It’s no secret — internal linking brings SEO value and better user experience.
You may have heard that internal linking will boost your SEO and get you a better ranking on Google. But how?
Let’s start at the top. You might already know, but a refresher never hurts.
An internal link is one that originates from and leads to a page on the same domain. Take a peek at your website’s navigation menu. Your origin and destination links are on the same website—simple enough!
So, how is something so simple and so very important for your SEO? Well, it all comes down to how well it’s executed.
Table of Contents
What are Internal Links?
Definition of internal links
Internal links are the backbone of your website’s navigation and SEO strategy. These are hyperlinks that connect one page of your website to another page within the same domain. Think of them as the threads that weave your site’s architecture together, guiding both users and search engines through your content. By strategically placing internal links, you help search engines understand the structure of your website, which is crucial for a solid internal linking strategy. For instance, linking from a blog post to a related service page not only enhances the user experience but also distributes link equity across your site, boosting your SEO efforts.
Difference between internal and external links
While internal links keep the navigation within the same website, external links take users to pages on other domains. Both types of links are essential, but they serve different purposes. Internal links help users and search engines navigate your site, improving the overall user experience and SEO. On the other hand, external links can provide additional value by linking to reputable sources, thereby enhancing your site’s credibility. However, the primary focus of a solid internal linking strategy is to ensure that all relevant pages within your site are easily accessible and well-connected.
Your site can’t be ranked if search engine crawlers don’t know how to search your site
Let’s break this down by how Google searches and indexes your site. What Google does isn’t completely magic (though, it does come pretty close).
Google uses search engine crawlers to crawl your website for all of the content it can find. They do this in order to gain insights on what your site is about, and how to rank it on their search engine. They start on your homepage, following link to link, and scouring every last bit of information they are able to find.
To reiterate that — they can only evaluate what they can find, see, and read.
Make it simple for Google to crawl your website
For internal linking, one of the greatest advantages you can give yourself is making it easier for Google’s bots to do their job. For example, if there’s no clear path to a page on your website, then how will Google’s bots be able to index that information?
Simply put, you could have highly valuable content, but it won’t matter if Google’s bots can’t reach it. To the great Google Machine, your content is as good as invisible.
We see this problem all the time—websites will make the mistake of an incorrect linking structure. A well-organized site architecture is crucial for ensuring that search engine crawlers can efficiently discover and index content. To get some insight into what the structure of your website looks like, you can use tools like Moz’s link explorer.
So it stands to say that the better your internal linking strategy on your site is, the better Google will rank it! Not to mention, it stands to good reason that if a Google bot has an easy time navigating your internal linking structure, a real person will too.
This leads to our next point—promoting a good user experience.
The Run-down:
Let’s run through a quick scenario. Suppose you own a Pool Services company, and Google’s bots start crawling your site to index its pages. Now, let’s say Pool remodeling is your highest-earning service.
Unfortunately, without a proper internal linking strategy, that page isn’t easily accessible or discoverable. A well-implemented internal linking structure could have solved this by streamlining navigation and helping search engines understand the page’s hierarchy and importance, even if there are issues with canonical tags.
In this case, it’s likely Google won’t rank your site for that content. As a result, you could be missing out on valuable clients searching for terms like “pool remodeling services.”
Internal linking promotes a good user experience, keeping users on your site longer
When users see links that are relevant to what they’re interested in, they are more likely to actually click on it. This is especially relevant when users are actively looking for information. Users will click on related links within blogs to read up on related information. Think of it like going down the YouTube rabbit hole, hopping from related video to related video, only to regain temporal awareness hours later (there’s no shame in admitting it, we’ve all been there).
The idea is roughly the same, except on a more objective level. By providing related or similar links within a page or post, we can promote this effect and keep visitors to your site longer. Naturally, throughout this blog, and in the end, you’ll see the same thing — related blog posts that have similar topics or industries related to this one.
But why do we do this?
Yep, you guessed it. User experience. The main objective of a strong internal linking strategy is to make it as easy as possible for the end-user to arrive at the content they really want to see. That way, they’re less focused on how to find it and more focused on consuming the content.
A robust internal linking strategy involves creating a wealth of internal pages filled with high-quality content. These internal pages enhance linking opportunities, improve user experience, and distribute authority across the site. Avoiding links to error pages and strategically linking deep internal pages can significantly boost the overall SEO value. Not to mention, greater user engagement is something Google really likes to see when ranking your page. That said, there’s a direct relationship between good user experience and improved SEO.
