On WordPress Network(multisite), Sub Blogs in Subdirectories or Subdomains? What’s better?

Can anyone explain why one is better than the other, and in what circumstances? Things I’m considering: SEO consequences (if any), scaling issues (if any) and anything else I’m not thinking about.

Facebook, for example, uses subdirectories for profile pages. Tumblr uses subdomains. Are there specific reasons why?

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Another consideration: domain mapping.

Hope the question isn’t too general, but I haven’t found a clear answer.

Thx.

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  1. First, the link for two gems for every Multisite expert or wannabe or in-between.

    WordPress Multisite 101
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    WordPress Multisite 110
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    Here’s the snippet from the 101 that answers your question:

    Subdomains vs Subfolders

    A subdomain install means that your sites will look like this:

    • Main site:
    • Sub Site #1:
    • Sub Site #2:

    A subfolder install means your sites will look like this:

    In addition, if you use a subfolder install, the post URLs on your
    main site will have the slug /blog/ prepended to them, causing them to
    look like this:
    http://example.com/blog/2012/03/hello-world/
    At this time, you cannot customize that slug, nor easily remove it.

    There is no SEO benefit at this time to using subdomains or subfolders, and you can
    map a domain name to either install, so the decision is purely
    cosmetic. See
    http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/subdomains-and-subdirectories/ for an
    explanation

    The Domain Mapping subject is extensively covered, so I’m pretty sure that the 101 reading will answer this and many other questions you may have.

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