Vanity URL
A vanity URL (sometimes called a friendly URL) is an alternative address, shorter and more readable than the one the system generates, given to an eligible page or content item. Instead of https://domain/en/home/products/launch-event.html, the page can be reached at https://domain/launch. In Jahia, editors can set these addresses themselves.
Definition and how it works
For a marketing team, a vanity URL is an address you can print on a poster, say out loud in a podcast or put in a campaign without depending on the site tree. For search, it is a meaningful address, independent of the page’s place in the site tree.
Each such address belongs to one language, so each language version of a page can have its own, which is useful in a multilingual CMS. It must be unique on the site. An address goes live once it, or the content it belongs to, is published, and it can be deactivated without being deleted. A dedicated jContent dashboard manages them in bulk. The address comes from the system names, or from a vanity URL, which adds to the system name without changing it. The displayable name is the label shown in the interfaces.
For each language, one address can be set as canonical. That is the one used in menus and links, and Jahia’s SEO settings module adds it to the page’s canonical tag. The other addresses lead to the same page: by default Jahia redirects visitors who arrive on one of them to the canonical address with a permanent redirect (HTTP 301), provided the site’s server name is correctly set. An administrator can change this behavior through the permanentMoveForVanityURL property.
Academy documentation: using vanity URLs
Sources: Specifying Jahia properties, Jahia Academy (Jahia 8.2, page dated 8 October 2024).
Related terms: Displayable Name · Content item · Content Editor · Content management system · Multilingual CMS · Child
Resources that cover this term
Vanity URL vs system name: the differences
This mechanism changes the public address without renaming or moving the content. The system name, by contrast, is part of the technical path in the repository.
| Concept | What distinguishes it |
|---|---|
| System name | The content’s technical name in the repository, which makes up the default address. A vanity URL adds to it without changing it. |
| Displayable Name | The text shown as the content’s title in Jahia’s interfaces. The address is built from the system names and vanity URLs, and the system name follows the title at creation, in Content Editor. |
| Plain redirect | A plain redirect sends an old address to a new one. For vanity URLs, the redirect goes to the canonical address by default, which stays the page’s main address. |
Vanity URL in practice
For a trade show, the marketing team creates the address /tradeshow2026 on the event page in English and an equivalent one in French. It can print it on materials without worrying that a site reorganization will break it.
During a redesign or a CMS migration, the same mechanism can help keep the known addresses of a former site by attaching them to the new pages, within the accepted characters (letters, digits, dots and dashes). Check with the SEO team which one is canonical for each language.
Frequently asked questions
Does a vanity URL create duplicate content for search engines?
Not if it is managed properly. The content is stored only once. The vanity URL just provides another address to reach it. For each language, one address can be set as canonical and Jahia declares it as such to search engines. With no canonical chosen, Jahia points to the page path by default. The real risk is a canonical tag added elsewhere, in the template for instance, which then takes precedence.
Can the same vanity URL be used in French and English?
No. In Jahia, each such address belongs to a single language. The same value cannot be used for several languages of one page. Each language version therefore gets its own address. This also lets you use words suited to each market. Uniqueness applies across the whole site as well.
Is a vanity URL live as soon as it is saved?
No. Like other content, it must be published before visitors can reach it. You publish the address itself or the page that carries it. A color code shows whether it is published or modified since the last publication. A vanity URL can also be deactivated without being deleted, which makes it unreachable while keeping it in the system.