Domain with www vs domain without www

Which one is better www vs non-www

[ajaykumarmeher]

I was just wondering about the canonical URL format. I see many sites use www.domain.com so if you type domain.com then it will revert back to www.domain.com (which helps in avoiding duplicate content).

So the gurus here, please explain me about the benefit of www based canonical URL vs the non-www based.

Which one should be used and why?

[Samizdata]

I would not say that one is better than the other.

What I will say is that both should work, with one redirecting to the other.

The "www" version is technically a subdomain of the "non-www" version, but the public expect them to be interchangeable, and websites are aimed at the public.

...

[g1smd]

Leaving both to directly serve content with '200 OK' status is Duplicate Content and splits your PageRank.

It also leaves your site open to searcheingines choosing which URL to list - often not the one you wanted.

[youfoundjake]

This topic went pretty deep in to discussion awhile back, and a bunch of points were brought up.. check it out.. maybe it will help..
[webmasterworld.com...]

[ajaykumarmeher]

Thanks a bunch..That was indeed a good discussion and I learnt a lot.