Permalinks are the permanent URLs to your WordPress posts, pages, and other content. The "Post name" structure is essential for both SEO success and WP Automator compatibility.

Critical for WP Automator: The REST API requires pretty permalinks. Plain permalinks will cause connection failures.

Why Permalinks Matter

The permalink structure affects multiple aspects of your WordPress site:

SEO Impact

Search engines favor descriptive URLs over numeric IDs

REST API Functionality

Required for WordPress API endpoints to work correctly

User Experience

Readable URLs are easier to share and remember

Content Organization

Logical URL structure helps with site architecture

Before You Begin

Prerequisites: Ensure you have Administrator access to your WordPress site and your server supports URL rewriting (mod_rewrite for Apache, try_files for Nginx).

Step-by-Step Configuration

Access WordPress Admin Dashboard

Navigate to your WordPress admin URL: https://yourdomain.com/wp-admin
Log in with your administrator credentials
Verify you see the admin dashboard

Navigate to Permalink Settings

From the WordPress admin dashboard:

Locate Settings in the left sidebar menu
Click on Settings to expand the submenu
Select Permalinks from the options

You should now see the Permalink Settings page.

Select Post Name Structure

You'll see several permalink structure options:

Structure	Example URL	Recommendation
Plain	`?p=123`	❌ Never use - breaks REST API
Day and name	`/2024/12/25/sample-post/`	⚠️ Dates make content look old
Month and name	`/2024/12/sample-post/`	⚠️ Still includes dates
Numeric	`/archives/123`	❌ Not SEO-friendly
Post name	`/sample-post/`	✅ Recommended
Custom	User defined	🔧 Advanced users only

Select the "Post name" option by clicking the radio button next to it.

Save Your Changes

Scroll to the bottom of the page
Click the blue Save Changes button
Wait for the confirmation message: "Permalink structure updated"

WordPress automatically updates your .htaccess file (Apache) or generates new rewrite rules (Nginx) when you save.

Verify the Changes

Test that your new permalink structure is working:

Visit an existing post: Click on any published post and check the URL
Test the REST API: Visit https://yourdomain.com/wp-json/wp/v2/posts
Check redirects: Old URLs should automatically redirect to new ones

Common Issues and Solutions

404 Errors After Changing Permalinks

This is the most common issue when updating permalinks:

Flush Rewrite Rules

Go back to Settings → Permalinks
Don't change anything
Click Save Changes again
This forces WordPress to regenerate rewrite rules

Check .htaccess File

For Apache servers, ensure your .htaccess file contains:

# BEGIN WordPress
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index\.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]
</IfModule>
# END WordPress

If missing, add it manually or check file permissions.

Server Requirements

Apache: Ensure mod_rewrite is enabled:

sudo a2enmod rewrite
sudo service apache2 restart

Nginx: Add to your server block:

location / {
    try_files $uri $uri/ /index.php?$args;
}

REST API Not Working

If WP Automator can't connect after changing permalinks:

Test API Endpoint

Visit: https://yourdomain.com/wp-json/wp/v2/posts

You should see JSON data. If you get a 404:

Check REST API Status

Go to Tools → Site Health in WordPress admin
Check the "REST API" test result
Follow any recommendations shown

Disable Conflicting Plugins

Some security plugins may block the REST API:

Temporarily disable security plugins
Test the API endpoint again
Re-enable plugins one by one to find conflicts

Flush Permalinks Again

If the API still doesn't work:

Go back to Settings → Permalinks
Click Save Changes (without changing anything)
This forces WordPress to rebuild its rewrite rules

Custom Permalink Structures

For advanced users who need custom structures:

Available Tags

%year%      - 4-digit year (2024)
%monthnum%  - 2-digit month (12)
%day%       - 2-digit day (25)
%hour%      - 2-digit hour (14)
%minute%    - 2-digit minute (30)
%second%    - 2-digit second (55)
%postname%  - Post slug (my-awesome-post)
%post_id%   - Numeric post ID (123)
%category%  - Primary category slug
%author%    - Author username

Common Custom Structures

Structure: /%category%/%postname%/

Example: /technology/latest-smartphone-review/

Use case: Sites with strong category organization

Structure: /%author%/%postname%/

Example: /johndoe/my-first-post/

Use case: Multi-author blogs or magazines

Structure: /%year%/%monthnum%/%postname%/

Example: /2024/12/breaking-news-story/

Use case: News sites where date context matters

Custom structures can impact performance. WordPress must process more rules to match URLs. Stick with "Post name" unless you have specific requirements.

Impact on WP Automator

Using the "Post name" permalink structure ensures:

Feature	Benefit
Article Creation	Clean, SEO-friendly URLs for all generated content
API Reliability	Consistent REST API endpoints that won't break
Slug Management	Automatic slug generation from article titles
Category Support	Proper category archive pages
Media Handling	Correct attachment URLs for uploaded images

Best Practices

URL Structure Guidelines

Keep URLs Short

Aim for 3-5 words in your slugs

Use Hyphens

Separate words with hyphens, not underscores

Avoid Stop Words

Remove 'the', 'a', 'an' from URLs when possible

Be Descriptive

URLs should clearly indicate content topic

SEO Optimization Tips

Remove dates from URLs to keep content evergreen
Include keywords naturally in your post slugs
Avoid special characters that require encoding
Keep hierarchy shallow - avoid deep nesting
Maintain consistency across your site

Troubleshooting Checklist

Before contacting support, verify:

WordPress version 5.6 or higher
Administrator access to WordPress
Server supports URL rewriting
.htaccess file is writable (Apache)
No security plugins blocking changes
REST API endpoint responds with JSON
Permalinks set to "Post name"
Changes saved successfully

Success! With permalinks configured correctly, your WordPress site is ready for WP Automator. Next, learn about adding multiple sites to manage all your WordPress properties from one dashboard.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Will changing permalinks break my existing links? A: WordPress automatically creates redirects from old URLs to new ones. However, it's best to set permalinks correctly when first setting up your site.

Q: Can I change permalinks on a live site? A: Yes, but do it during low-traffic periods. WordPress handles redirects, but search engines need time to update their indexes.

Q: Why does WP Automator require pretty permalinks? A: The WordPress REST API doesn't function properly with plain permalinks. Pretty permalinks ensure reliable API communication.

Q: What if my hosting doesn't support URL rewriting? A: Most modern hosts support this. If yours doesn't, consider upgrading your hosting plan or switching providers.

Next: Add Multiple WordPress Sites to your WP Automator dashboard

Setting Permalinks to Post Name