page built with Elementor, follow these steps:
- Go to Pages in your WordPress dashboard.
- Hover over the page you want to edit and click Edit. This opens the default WordPress editor, not Elementor.
- In the Gutenberg editor, locate the Permalink section on the right panel. If you don't see it, click the gear icon to show settings.
- Edit the URL Slug to your preferred text. Make it short, descriptive, and relevant to your content.
- Click Update to save the change.
This method ensures that your Elementor-designed page gets a clean and optimized URL, improving click-through rates and SEO.
Editing Permalink for Posts and Custom Post Types
The process is similar for posts and custom post types:
- Navigate to Posts or your custom post type in the dashboard.
- Click Edit on the content item. Make sure it’s in draft or update with care if it's already published.
- In the editor, find and update the slug under the Permalink section. This changes the URL of the post.
If you're working with custom post types registered by plugins, check if the plugin provides additional permalink options under its settings.
How to Customize WordPress Permalink Settings
For site-wide changes, use the permalink settings in WordPress:
- Go to Settings > Permalinks from the WordPress dashboard menu.
- Choose a predefined structure such as "Post name" or create a custom one like /blog/%postname%/.
- Click Save Changes to apply your new structure. This update affects how WordPress generates URLs moving forward.
Always back up your website before making major permalink structure changes, especially on live websites with existing content.
Fixing Broken Links After Changing Permalinks
If you've changed a permalink and encounter a 404 error, it's likely due to a missing redirect. Here's how to fix it:
- Use a redirect plugin like Redirection to point old URLs to new ones. This is crucial for maintaining SEO value and user experience.
- Check your site's internal links, buttons, and menus for outdated slugs. Update them to reflect the new URLs.
- Submit updated URLs to Google Search Console to prompt reindexing and avoid crawl errors.
Broken links can significantly harm your SEO, so it's essential to catch and fix them quickly.
Best Practices for SEO-Friendly URLs
Follow these tips to make your permalinks both user- and search engine-friendly:
- Keep slugs short and descriptive, e.g., services instead of our-available-services
- Use lowercase letters and hyphens for consistency
- Include keywords naturally where appropriate without keyword stuffing
- Avoid using stop words (a, an, the, of, etc.) to keep URLs clean
- Ensure URLs reflect the page's topic for better CTR in search results
Optimized URLs help search engines understand your content faster and improve user trust.
Useful Links
Customize Permalinks – Learn how to set up and modify permalink structures in WordPress to create SEO-friendly URLs.
WordPress Block Editor – Understand how to use the Gutenberg editor to edit page and post slugs effectively.
Redirection Plugin – Manage 301 redirects and monitor 404 errors to maintain your site's SEO integrity after changing permalinks.
Permalink Manager Lite – Customize individual permalinks for posts, pages, and custom post types beyond the default WordPress settings.
Managing Settings: Permalinks – A tutorial on configuring permalink settings and using redirect plugins for established content.
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Conclusion
Knowing how to change permalink in Elementor is an essential skill for any WordPress user focused on usability and SEO. While Elementor is a powerful builder, URL edits must be made through WordPress itself. With proper planning and redirects, you can update your links safely and effectively.
Be mindful of SEO impacts, always test your changes, and use the right plugins to support the transition. Your website's structure and performance will benefit greatly from well-managed permalinks.