Route 66 for Joomla

Supercharge your Joomla site with SEO tools powered by AI, smart crawling, beautiful SEF URLs, metadata optimization, performance enhancements, XML sitemaps, and more — all in one powerful extension. Requires Joomla 5.3 and PHP 8.2.

Choose Your Version: Free or PRO?
Route 66 for Joomla - AI Tools

AI Tools

Write better titles, descriptions, and even page content with AI tools

Smart SEO Crawler

Scan your site for SEO issues like duplicate titles, missing metadata, and slow pages

AI-Powered SEO Tools for Smarter Optimization

Unlock the power of AI to create better metadata and content — faster. Route 66 PRO includes a suite of built-in tools to help you write engaging titles, descriptions, and even page content with ease.

  • Built in AI Tools – Generate titles, meta descriptions, Open Graph tags, or improve content with tools like "Continue Writing", "Summarize" and "Rewrite".
  • Custom AI Tools – Create your own tools with custom prompts tailored to your workflow!

AI Tools are only available in the PRO version. Requires an API key from OpenAI or Anthropic. Usage fees may apply.

Advanced SEO Crawler for Actionable Insights

Crawl your website to detect common SEO issues — like missing titles, duplicate meta descriptions, or slow-loading pages. Route 66 gives you a clear, searchable report so you can fix problems fast.

  • SEO Issue Detection – Get alerts for missing/duplicate metadata, oversized pages, slow load times, and more.
  • Crawl Any Extension – Works across your entire site, not just core Joomla content.
  • Custom Filters & Search – Find exactly what needs fixing with filters for specific SEO issues, response codes, SEO/readability scores, and more.

Free version crawls up to 30 pages. Unlimited crawling available in the PRO version.

Joomla SEO Crawler – Route 66 Crawled Pages with Multi-Tab Analysis for Any Extension

Powerful Metadata Editing – Your Way

Route 66 makes metadata editing flexible and efficient with two seamless ways to manage SEO and social metadata:

  • In-Form Editing – Edit metadata directly within the content editing form of supported Joomla extensions.
  • Crawler-Based Editing – View and edit metadata from the crawled pages list. This unified interface works with content from any Joomla extension, making it ideal for large-scale SEO reviews.

Free version is limited to 30 crawled pages. In-Form Editing works with Joomla articles and categories in free version while PRO version expands support to VirtueMart, HikaShop, and Eshop.

SEO & Readability Analysis by Yoast

Route 66 integrates professional-grade SEO and readability checks into your workflow using the trusted Yoast analysis engine. You can analyze content in two powerful ways:

  • In-Form Analysis – Get real-time SEO and readability feedback while editing content in supported Joomla extensions. Just enter your focus keyphrase to receive actionable insights.
  • Crawler-Based Analysis – Analyze SEO and readability directly from the crawled pages view. Just select a page, enter your focus keyphrase, and get real-time feedback. Works with content from any Joomla extension.

With Yoast technology built into both editing and crawling workflows, Route 66 helps you ensure every page on your site is SEO-ready and easy to read.

Free version is limited to 30 crawled pages. In-Form Analysis works with Joomla articles and categories in free version while PRO version expands support to VirtueMart, HikaShop, and Eshop.

Joomla SEO with Yoast – Real-Time SEO & Readability Analysis in Route 66

Custom SEF URLs Using Smart Patterns

Take full control of your Joomla URLs with Route 66’s flexible pattern-based system. Unlike other SEO extensions that offer rigid options, Route 66 lets you define clean, meaningful SEF URLs using dynamic tokens like article date, ID, category path, alias, and more.

Create URLs that match your site structure, improve SEO, and enhance user experience — without writing a single line of code. Examples of supported patterns:

  • blog/{articleYear}/{articleMonth}/{articleAlias}
  • {categoryAlias}/{articleAlias}
  • {articleAlias}
  • page-{articleId}
  • {categoryPath}/{articleAlias}
  • {productAlias}

Free version supports custom URLs for Joomla content. PRO version expands support to Virtuemart, HikaShop, eShop and JoomCCK.

Joomla SEO Extension – Route 66 Custom SEF URLs with Dynamic Patterns

XML Sitemaps with Google News Support

Help Google and other search engines discover your content faster with fully automated XML sitemaps — including support for Google News.

Route 66 allows you to easily create and manage multiple sitemaps. Choose between standard and Google News sitemap types, and optionally include images and videos. You can also filter which content appears in each sitemap based on selected categories.

