trailing slash
Also called: trailing slash vs no trailing slash, url trailing slash, slash at end of url
A trailing slash is the forward slash at the end of a URL, as in example.com/page/ versus example.com/page. Google treats the two as separate URLs, so serving identical content on both can create duplicate URLs, with one exception: at the root domain, example.com and example.com/ are equivalent.
Historically a trailing slash signaled a directory and its absence signaled a file, but Google says that convention is not a requirement. You can pick either style. What matters is that Google crawls and evaluates /page/ and /page as two distinct addresses. If both return a 200 status with the same content, you have handed Google duplicate URLs to reconcile, which wastes crawl activity and can split the signals (links, engagement) that should concentrate on one address.
Pick one version and enforce it
Google’s guidance is three steps. Choose a preferred version. Use it consistently in your internal links and your XML sitemap, and leave the duplicate out of the sitemap. Then 301 redirect the non-preferred version to the preferred one. If a redirect is not possible, rel="canonical" is a strong fallback, though a 301 is the harder signal and a canonical is only a hint that Google may override.
One address is the exception: the root. https://example.com and https://example.com/ are the same URL and cannot be redirected against each other.
Most stacks make this a one-line setting. Astro has trailingSlash, Next.js has a trailingSlash config, and WordPress enforces a consistent form by default. Set it once at the platform or server level so new pages inherit the rule instead of mixing both forms as the site grows.
How it affects your traffic
When both slash variants resolve, Google can index the version you did not intend, dilute link equity across two URLs, and burn crawl budget re-fetching duplicates instead of your new pages. On large sites this compounds fast, since every template that mixes the two forms multiplies the duplicate set. Locking the canonical form with server-level 301s is exactly the kind of low-drama fix a Technical SEO engagement catches and cleans up, along with the sitemap and internal-link consistency that make the choice stick.
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