1. [Home](https://www.toolcomb.com/) 2. [Text Tools](https://www.toolcomb.com/text-tools) 3. Slug Generator # Slug Generator Online Free - URL Slug from Title Free URL slug generator. Turn a page title into a readable lowercase URL slug with hyphens or underscores, optional maximum length, Unicode support, live preview, and copy. ### Title _Enter a page title or headline…_ ### Options Max length (0 = no limit) _0_ Separator Hyphen (-) Underscore (_) Keep unicode letters Off: NFD accent strip + ASCII alnum. On: preserve letters and numbers in other scripts. ### Slug preview Slug appears here as you type… Copy slug Clear ## What is a URL slug generator? A URL slug generator converts a human-readable title - blog headline, product name, documentation chapter - into a path segment safe for URLs and file names. Good slugs are short, predictable, lowercase, and use hyphens or underscores instead of spaces. They help readers guess what a page contains from the address bar, help search engines relate URLs to topics, and keep CMS exports consistent when dozens of authors publish without a style guide. ToolComb’s slug generator runs entirely in your browser. Type or paste a title and watch the slug update live. By default it lowercases text, strips accents using Unicode NFD decomposition, replaces non-alphanumeric runs with a separator, and collapses repeated separators. That default matches common English-centric CMS behavior and avoids percent-encoded Unicode in paths unless you explicitly opt in. Options tune the output without leaving the page. Set a maximum length to respect platform limits or truncate long product names at word boundaries (at the last separator before the cap). Choose hyphen versus underscore when your stack prefers snake_case routes or legacy file systems. Toggle keep unicode when you intentionally want non-ASCII letters in slugs - common for localized sites - understanding that URLs may still be encoded in transit. Slug generation is not a substitute for global uniqueness checks. Two different titles can collide after normalization - “Resume Tips” and “Résumé Tips” may map to the same ASCII slug when accents strip. Always confirm uniqueness in your CMS or database. This tool focuses on deterministic string normalization so your team shares one recipe before content goes live. Privacy is straightforward: titles never upload to a server. Marketing drafts, confidential codenames, and pre-announce product strings stay in the tab. Copy slug puts the result on the clipboard for WordPress, static site generators, Notion exports, or API payloads. Pair slugs with related text tools when preparing publish workflows: use the word counter to trim titles before slugging, the case converter when legacy titles arrive in ALL CAPS, and the diff checker when comparing old versus new permalink patterns in redirect spreadsheets. SEO teams often document slug rules in a content brief: lowercase, hyphen-separated, no stop words optional, max 60 characters. This generator encodes the mechanical half of that policy so writers spend cognitive budget on words that matter in the headline rather than on manual search-and-replace in a spreadsheet. Historical URLs are a reason to slug carefully once. Changing slugs after publish breaks inbound links unless you add redirects. Generating the slug before the first publish - and storing it in the brief alongside the title - reduces emergency re-slugging on launch day. When you must change a slug, keep a redirect map; this tool does not manage redirects but gives you the normalized target string to paste into your CMS redirect module. International teams sometimes maintain parallel slugs: ASCII fallbacks for legacy analytics and unicode paths for localized reader trust. Toggle keep unicode to preview the localized form, then generate the ASCII variant in a second pass for canonical tags if your stack requires it. Document which URL is canonical in the CMS rather than relying on the generator alone. Developers embedding slugs in JSON APIs should agree on separator policy with frontend routes. Mixing hyphen public URLs with underscore API keys creates mental overhead. This generator lets you preview both separators from one title so backend and content teams align in a single meeting rather than discovering mismatches after launch traffic arrives. ## How to generate a URL slug from a title Enter a title, adjust options if needed, copy the slug - typically seconds per page. 1. **Enter the page or post title** Paste from your CMS, doc, or ticket. The live preview updates on every keystroke so you can shorten the title and watch the slug shrink together. 