Start Here Beginner

What Is a URL?

A URL is a web address that tells your browser where to go.

Infographic: What Is a URL? It breaks a web address into its protocol, domain name, and path.
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A URL is a web address. It tells your browser exactly which website or page to open, just like a street address tells a mail carrier where to go.

Take this one apart: https://robotexplains.ai/start-here.

The https:// part is the protocol. It is how your browser and the website agree to talk, and https means the conversation is private.

The robotexplains.ai part is the domain name. This is the important one: it tells you which website you are really on.

The /start-here part is the path. It points to one specific page on that website.

Knowing the parts is a safety superpower. Tricky links sometimes look almost right, so checking the domain name before you click helps you avoid fakes.

What to remember

  • A URL is a web address.
  • Its parts do different jobs: protocol, domain, and path.
  • The domain name tells you which website you are really on.
  • Reading a link carefully can help you spot fakes.

Words to know

URL
A web address that points to a page, like https://robotexplains.ai/start-here.
Protocol
The https:// part. It says how to talk, and https means it is private.
Domain name
The robotexplains.ai part. It says which website you are on.
Path
The /start-here part. It says which page on that website.

For grown-ups

A URL identifies a resource: scheme (https), host/domain, optional port, path, and optional query string and fragment. Teaching kids to read the domain, the part right before the first single slash, is the single most useful habit for spotting lookalike and phishing links.

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