A permalink is the permanent web address for a specific post or page — the URL people use to reach that exact piece of content, like yoursite.com/how-to-brew-coffee.
The word “permalink” is short for “permanent link,” reflecting the idea that once published, a URL shouldn’t change carelessly, since other sites, bookmarks, and search engines may already be linking to it.
Permalink Structures
WordPress lets you choose how your URLs are structured under Settings → Permalinks. A common, SEO-friendly choice uses the post name directly, producing clean URLs like /post-name/ instead of messy strings with question marks and numbers.
Why You Shouldn’t Change Them Casually
Changing your permalink structure after a site has been live for a while can break existing links pointing to your content, both from other websites and from search engine results. If you do need to change a URL, setting up a redirect helps preserve traffic to the old address.