Google redesigns mobile search URLs for a cleaner look

Google Search

Google is making a change to to how URLs are displayed in mobile search results. The change, which focuses on simplifying the visible URL element, is designed to make search results more readable and user-friendly, particularly on smaller screens. “Mobile searchers will soon see a cleaner, more streamlined look for how URLs appear in search results,” said Google in a blog post.

The feature was first induced as part of the site hierarchy and Google said that it found that the breadcrumb element isn't as useful to people who are searching on mobile devices, as it gets cut off on smaller screens. “Starting today, we're rolling out a change to no longer show breadcrumbs on mobile search results in all languages and regions where Google Search is available (they continue to appear on desktop search results),” noted Google in the blog post.

Previously, mobile search results often displayed long, complex URLs that could be difficult to parse at a glance. These lengthy web addresses sometimes obscured the essential information users needed to identify the source or relevance of a page. With the new update, Google is streamlining the display by showing only the most critical parts of the URL, such as the domain name and a simplified path. This cleaner format aims to help users quickly understand where a link will take them without unnecessary clutter. “We hope this change makes it easier for people to find what they're looking for when they're searching on mobile,” added Google.