How To Remove Duplicated Title Tags (5 Proven Fixes)

Today I’m excited to guide you through the process of removing duplicate title tags from your website using Yoast SEO and Rank Math.
This is a crucial step in optimizing your website for search engines.
Let’s dive in!
SEO Theory: The Importance of Title Tags
From an SEO standpoint, the page title is incredibly significant.
It’s not just a label; it serves as a concise descriptor of the page’s content.
Search engines prioritize this element highly, but its importance extends beyond that.
The title tag is prominently displayed in the browser’s title bar and forms the anchor text of your page in search engine results.
Neglecting to provide a unique title can adversely affect your page’s ranking, potentially more so than not having a title at all.
What is a Duplicated Title Tag?
A duplicate title tag occurs when two different pages on the same website have the same title tag, also known as a meta title.
This title tag is essentially the name of the web page, which appears as the clickable link in search engine results.
It’s important not to mix this up with the meta description, a brief summary of the page’s content that appears under the title tag in search results.
How To Remove Duplicated Page Titles
Duplicate page titles are a common issue with serious repercussions. Search engines like Google favor unique content, and repetitive titles across your site can diminish its overall appeal to these search engines.
Let’s explore some typical scenarios that lead to title duplication and how to address them.
Fix 1: Revisiting and Streamlining SEO Plugins
First and foremost, it’s important to audit your SEO plugins.
Over time, it’s easy to accumulate multiple plugins, especially if you’re experimenting with different features or updates.
However, using multiple SEO plugins simultaneously can lead to conflicts and inefficiencies.
Why Streamline Your SEO Plugins?
- Avoid Conflicts: Different plugins might attempt to perform the same function, leading to conflicts and inconsistent results.
- Improve Performance: Too many plugins can slow down your site. Streamlining helps in maintaining optimal website performance.
- Simplify Management: Using one plugin simplifies the management of your SEO strategies.
Steps to Streamline:
- Audit Your Plugins: Review all the SEO plugins you’ve installed. Identify their functions and how they overlap.
- Deactivate Redundant Plugins: If you have plugins that serve similar purposes, deactivate the ones you don’t need. This might require some research to understand which plugin offers the best functionality for your needs.
- Choose a Primary SEO Plugin: Select one comprehensive plugin that covers most of your SEO needs. Popular choices like Yoast SEO or Rank Math often provide a wide range of features.
Fix 2: Deactivating Theme-Based SEO Functions
Many WordPress themes come with built-in SEO functions. While they can be handy, they often conflict with your chosen SEO plugin, leading to issues like duplicate meta tags.
Why Disable Theme SEO Functions?
- Prevent Duplicate Content: Theme-based SEO functions can automatically generate meta tags, which might duplicate what your SEO plugin creates.
- Ensure Consistency: Using SEO functions from both your theme and plugin can lead to inconsistencies in how your site is optimized.
- Control and Customization: Plugins often provide more control and customization options compared to theme-based SEO tools.
Fix 3: Identical Pages in Different Locations
Sometimes, the same page might appear in multiple locations on your site – for example, one for paid customers and another for free users.
Although both pages are legitimate, they can confuse search engines.
The solution here is to use a canonical tag.
Place this tag in the duplicate page’s code, pointing to what you consider the original page.
Fix 4: Different Content, Same Title
If you have two pages with distinct content but identical titles, it’s time to get more specific with your titles.
For instance, if both pages are titled ‘Fries’ but one is about a fries made from scratch and the other a reheating frozen fries, then rename them respectively.
Fix 5: Blog or Shop Pages with Uniform Titles
A common issue in blogs or e-commerce sites is having a uniform title across different articles or product pages.
This practice dilutes individual page ranks and misses out on the opportunity to utilize more relevant keywords.
Adjust your content management system settings to automatically use the H1 tag or a unique identifier as the page title.
Fix 4: Pagination Issues
In blogs or e-commerce sites with pagination, each paginated page often shares the same title. Search engines might see these pages as identical.
To avoid this, implement the ‘no index’ tag on all pagination pages except the first one.
Closing Thoughts
That wraps up our tutorial for today. By understanding and addressing these common scenarios, you can significantly improve your website’s SEO performance. Remember, in the world of SEO, the uniqueness and relevance of your content, including title tags, are key.