URL stands for “Uniform Resource Locator.” It is a reference or the address used to locate and identify resources on the Internet. In other words, a URL is the web address used to reach specific web pages, images, videos, files and other content.
A URL usually consists of several components:
- Protocol: This indicates the protocol used to access the resource, usually “http://” or the secure “https://.”
- Domain name: This is the unique address of the Web site on which the resource resides. For example, “www.example.com”.
- Path: The path indicates the specific location of the resource on the server, for example, “/page/subpage/”.
- Query parameters: These are optional and are often used to pass additional information to the server. Query parameters are indicated by a question mark followed by parameters, such as “?id=123”.
An example of a URL is:
https://www.example.com/pagina/subpagina/?id=123
When you type a URL into your Web browser’s address bar and press Enter, the browser will find the Web server associated with the specified URL and display or download the requested resource on that server. URLs play a crucial role in navigating the Internet because they allow you to retrieve specific content from anywhere in the world.
WordPress websites automatically create URLs for you when creating a new post or page based on the title, but you can also modify this URL at any time.
Caution: Search engines index the URLs of your website. This means that if you later change the URLs of a page or post, Google will no longer find it. To prevent this, you need to set up redirects. Only do this yourself if you have experience with it. Otherwise, leave it to a WordPress expert.