2. **Choose hyphen or underscore** Hyphens are the most common URL convention. Underscores suit snake_case APIs, certain static generators, or internal file naming standards. 3. **Set max length when platforms cap paths** Enter a positive max length to truncate at the last separator before the limit. Zero means no cap. Truncation avoids breaking mid-word when possible. If truncation removes meaningful words, shorten the title itself - readers see the headline in search results, not the truncated tail of a slug. 4. **Decide on Unicode letters** Leave keep unicode off for ASCII-only slugs with accents stripped. Turn it on when localized paths should retain letters like ä or 字 while still replacing spaces with separators. 5. **Copy the slug** Primary Copy slug places the preview string on the clipboard. Paste into permalink fields, front matter, or routing tables. 6. **Verify uniqueness in your system** The generator does not query your database. Append a disambiguator in the CMS if a collision appears. ## Before / after: launching a blog post permalink ### Before A writer finishes “10 Tips for Résumé Formatting in 2026!” The CMS auto-slug is empty and the SEO checklist requires lowercase hyphenated paths under 60 characters without punctuation. ### After They paste the title into the slug generator with default options. The preview becomes something like 10-tips-for-resume-formatting-in-2026 after accent stripping and punctuation removal. They set max length to 60 if needed, copy slug, and paste into WordPress before publish. Product catalogs, help-center articles, and GitHub wiki pages benefit from the same workflow - one consistent normalization recipe across teams. ## Practical uses for an online slug generator ### 1. Blog and docs permalinks Normalize headlines before publish so analytics and search consoles see stable paths. ### 2. Static site front matter Generate slug fields for Hugo, Jekyll, or Astro from the title without hand-editing. ### 3. E-commerce SKU titles Turn long product names into URL segments that fit mobile share cards. ### 4. API resource paths Draft snake_case path segments from human labels for internal REST or GraphQL gateways. ### 5. Redirect migration spreadsheets Batch-produce proposed slugs from legacy titles when replatforming a CMS. ### 6. Email campaign landing pages Match UTM landing URLs to readable slugs derived from campaign names. ### 7. Knowledge base articles Keep support URLs short and readable for customers pasting links in chat. ### 8. Multilingual sites Experiment with keep unicode for localized paths versus ASCII fallbacks. ### 9. Developer portfolio projects Slug project titles for subdirectory hosting on static hosts. ### 10. Internal wiki hygiene Replace spaces and special characters before importing pages into a new tool. ### 11. Podcast and video episode URLs Turn episode titles into stable path segments for show notes sites. ### 12. SaaS changelog entries Slug release note titles consistently for /changelog/permalink pages. ## Slug strategies compared Pick separators and unicode policy to match your stack and audience. | Style | Typical use | Pros | Caveats | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | ASCII hyphen slug | English blogs, SaaS marketing | Readable, shareable URLs | Accents transliterated away | | Unicode hyphen slug | Localized content | Preserves native letters | Encoding in old clients | | snake_case slug | APIs, Python ecosystems | Matches code conventions | Less common in public URLs | | Manual slug editing | Hero campaigns | Full creative control | Inconsistent without a tool | Automate the boring normalization, then apply editorial judgment for stop words, dates, and disambiguators in the CMS. Slug generators cannot replace information architecture - they implement character rules. When two sections need distinct URLs, differentiate titles before slugging rather than relying on numeric suffixes alone. When migrating hosts, export old slugs and regenerate only when titles truly changed so redirect maps stay small and testable. ## Limits and tips - Does not check database uniqueness - always confirm in your CMS. - Stop words (the, and, of) are not removed unless you edit the title first. - Very short max length may return empty if no separator falls inside the window. - Emoji and symbols become separators or disappear depending on unicode mode. - Numbers and years are kept when alphanumeric. - Complex scripts may need manual review; use keep unicode when your publishing system supports localized paths. ## Privacy: titles stay in the browser Slug generation is local JavaScript. Titles are not uploaded for processing or analytics tied to your paste. Clear the field on shared kiosks. Copied slugs remain on the clipboard until overwritten. No account required and no server-side history of generated slugs. