If you’re a small business owner who is setting up a new website, a word of caution: structuring your website the right way can make or break your SEO game.  

But the real question remains: “Should you use subdomain vs subdirectory?”  

Ask any SEO expert which is better for SEO: subdomain vs subdirectory, and you’ll get a debatable answer at best. 

In this guide, we will try to rid you of your confusion. Let’s weigh the pros and cons of subdomain vs subdirectory relating to how they can affect your website’s SEO. Let’s get going. 

What is a Subdomain? 

A subdomain is a part of a larger domain within the Domain Name System (DNS) hierarchy. 

When a website uses an additional website and a separate content management system (including templates, analytics, tools. etc) to organize and structure its content, it is referring to a subdomain. 

Got It. So What is a Subdirectory Then? 

A subdirectory vs subfolder is one and the same thing. 

A subdirectory uses folders to organize the website’s content and files within a parent directory. 

You can have multiple subfolders to store your content, but this will be a fatal SEO mistake: 

  • The URL string can become unnecessarily long and complicated 
  • The user experience can feel confusing for the end user 
  • Search engine crawlers will not be able to crawl your website for new content 

Advantages of Subdomains vs Subdirectories for Your Website 

The choice between using subdomains and subdirectories for your website’s SEO (Search Engine Optimization) impacts how search engines perceive and rank your content. 

With the basics underway, let’s explore the advantages of subdomain vs subdirectory: 

Advantages of Subdomains: 

  • Isolated content: Subdomains allow you to separate different sections of your website. So, if your website deals with mountains worth of content every day, subdomains can help.  
  • Better keyword emphasis: If you have specific keywords that you want to promote separately, subdomains can focus on a particular keyword niche and make it easier to target granular audiences. 
  • Global reach: Subdomains are often used for international targeting. For example, you can set up country-specific subdomains (e.g., us.example.com, uk.example.com) to indicate which regions you’re targeting and reach a wider target audience with ease. 

Pro tip: If you tend to engage in recurring campaigns that mandate a separate landing page, subdomains are more up your alley. 

Advantages of Subdirectories: 

  • Consolidated authority: All content within subdirectories is considered part of the same website/domain. This means that any SEO authority, link equity, or trust that is built for the main domain will trickle down to the subdirectories as well. 
  • Simplified site structure: Subdirectories can simplify your site structure and navigation to a great extent. As a result, your customers can easily explore everything in one place, leading to an elevated customer experience.  
  • Easier maintenance: Managing a single domain with subdirectories is relatively more straightforward than handling multiple subdomains, which each has its own configuration and settings to take care of. 
  • Increased content relevance: Subdirectories can reinforce the relevance of content and keywords within the same topic/theme. 

Disadvantages of Subdomains vs Subdirectories for Your Website 

Let’s now learn about the disadvantages of subdomain vs subdirectory: 

Disadvantages of Subdomains: 

  • SEO fragmentation: Subdomains can dent your SEO efforts. Since search engines treat subdomains as separate entities, each one must individually build up its SEO authority. Naturally, it can take longer for a new subdomain to rank well. Moreover, the SEO benefits of the main domain may not flow to the subdomains as expected. 
  • Complex maintenance: Managing multiple subdomains can be complex. Each subdomain may require separate updates, plugins, security configurations, and maintenance efforts. 
  • User confusion: Subdomains can sometimes confuse users. For instance, visitors may wonder if they’ve landed on a different website altogether when they move from the main domain to a subdomain. This can lead to a higher bounce rate if users get lost. 
  • Duplicate content: If you’re not careful, subdomains can lead to unintentional duplicate content issues. When content is similar across subdomains, it can dilute the SEO value and may even trigger duplicate content penalties from search engines. 
  • Initial setup complexity: Configuring subdomains often requires more technical know-how compared to subdirectories.  

Disadvantages of Subdirectories: 

  • Content overload: Subdirectories may lead to content overload if not organized effectively. As you add more content, the structure can become unwieldy, and users might have difficulty finding what they need in one go. 
  • Keyword confusion: If your subdirectories cover vastly different topics, it might confuse search engines. They may struggle to understand what your website is primarily about–a big mistake!  
  • Potential for unintentional changes: Making changes to one subdirectory could unintentionally affect the entire website. This is why it’s crucial to be careful when updating your content (and configurations). 

RECOMMENDED: Subdomain Vs Domain: Making the Right Choice for Search Engine Optimisation

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Structuring your website right is just the beginning of a long-winded website maintenance journey. Having an expert by your side can make the process easier. 

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