Every URL tracking parameter, explained

When you see a ? in a link followed by a list of key=value pairs joined by &, those are query parameters. Some are essential; many are just tracking. Here's the field guide.

Marketing & analytics

• utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, utm_term, utm_content — Google Analytics campaign tags. Added by marketers to see where traffic came from. Full explainer here. Safe to remove.

Ad & social click IDs

• fbclid — Facebook Click Identifier. Ties a click to your Facebook session. More on fbclid.
• gclid / gclsrc / dclid — Google Ads and DoubleClick click IDs.
• msclkid — Microsoft (Bing) Ads click ID.
• twclid — X / Twitter click ID.
• igshid — Instagram share ID.
• yclid — Yandex click ID.
• __twitter_impression — a Twitter impression flag.

All of these are pure tracking and safe to remove.

Commerce & affiliate

• tag — Amazon associate/affiliate tag that credits a referrer for a sale.
• ref_, ref — generic "referrer" keys used by many shops and platforms.
• _encoding — an Amazon parameter that isn't needed to load the product.

Email & marketing platforms

• mc_cid, mc_eid — Mailchimp campaign and email IDs.
• _hsenc, _hsmi — HubSpot email tracking.
• vero_id, oly_enc_id, oly_anon_id, wickedid — various email/marketing platform identifiers.

The ones you should NEVER remove

This is where careless cleaners break links. These parameters change what the page shows, so a good tool always keeps them:

• q, s, search — the actual search query.
• page — which page of results you're on.
• id — the specific item, article, or product.
• v — the YouTube video identifier (remove this and the video won't load).

The simple rule

If a parameter tells the page what to show, keep it. If it only tells someone where you came from, it's safe to strip. URL Valet applies exactly this rule automatically — removing every tracker on this page while protecting the ones that make your link work.