Keyword cannibalization happens when multiple pages on your website compete for the same keyword. At first glance, it might seem smart to create lots of content around the same topic—but if you’re not careful, you’re actually hurting your SEO instead of helping it.

When two or more pages target the same search term, search engines like Google get confused about which one to rank. Instead of boosting your visibility, you end up diluting your authority across several competing URLs.

What does it look like?

Let’s say you’ve written:

• A blog post titled “How to Choose the Right Web Hosting”
• A service page called “WordPress Hosting Services”
• A case study called “Hosting Optimization for a Local Business”

If they all try to rank for “WordPress hosting,” Google may not know which one is most important—and might rank none of them well as a result.

You’re essentially cannibalizing your own chances of ranking by spreading relevance and backlinks across too many similar pages.

Why keyword cannibalization matters

• Lower rankings: Google splits attention between your pages instead of focusing on your strongest one.
• Confused visitors: If multiple pages say the same thing, users don’t know where to click—or why it matters.
• Wasted crawl budget: Search engines might skip more important content while trying to index duplicate efforts.
• Weakened link equity: Backlinks get split between similar pages instead of building authority for one clear winner.

It’s especially risky on sites with lots of content—like blogs, e-commerce shops, or service-based businesses with overlapping offers.

Common causes

• Publishing multiple blog posts on the same topic over time
• Having similar service pages (e.g. “Web Design” and “Custom Web Design” with nearly identical content)
• Tagging or categorizing pages poorly, leading to duplicate content
• Trying to rank for a broad keyword across every page instead of using more specific, long-tail variations

How to fix it

1. Audit your content
   Use tools like Google Search Console, Ahrefs, or Screaming Frog to find pages competing for the same terms.
2. Choose a primary page
   Decide which page should rank for the target keyword—it’s usually the one that’s most relevant and already performs well.
3. Merge and redirect
   Combine similar content into one stronger, more comprehensive page. Use 301 redirects to send traffic from the old pages to the new one.
4. Update internal links
   Make sure your internal linking strategy points to the primary page as the authority on that topic.
5. Reposition other pages
   Adjust the focus of the other pages to target related, but different, long-tail keywords.

Bottom line

Keyword cannibalization isn’t about writing “too much” content—it’s about creating too many similar pieces without a clear strategy. If several pages compete for the same keyword, you’re forcing Google (and your users) to choose between them. Clean up the overlap, and you’ll often see your rankings rise without creating anything new.