Canonical issue

Resolved metacoach
(@metacoach)

2 years, 10 months ago
Hi,

I’m having an issue with canonical URLs. Google console (Page indexing > Alternative page with proper canonical tag) shows a large number of pages with issues with my business directory.

Here is an example:

Actual (correct link)
https://www.[DOMAIN].com.au/directory-listing/automotive/panel-beater-painters/tru-blue-bodyshop/

Canonical URL (incorrect link)
https://www.[DOMAIN].com.au/directory-listing/tru-blue-bodyshop/

(The page is accessible from both URLs)

In WP Admin > Settings > Permalinks – Permalink structure is set to
Post name (https://www.[DOMAIN].com.au/sample-post/)

In the Directories Pro plugin settings – Permalink structure is set to
https://www.[DOMAIN].com.au/directory-listing/%directory_category%/%slug%/

Looking at the Yoast XML sitemap the link appears as it should (as per plugin settings)
https://www.[DOMAIN].com.au/directory-listing/automotive/panel-beater-painters/tru-blue-bodyshop/

This issue affects approximately 5,000 pages on my site.

So, I have two questions:
- How can I bulk set the canonical to the correct URL?
- How can I stop the incorrect link being able to access the directory listing (or does just solving the first question negate the need to do anything)?
NOTE: This issue only applies to DIRECTORIES PRO Plugin pages. All other pages are showing the correct canonical link reference.

I look forward to your response.

Thanks
- This topic was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by metacoach.
- This topic was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by metacoach.
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Viewing 6 replies - 1 through 6 (of 6 total)

Plugin Support Maybellyne
(@maybellyne)

2 years, 10 months ago
Hello @metacoach

Thanks for using the Yoast SEO plugin. According to Google’s page indexing report documentation, Alternate page with proper canonical tag means that this page is marked as an alternate of another page (that is, an AMP page with a desktop canonical, or a mobile version of a desktop canonical, or the desktop version of a mobile canonical). This page correctly points to the canonical page, which is indexed, so there is nothing you need to do. Alternate language pages are not detected by Search Console.

To answer your questions specifically:
- How can I bulk set the canonical to the correct URL? – We have more details about changing the canonical URLs in the developer documentation here: https://developer.yoast.com/features/seo-tags/canonical-urls/api/.
- How can I stop the incorrect link being able to access the directory listing (or does just solving the first question negate the need to do anything)? – I’d recommend setting the Directory permalink and WP permalink to have the same format. You could also speak to the Directory plugin developer about this
- This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by Maybellyne.
Thread Starter metacoach
(@metacoach)

2 years, 10 months ago

Thanks – I appreciate the response. Seems pretty cut and dried. So setting permalinks to same format (removing $category$) is pretty simple. If I were to moving forward URLS already indexed would require redirects. On that note, does Yoast plugin support a bulk redirect function?

Cheers

Plugin Support Maybellyne
(@maybellyne)

2 years, 10 months ago

No, the Yoast SEO Free doesn’t have a redirect feature. You might consider the Yoast SEO Premium instead

Thread Starter metacoach
(@metacoach)

2 years, 10 months ago

Will the Premium version resolve the redirects in bulk as per my last?

Plugin Support Maybellyne
(@maybellyne)

2 years, 10 months ago

Yes, it has a feature for bulk redirects

Thread Starter metacoach
(@metacoach)

2 years, 9 months ago

Thanks! So I’ve decided to upgrade. Will I retain all current settings on the free version when upgrading or do I have to start from scratch?

Viewing 6 replies - 1 through 6 (of 6 total)

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