Google Search Console
“Duplicate without user-selected canonical”: meaning and how to fix it
Depends on the pageWhat it means
Google thinks this page duplicates another one, and the page doesn't declare a canonical. Google picked another URL as the canonical and indexed that one instead.
Is it a problem?
Fine if the chosen canonical is the version you want. A problem if Google picked the wrong one, or if the pages shouldn't be duplicates at all.
Common causes
- The same content reachable by several URLs: parameters, trailing slashes, http/https, www/non-www, uppercase
- Printer-friendly or session-ID versions
- Very similar product variants or location pages
How to fix it
- Add rel="canonical" pointing to the preferred URL on every duplicate
- Redirect (301) duplicate variants such as http, non-www or trailing-slash versions
- Link internally only to the canonical version
- If the pages should be distinct, make their content genuinely different
How to check the fix
URL Inspection shows "Google-selected canonical". Check it matches your preferred URL.
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