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### How does this slug generator normalize titles? By default it makes the title lowercase, turns spaces and punctuation into your chosen separator, removes accent marks for ASCII-style paths, and trims extra separators at the ends. An optional maximum length keeps a slug easier to read. ### Hyphen or underscore for URLs? Hyphens are the most common public URL convention. Underscores fit snake_case APIs or internal naming. The tool lets you switch without retyping the title. ### What does keep unicode do? When off, only ASCII letters and digits remain after accent stripping. When on, letters and numbers from other scripts are kept while spaces and punctuation still become separators. ### Does the tool guarantee unique slugs? No. Two titles can normalize to the same slug. Always check your CMS or database before publish. ### Are stop words removed? Not automatically. Remove words like “the” or “and” in the title first if your style guide requires it. ### Is my title uploaded? No. Your title is processed in your browser for this feature and is not uploaded by the slug generator. ### Can I slug non-English titles? Yes. Use keep unicode for localized paths, or use the default setting when you need an ASCII-style path. ### What max length should I use? Many teams use 50–80 characters for readability. Set zero for no limit. Truncation prefers breaking at separators. ### Does it work for file names? Yes, though operating systems have their own forbidden characters. This tool removes most problematic punctuation. ### Is the slug generator free? Yes. Unlimited local use with no account or watermark. ### Should I include dates in slugs? Some news sites prefix YYYY/MM for archive browsing; others omit dates so URLs stay evergreen when content is updated. This tool does not add dates automatically - include them in the title if your style guide requires dated paths. ### How do slugs interact with SEO titles? Search engines use many signals beyond the URL slug. A readable slug helps humans share links and can reinforce topic keywords, but the on-page title tag and heading structure matter more. Generate the slug from the final headline after editorial lock. ### Can I regenerate a slug after changing the title? Yes. Paste the updated title anytime; the preview recalculates instantly. If the slug changed after publish, add a 301 redirect from the old path to the new one in your CMS or edge router so bookmarks and inbound links keep working. ### Why did my slug become empty? If the title contains only symbols or emoji and keep unicode is off, normalization may remove every character. Turn on keep unicode or add alphanumeric words to the title. ## Related text tools - [Case Converter](https://www.toolcomb.com/case-converter) - Fix ALL CAPS titles before slugging. - [Word Counter](https://www.toolcomb.com/word-counter) - Shorten long titles to fit slug budgets. - [Citation Formatter](https://www.toolcomb.com/citation-formatter) - Format bibliography strings for research posts. - [HTML ↔ Markdown Converter](https://www.toolcomb.com/html-markdown-converter) - Clean markup before extracting titles. ## Related Tools Discover more free tools that might help with your next task. [Case Converter Convert text between upper, lower, title cases and more Use Tool](https://www.toolcomb.com/case-converter) [HTML ↔ Markdown Converter Convert between HTML and Markdown Use Tool](https://www.toolcomb.com/html-markdown-converter) [Lorem Ipsum Generator Generate placeholder text for design and content Use Tool](https://www.toolcomb.com/lorem-ipsum-generator) [Regex Testing Test and validate regular expressions Use Tool](https://www.toolcomb.com/regex-testing) [Word Counter Count words, characters, and reading time instantly Use Tool](https://www.toolcomb.com/word-counter) [Cron Expression Generator Build and explain crontab schedules in plain English Use Tool](https://www.toolcomb.com/cron-expression-generator) ### Related guides Read the how-to, then come back to this tool when you are ready to run it locally. - [How to Generate URL Slugs for SEO and APIs Lowercase, hyphens, unicode pitfalls, stable IDs vs readable paths - generate slugs in the browser and pair with case conversion for code identifiers.](https://www.toolcomb.com/blog/how-to-generate-url-slugs) - [Best Free Developer Text Tools in the Browser Word counts, diffs, cron, Markdown, slugs, regex replace, SQL format, and JS minify - when to open each ToolComb text tool locally without uploading source.](https://www.toolcomb.com/blog/best-free-developer-text-tools) [View All Tools](https://www.toolcomb.com/tools)