Each sitemap is fully configurable and follows all modern SEO best practices, giving your Joomla site better visibility across search engines.

Free version supports sitemaps for Joomla content. PRO version expands support to Virtuemart, HikaShop, eShop and JoomCCK.

Joomla XML Sitemaps – Route 66 with Standard and Google News Support

Boost PageSpeed with Built-In Performance Tools

Speed up your Joomla site and achieve higher scores on Google PageSpeed Insights and Lighthouse — directly through Route 66.

Route 66 includes a set of powerful optimizations that improve both user experience and SEO by following Google’s performance best practices:

  • Lazy load images and iframes to defer offscreen content.
  • Replace YouTube and Vimeo iframes with lightweight facades that load only when users interact
  • Inline and minify CSS for faster rendering.

These features reduce load time, save bandwidth, and improve your Core Web Vitals — all of which help your site rank better in search engines.

Joomla Performance Optimization – Route 66 PageSpeed Tools and Lazy Loading Features

Edit Your robots.txt – Right Inside Joomla

No need to access your server or file manager. Route 66 lets you edit the robots.txt file directly from the Joomla backend.

Quickly block or allow specific bots, folders, or files — whether you’re troubleshooting indexing issues or fine-tuning crawl control. One less reason to leave your site’s admin panel.

PRO version bonus: Every change is tracked with version history, so you can view or restore previous robots.txt edits anytime.

Features Overview

Optimize every aspect of your Joomla site with advanced SEO tools — from AI-assisted content creation to smart crawling, custom URLs, sitemaps, performance tuning, and more.

AI-Powered SEO Tools (PRO Version Only)

  • Built-in AI Tools:

    Generate engaging titles, meta descriptions, Open Graph tags, and improve content using AI-powered features such as “Continue Writing,” “Summarize,” and “Rewrite.”

  • Custom AI Tools:

    Create your own AI-powered tools using custom prompts tailored to your workflow.

  • Version History:

    Track changes with a complete edit history, allowing you to view or restore previous versions. Useful when customizing built-in AI Tools.

  • Extension Support:

    AI-powered metadata generation works with content from any Joomla extension via the crawled pages interface. AI content generation tools (e.g. “Continue Writing”, “Summarize”, “Rewrite”) are currently supported in Joomla Content, VirtueMart, HikaShop, and Eshop.

  • API Integration:

    Supports OpenAI and Anthropic API keys. Usage fees may apply.

Advanced SEO Crawler

  • Comprehensive Site Crawling:

    Detect common SEO issues including missing or duplicate metadata, oversized pages, slow loading times, and more.

  • Cross-Extension Support:

    Crawl and analyze content from any Joomla extension, not limited to core Joomla articles and categories.

  • Custom Filters & Search:

    Easily find SEO issues using filters for problem types, HTTP response codes, SEO scores, readability scores, etc.

  • Automatic Page Discovery (PRO only):

    Pages are automatically detected and added to the crawl list as your site receives traffic — no need to re-run the full crawler when new content is published.

  • Command Line Interface (CLI) Support:

    Run crawls directly from the command line — ideal for automation. Available only in PRO version.

  • Page Limit:

    Free version crawls up to 30 pages; PRO offers unlimited crawling.

Flexible Metadata Editing

  • In-Form Editing:

    Edit SEO and social metadata directly inside the content editing form of supported Joomla extensions.

  • Crawler-Based Editing:

    Manage metadata efficiently from a unified interface listing all crawled pages, ideal for bulk SEO reviews.

  • Extension Support:

    Free version supports In-Form-Editing for Joomla articles and categories; PRO expands support to VirtueMart, HikaShop, and Eshop. Crawler-Based Editing works with any extension.

  • Page Limit:

    Free version limited to 30 crawled pages; PRO offers unlimited.

SEO & Readability Analysis Powered by Yoast

  • Real-Time In-Form Analysis:

    Get immediate SEO and readability feedback while editing content by entering a focus keyphrase.

  • Crawler-Based Analysis:

    Perform SEO and readability checks on crawled pages for any Joomla extension.

  • Trusted Engine:

    Uses the professional Yoast SEO and readability analysis technology.

  • Extension Support:

    Free version supports In-Form Analysis for Joomla articles and categories; PRO adds support for VirtueMart, HikaShop, and Eshop. Crawler-Based Analysis works with any extension.

