Internal linking explained
What internal links are, why they matter for SEO and usability, and how to build a good linking structure on your site.
An internal link is a link from one page on your website to another page on the same website. They're one of the simplest and most effective SEO improvements you can make — and they also make your site more useful for visitors.
Quick summary
Internal links help Google discover and understand your pages, and they help visitors navigate your site. Link to related pages naturally within your content. Make the link text descriptive ("learn about our pricing" not "click here"). And make sure your most important pages get plenty of internal links pointing to them.
Why internal links matter for SEO
Internal links do three important things for SEO:
1. They help Google find your pages. When a crawler visits your site, it follows links to discover new pages. If a page has no internal links pointing to it — called an "orphan page" — Google may never find it.
2. They distribute ranking power. SEO professionals sometimes call this "link equity" or "PageRank." When you link from a strong, well-ranked page to another page on your site, you pass some of that strength along. Your most important pages benefit from being linked to frequently.
3. They show Google how your content is related. A well-linked site helps Google understand your topic clusters — groups of related content — which can help your whole site rank better for a topic area.
Why internal links matter for users
Well-placed internal links guide visitors through your site. They help readers find related information, discover your services, and take the next step you want them to take.
A reader who arrives at a blog post and finds helpful links to your service pages is more likely to convert into a customer than a reader who has to hunt through your menu.
How to add internal links well
Follow these principles:
Use descriptive anchor text. The anchor text is the visible, clickable words in a link. Make it descriptive — it tells both readers and Google what the linked page is about.
| Weak anchor text | Strong anchor text |
|---|---|
| "Click here" | "Learn about our brand identity services" |
| "Read more" | "See how internal linking helps SEO" |
| "This page" | "Our pricing guide" |
Link naturally within your content. Add links when they're genuinely useful — when a reader would benefit from exploring a related topic. Don't force links into every sentence.
Link to your most important pages. If you want Google to treat a page as important, link to it frequently from other pages. Your homepage, key service pages, and cornerstone content should have many internal links pointing to them.
Link deep into your site. Don't just link to your homepage and main navigation pages. Link to specific articles, service pages, and resources that are useful in context.
Finding and fixing orphan pages
An orphan page is a page with no internal links pointing to it. These pages are hard for Google to find and often rank poorly.
To find orphan pages on your site, we can run a site audit using SEO tools. If you suspect you have pages that nobody can find, let us know.
The navigation menu is not enough
Your site's navigation menu provides some internal links, but it's not sufficient on its own. Menu links are generic — they link to top-level pages, not to specific articles or deep content.
Internal links within your page content are more valuable because they appear in context, with descriptive anchor text.
Common questions
Related guides
- On-page SEO explained
- Backlinks, explained
- Writing SEO-friendly content
- Technical SEO basics
- SEO-friendly URLs
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