Content

Internal linking

Internal linking is the network of links between a site's own pages. It distributes authority, defines hierarchy and is the cheapest ranking lever most sites never pull.

Every internal link is an editorial statement about what matters. Pages linked from many strong pages inherit authority and get crawled more often; pages linked from nowhere are effectively invisible regardless of quality. Anchor text adds context, which is why descriptive anchors outperform "click here" and why identical anchors on hundreds of navigational links carry little weight.

The routine that works is unglamorous: whenever a page is published, link to it from three relevant existing pages, and link out from it to the pages it should support. Done consistently, this outperforms most link building campaigns on cost per position gained — and it is entirely under your control.

In practice

  • Link every new page from at least three relevant existing pages
  • Use descriptive anchor text, varied naturally
  • Audit for orphan pages quarterly
  • Link from your strongest pages, not only from the blog index

Related terms

Guides on this subject