  • Page Limit:

    Free version limited to 30 crawled pages; PRO offers unlimited.

Custom SEF URLs Using Smart Patterns

  • Dynamic URL Patterns:

    Define clean, SEO-friendly URLs using flexible tokens like {articleYear}, {articleMonth}, {categoryAlias}, {articleAlias}, {productAlias}, etc.

  • Extension Support:

    Free version supports custom URLs for Joomla core content; PRO extends support to VirtueMart, HikaShop, eShop, and JoomCCK.

XML Sitemaps with Google News Support

  • Multiple Sitemap Management:

    Create and manage multiple sitemaps with configurable options.

  • Sitemap Types:

    Choose between standard XML sitemaps and Google News sitemaps.

  • Content Filtering:

    Include or exclude content by category or other criteria.

  • Media Support:

    Optionally include images and videos in sitemaps.

  • Extension Support:

    Free version supports Joomla core content; PRO adds VirtueMart, HikaShop, eShop, and JoomCCK.

Built-In Performance Optimization Tools

  • Lazy Loading:

    Defer loading of offscreen images and iframes to improve page speed.

  • Lightweight Video Embeds:

    Replace YouTube and Vimeo iframes with facades that load only on user interaction.

  • CSS Optimization:

    Inline critical CSS and minify stylesheets for faster rendering.

  • Core Web Vitals Improvement:

    Enhance user experience and boost SEO rankings by improving load times and page speed scores.

robots.txt Editor Inside Joomla Backend

  • Direct Editing:

    Manage your robots.txt file without accessing the server or file manager.

  • Bot and Crawl Control:

    Quickly block or allow specific user agents, directories, or files.

  • Version History (PRO Only):

    Track changes with a complete edit history, allowing you to view or restore previous versions.

Choose Your Version: Free or PRO?

Feature Free Version PRO Version
AI Tools ❌ Not available ✅ Yes (API key required)
AI Tools for Metadata ❌ Not available ✅ Yes (For any extension through crawled pages)
AI Tools for Content ❌ Not available ✅ Yes
  • Joomla Articles
  • Joomla Categories
  • Virtuemart Products
  • Virtuemart Categories
  • HikaShop Products
  • Hikashop Categories
  • eShop Products
  • eShop Categories
Custom AI Tools ❌ Not available ✅ Yes
Smart SEO Crawler with Issue Detection ✅ Up to 30 pages ✅ Unlimited
Filter Crawled Pages by Status, Issues, Ratings ✅ Yes ✅ Yes
Automatic Page Discovery ❌ No ✅ Yes
Command Line Interface (CLI) Crawling ❌ No ✅ Yes
Crawler-Based SEO & Readability Analysis ✅ Up to 30 pages ✅ Unlimited
In-Form Metadata Editing ✅ Yes (Limited)
  • Joomla Articles
  • Joomla Categories

✅ Yes

  • Joomla Articles
  • Joomla Categories
  • Virtuemart Products
  • Virtuemart Categories
  • HikaShop Products
  • Hikashop Categories
  • eShop Products
  • eShop Categories
Crawler-Based Metadata Editing ✅ Up to 30 pages ✅ Unlimited
Search Engine Result Preview ✅ Yes ✅ Yes
In-Form SEO & Readability Analysis ✅ Yes (Limited)
  • Joomla Articles
  • Joomla Categories
✅ Yes
  • Joomla Articles
  • Joomla Categories
  • Virtuemart Products
  • Virtuemart Categories
  • HikaShop Products
  • Hikashop Categories
  • eShop Products
  • eShop Categories
Custom SEF URLs ✅ Yes (Limited)
  • Joomla Articles
  • Joomla Categories
  • Joomla Tags
✅ Yes
  • Joomla Articles
  • Joomla Categories
  • Joomla Tags
  • Virtuemart Products
  • Virtuemart Categories
  • HikaShop Products
  • Hikashop Categories
  • eShop Products
  • eShop Categories
  • JoomCCK Records
robots.txt Editor ✅ Yes ✅ Yes + Version History
Performance Optimizations ✅ Lazy Load, Inline CSS, Video Embeds ✅ Same features
XML Sitemaps ✅ Yes (Limited)
  • Joomla Articles
  • Joomla Menu Items
✅ Yes
  • Joomla Articles
  • Joomla Menu Items
  • Virtuemart Products
  • HikaShop Products
  • eShop Products
  • JoomCCK Records
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