Replace URL spaces with dashes instead of %20
Please change how SharePoint generates links to uploaded documents and site pages, so that URLs with spaces will replace %20 with a dash instead. Most CMS tools including blogs do when generating SEO friendly URLs. Links with %20 throughout are too difficult to read.
This feedback site is a perfect example:
This:
https://sharepoint.uservoice.com/forums/282887-customer-feedback-for-sharepoint-server
is easier to read than this:
https://sharepoint.uservoice.com/forums/282887%20customer%20feedback%20for%20sharepoint%20server


We changed this for modern pages last year. Sorry we forgot to update the status for this item.
17 comments
Comments are closed-
Anonymous commented
This is standard HTML. you could just put the dashes in for yourself. Or dont use spaces. Simple fix.
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Jeremy Taylor commented
Or at least replace spaces with the plus sign (+) as a replacement for spaces, other platforms sometimes use plus signs as a replacement for spaces.
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Brad PFEFFER commented
While you are at it, could you look at shortening the URL for the default "Documents" document library in SharePoint from "Shared%20Documents" to just "Docs"?
If anyone here agrees with me, please vote here:
https://sharepoint.uservoice.com/forums/329214-sites-and-collaboration/suggestions/33225721-shorten-default-files-url-from-shared-20documenIs "Shared Documents" really necessary?
While I agree "Shared-Documents" would already be much better than "Shared%20Documents", it is still unnecessarily long.
What's wrong with simply 'Docs'?https://mycompany.sharepoint.com/sites/Marketing/Shared%20Documents/...
-or-
https://mycompany.sharepoint.com/sites/Marketing/Shared-Documents/......would be much better shortened to:
https://mycompany.sharepoint.com/sites/Marketing/Docs/... -
Dennis.Wallman commented
Two years later and it still does not work as it should While Ajay's suggestion works for classic pages, a page created using the Modern Design will see all those lovely %20 in its URL.
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Ajay Chauhan commented
The option - Convert blank spaces in the page name to '-' is available OOTB - right at the bottom under Page Layout & Site Template Settings
(/_layouts/15/AreaTemplateSettings.aspx)
Once enabled it doesn't affect any of the older pages - All new pages you create with automatically change the %20 to -
Hope that helps..
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Daniel commented
Keep in mind you have many customers that have already created thousands of link extracts with the %20, so it needs to retain those or it will cause hundreds of hours of work to correct.
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Adam commented
human friendly url scheme. Stop using the URL scheme since 2003 version. URLs that take the whole with of the address bar are unprofessional and annoying.
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Peter England commented
This would also solve the issue with links that wrap in emails but then break because of a space etc. and are no longer fully formed hyperlinks. People click on then and wonder why they get a page not found error.
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SDADM commented
Any update on the status of this suggestion?
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Tom Braman commented
Underscores should be replaced with dashes, too, since underscores can't be seen when they are part of a hyperlink (they appear as spaces).
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Ricardo C commented
MS should adjust their code to replace spaces all times with dashes as they are already doing when a new page is created and its name has a space. This should apply to column names, list/lib names, and any other object in where right now has the encoded value.
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David S commented
The %20 is the worst.
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Marcos Babu commented
Since my very beginning with web standards I'd create objectives without space or special characters till I was sure I could change it. Just add this to the "Welcome to Sharepoint (or any web-based solution for that matter) package". Every single student or partner that had already worked with me heard this instruction at least once and created the habit.
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Marie Castine commented
List is just a basic web standard and in SP, you can create the name with dashes yourself, then just change the display name. That is what I do for SP since I am used to naming HTML, CSS, etc without spaces.
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KTNN commented
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jremmc commented
Accessibility would certainly be greatly improved. I don't know anyone who doesn't have issues reading the % characters, so imagine how much harder it is for those who have a learning disability, or sight disability, or...
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Jean Marie Thia commented
This also true for accented characters, so translate accented character to ASCII 7. Or inform users of the value when creating Libraries, List, pages and uploding files which could be pretty hard to do