How to Configure WordPress Permalink Settings

The default WordPress permalink settings control the URL format for all posts, pages, categories, and tags

These settings apply globally, which means the same structure is used for all posts, one for all categories, and one for all tag archives.

For small or simple websites, this is usually enough, but it does not handle custom post types and taxonomies well. Their permalinks cannot be fully customized using only the built-in options.

If you need more flexibility, custom permalink plugins allow you to set individual URLs or create structures that WordPress does not support natively.

Setting Up Permalinks via Admin Dashboard

Choosing a Permalink Structure Under "Common Settings"

In WordPress, you can select your permalink structure in the admin under "Settings > Permalinks". While this page gives you several options under "Common Settings", these apply exclusively to the default "Post" type (blog posts).

The "Common Settings" section (where you choose the permalink mode) applies exclusively to the default "Post" type (blog posts). Custom post types, such as Products, Portfolio, or Events, use their own permalink formats and are not affected by those settings.

By default, WordPress uses "Plain" permalinks. These URLs rely on query strings and numeric IDs that do not provide much context to your visitors or search engines.

Most WordPress users prefer "Post Name" because it keeps URLs descriptive and straightforward, making links easier for visitors to read and for search engines to understand.

• Plain
  This structure uses a query-based URL that includes the post ID. This format is hard to read for visitors and not suitable for SEO.
  Example: https://example.com/?p=123
• Day and name
  This structure includes the full date and the post title. It can be useful for news or time-based content, but the URL can become long.
  Example: https://example.com/2026/01/02/sample-post/
• Month and name
  This format shows the month and year, followed by the post title. It keeps some date context while staying shorter than the above format.
  Example: https://example.com/2026/01/sample-post/
• Numeric
  This structure places a numeric ID in the URL instead of the post title. It offers no context to users or search engines and is rarely recommended.
  Example: https://example.com/archives/123
• Post name
  This structure uses only the post slug. It is the most common option because it is short, readable, and easy to understand.
  Example: https://example.com/sample-post/

What Are WordPress Permalink Structure Tags?

WordPress permalink structure tags are placeholders enclosed in % signs. When a URL is generated, each tag is replaced with the corresponding value. These tags can be combined under "Settings -> Permalinks" to define the URL format for blog posts.

The most commonly used tags are:

For example, the permalink structure /%year%/%monthnum%/%postname%/ produces a URL like:

https://example.com/2026/01/sample-post/

Do WordPress Permalink Settings Apply to Custom Post Types and Taxonomies?

Permalink structure tags configured under "Settings -> Permalinks" apply only to the default Post type. The built-in permalink settings panel provides options for managing the URL structure of posts and pages, but the structure tags themselves are not used for pages.

Custom post types and taxonomies generally cannot use these tags freely either. Some plugins extend WordPress’s permalink settings with additional options for their own content types and add their own permastructure tags.

For example, WooCommerce provides permalink options for products, product categories, and product tags. In most cases, however, the permalink formats for custom post types and taxonomies cannot be edited from the built-in permalink settings.

Trailing Slashes: The Permalink Setting You Might Miss

WordPress does not provide a dedicated setting for trailing slashes in the admin dashboard. The "Settings -> Permalinks" page does not include a checkbox, dropdown, or other control for this setting, which makes it easy to miss.

Instead, trailing slashes are determined by the permalink structure in the "Custom Structure" field. When the structure ends with a slash, WordPress adds a trailing slash to site URLs. When it does not, the slash is removed.

This single character affects the URLs of all content on the site, so it is worth checking carefully. For a full explanation of how to add, remove, or enforce trailing slashes, see the full article on trailing slash settings.

WordPress Address vs. Site Address URL: What Each One Controls

When users change permalink settings, they often miss two related options in "Settings -> General". These fields are named WordPress Address (URL) and Site Address (URL).

The first one tells WordPress where its core files are located on your server. The second one, is the homepage URL your visitors see. WordPress also uses it as the base for your canonical URLs.

These two settings are also used by permalink-related functions, whenever WordPress needs to get permalink for any post or page on your site.

Most websites use the same URL for both setting fields, so there is usually nothing to configure. They should be different when WordPress is installed in a subdirectory, such as /wp/.

In that case, the WordPress Address (URL) should include that directory path (e.g. https://example.com/wp/ ), while the Site Address (URL) stays at the root domain (e.g. https://example.com/ ).

What Happens When Site URLs Are Overwritten in wp-config.php

If you set WP_HOME or WP_SITEURL constants directly in wp-config.php file, WordPress ignores whatever you enter in "Settings -> General".

This means that if you change the URLs there, the dashboard will show that the changes were saved. Nothing will actually change, though and WordPress does not show a warning, so this can be tricky for most users to figure out.

define( 'WP_SITEURL', 'https://example.com' );
define( 'WP_HOME', 'https://example.com' );

Where Are Permalinks Stored in WordPress?

By default, WordPress does not store full URLs in the database. Instead, it generates links dynamically, allowing your site to rebuild permalinks automatically whenever the URL structure changes.

The permalink settings are kept in the wp_options table under "permalink_structure" row, while each slug is stored separately. WordPress separates slugs from the global permalink settings because slug is the part of the URL that identifies a post, page, or taxonomy item.

The "permalink_structure" row only defines the general format for URLs and the slugs are created from titles and appear at the end of the URL. For example, a post titled "WordPress Permalink" will use the slug "wordpress-permalink" unless you change it manually.

In WordPress, slugs are stored in different database tables depending on the content type:

• For posts, pages, and custom post types, the slug is saved in the "post_name" column of the wp_posts table.
• Categories, tags, and other taxonomy terms store their slugs in the "slug" column of the wp_terms table.

Troubleshooting & FAQ