Internal linking means linking from one page of your website to another page on the same website. It sounds simple, but it is one of the most useful and most overlooked parts of SEO. Good internal links help visitors find what they need, help search engines discover and understand your pages, and pass authority from your strongest pages to the ones you want to rank.
Unlike backlinks from other websites, internal links are entirely under your control. That makes them one of the quickest SEO improvements a small business can make. This guide explains why they matter, how to do them well and how to audit the links you already have.
Why internal linking matters for SEO
It helps search engines find your pages
Google discovers pages largely by following links. A page with no internal links pointing to it, often called an orphan page, may be crawled rarely or not at all. Linking to new and important pages from relevant existing content helps them get found and indexed.
It shows what your site is about
The way pages link together, and the words used in those links, tell search engines how topics relate. A service page supported by several related guides that link back to it signals that the service page is the main resource on that subject.
It spreads authority
Pages that earn links from other websites build up authority. Internal links pass some of that value on to other pages. Linking from your popular pages to the commercial pages you want to rank is a practical way to give them a lift.
It keeps visitors moving
Helpful links guide people from a blog post to a related service, from a service to a case study, and from there to a contact form. That improves the experience and gives more visitors a clear route to becoming customers.
Internal linking best practice
- Use descriptive anchor text. The clickable words should describe the page you are linking to, such as “local SEO services” rather than “click here”. Keep it natural and vary the wording rather than repeating the exact same phrase everywhere.
- Link where it helps the reader. Links placed within the body of relevant content are more useful, to people and to search engines, than long lists of links in a footer.
- Prioritise your important pages. Your key service and product pages should be easy to reach, ideally within a few clicks of the homepage, and linked from related articles.
- Build topic clusters. Group related content around a main page. Each supporting article links to the main page, and the main page links out to the supporting articles.
- Do not overdo it. There is no magic number, but a page crammed with links dilutes their value and is harder to read. Link when it genuinely adds something.
- Avoid linking to redirects or broken pages. Point links straight at the final live URL.
- Give each page one clear purpose. If several pages target the same topic, your internal links can send mixed signals. Our guide to keyword cannibalisation explains how to fix this.
Navigation, breadcrumbs and related content
Not every internal link sits in body copy. Your main menu, footer and breadcrumbs (the “Home > Services > SEO” trail many sites show) all form part of your internal link structure. Keep menus focused on your most important sections, add breadcrumbs on larger sites, and use “related posts” or “related services” sections to connect content that belongs together.
How to run an internal linking audit
An audit shows where your internal linking is helping and where it is letting you down. Here is a straightforward approach:
- Crawl your site. A crawler such as Screaming Frog lists every page, the links pointing to it and any broken or redirected links.
- Check Google Search Console. The Links report shows which pages receive the most internal links. Make sure your most important pages are near the top.
- Find orphan pages. Compare your crawl with your sitemap to spot pages that exist but have no internal links pointing to them.
- Fix broken links and redirects. Update links so they point directly to the correct live page.
- Review anchor text. Replace vague phrases like “read more” with descriptive wording.
- Add links from strong pages. Identify pages that get the most visits or backlinks and add relevant links from them to pages you want to rank.
- Repeat regularly. Each time you publish something new, link to it from related older content and link from it to relevant services.
Do not forget the basics around your links
Internal linking works best alongside solid on-page SEO: clear page titles, sensible URLs, helpful headings and descriptive image alt text that describes the image for people who cannot see it. Our guide to on-page SEO covers these in more detail.
FAQs
How many internal links should a page have?
There is no fixed number. Add links where they help the reader understand a topic or take the next step. A long guide will naturally have more than a short contact page.
Should internal links open in a new tab?
Generally no. Visitors expect links within the same website to open in the same tab, and they can use the back button to return.
Is it bad to use the same anchor text every time?
It is not harmful in itself, but varied, natural wording reads better and gives search engines more context about the page you are linking to.
How quickly do internal links improve rankings?
Changes are picked up when Google next crawls the pages involved. Improvements can appear within weeks for pages that were previously hard to find, though results vary.
Need a hand with your site structure?
Internal linking is something we review as part of every SEO project. Pure Marketing is a Google Partner agency based in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, and our SEO audits and technical SEO work identify the structural fixes that help your best pages rank. If you would like us to take a look, get in touch.
