Check that a page's canonical tag points to the right URL, and catch the common mistakes: a canonical to another page, to http, or to a redirect.
How to use the Canonical URL checker
- Enter a URL.
- Compare the canonical with the final URL after redirects.
- Fix canonicals that point anywhere but the page itself, unless that is intended.
What a canonical does
It tells search engines which URL is the main version of a page when several URLs show the same content (tracking parameters, http and https, trailing slashes). A wrong canonical can quietly drop a page from Google.
Reading the checks
The top panel shows the URL you entered, the final URL after redirects (flagged if it redirected), the canonical in the HTML and any canonical sent in a Link header. Then each check passes or fails: a canonical exists; it matches the final URL (a trailing slash difference is ignored); it uses HTTPS; it has no tracking parameters such as utm_, ref, fbclid or gclid; there is only one canonical tag; and, if both are present, the Link header agrees with the HTML. All green on a normal page means Google gets one clear signal.
Fixing canonical problems
Differs from the final URL: usually a template that hard-codes the home page, or http left over from before an HTTPS move. Build it from the page's own clean URL. Multiple canonical tags: often a theme and an SEO plugin both add one; Google may ignore both, so remove one. Tracking parameters: strip query strings when building the canonical. Points at a redirect: point straight at the final URL. If the page is a deliberate copy, such as a print view, a canonical to the original is correct.