Understanding Duplicate Canonical Issues in IDX Websites

What Are Duplicate Canonical Tags?

Duplicate canonical tags often occur on pages generated automatically by IDX solutions, such as search result pages with offset numbers. These issues are common across most websites utilizing MLS integrations.

While these tags might seem problematic, they typically do not need to be fixed or indexed. These pages often serve to enhance the user experience rather than contribute to SEO.

Why This Issue Occurs

  • Pages like search result pages or pagination pages are automatically created by IDX solutions.
  • These pages often share the same canonical tag as the main search page.
  • Google usually selects one of these pages to index, often prioritizing the main search page.

Example: The Niagara Home Site

On the Niagara Home site, the sitemap includes a search result page with offset numbers. While the sitemap page has the correct canonical tag, the offset pages share the same canonical tag. These pages are typically de-indexed and do not need indexing since they do not contain unique content.

When to Take Action

Action may be necessary if:

  1. A page on your site, such as a community or service page, has duplicate canonical tags with its sub-pages (e.g., Floor Plans).
  2. The duplicate pages are content-rich and need to be indexed.

In such cases, you can manually update the canonical tags to differentiate between the main page and its sub-pages.

Google’s Approach to Duplicate Canonical Tags

According to Google, when faced with multiple pages with the same canonical tag:

  • Google usually selects one to index, often the main search page.
  • The pagination or sub-pages are deprioritized for indexing as they lack unique content.
  • Adding a proper canonical tag to the main page ensures that it is indexed correctly.

Key Takeaways

Most duplicate canonical issues are not critical and do not require immediate action, especially for pages that do not contain valuable content. These include:

  • Pagination pages
  • Search result pages with offset numbers
  • Sub-pages generated by IDX solutions

What You Should Focus On

Instead of worrying about these automatically generated pages:

  • Ensure that the main pages, such as the primary search or service pages, have the correct canonical tags.
  • Focus on pages with unique, valuable content that should be indexed.