So, as it turns out — keeping your user’s best interests in mind is also in your best interest. It’s really a win-win situation. Thanks, Google!
Internal Linking forms the hierarchy of information for your website, establishing link equity
As we’ve mentioned before, Google’s bots scour the pages and posts of your website and piece together how they relate to one another. So when it comes to internal linking, the deeper your links go, the better it reflects for SEO. Especially when everything is closely related together. Think about it as the search engines being able to better contextualize your website.
However, be careful. This does not mean going link-crazy. Linking everything on your website together for the sake of inflating your links is an awful idea.
Back in the day, that would have worked.
However, the advanced nature of Google’s page ranking algorithm has rendered cheap gimmicks that attempt to manipulate the system obsolete. The only effective strategy is to link genuine, relevant, and valuable content. Keep the user in mind first, always.
Understanding the importance of link value is crucial here. Link value refers to the authority and ranking potential a webpage gains from the number and quality of links, both internal and external. Strategically linking to enhance the perceived value of your content can significantly boost its ranking potential on search engines.
This is also why we always advocate for our clients to be proactive in writing blogs. Blogs establish companies as thought leaders in their industry while simultaneously promoting internal linking best practices for SEO. Because that’s exactly the sort of thing Google wants to see. Genuine, fresh, valuable content.
Not to mention, a good internal linking strategy ensures your website passes on great link equity, making it easier to promote newer content you put out.
But what is Link Equity, and how does it work?
As described by Moz, link equity is “a search engine ranking factor based on the idea that certain links pass value and authority from one page to another.”
Essentially, it serves as a signal of trust between two pages. If a page with strong authority is linking to a newer and smaller page, Google is more likely to promote it. Why? Well, because now it’s connected to a page with good standing. Of course, external linking is also incredibly helpful for establishing page authority and therefore better link equity.
For example, take the homepage of your website. In many cases, it will have the most internal and external links going to it, which is how Google knows that this page is valuable and reputable. Therefore, this page usually has the most page authority and passes on the most link equity. Internal link pointing from the homepage to other pages on your site helps distribute this link equity, making those linked pages more authoritative and relevant. Whichever pages you are linking to from the homepage receive that link equity, and become the cornerstones of your website.
This is why when we design websites, we will always focus on your key services and/or products on the homepage to funnel your visitors toward those most important pages.
Follow Links vs. Non Follow Links
Standard hyperlinks include a “follow” link, which tells search engines to consider the linked page when determining a page’s rating. Through the transfer of “link juice,” it enhances the SEO value and visibility of the linked page. On the other hand, search engines are told not to consider a “nofollow” link in their ranking calculations by including a “rel=nofollow” property. This is more of an unbiased mention than an endorsement since no link equity is passed. Most CMS systems make this task simple by checking a box to follow or nonfollow.
When to use follow links vs. nofollow links:
- Use follow links when you want to endorse the linked page as valuable and relevant, such as when linking to high-quality resources or trusted partners. This helps build authority for the linked content.
- To maintain your site’s credibility and control over link equity, use nofollow links when connecting to sponsored material, advertisements, or even external pages that contain useful information but are not entirely endorsed. This instructs search engines not to give ranking authority to those links, ensuring that your SEO strategy remains focused on your priorities while still directing users to relevant resources.
Choosing the right type ensures you balance SEO benefits with responsible linking practices.
So, How Do We Promote Smart Internal Linking Strategies?
While we already touched on a few different best practices previously, let’s look at a few surefire ways to improve and boost the user experience and SEO value of your website.
How many internal links before it’s “too many”?
Short answer: if it feels spammy, it is. Here are some safe ranges (body content only, the navigation and footer don’t count):
- 800–1,200 words: 3–4 internal links
- 1,200–2,000 words: 5–8 internal links
- 2,000+ words: 8–10 internal links (cap it unless it’s a TOC)
Rule of thumb: ~1 link per 300–400 words. More than 12 in a 1,500–2,000 word post is usually overkill.
Content, content, and also content for good measure
Content cannot be overstated enough. The richer in content your website is, the better your SEO, and the higher ranked you will be on Google. As we’ve mentioned before, this is why we always recommend blogging to our clients to boost SEO and establish them as thought leaders in their industries. You must follow strategic content writing tips for SEO.
How to Use Anchor text
Rule of thumb: if the anchor wouldn’t come out of your mouth in a conversation, don’t use it. Anchor text is the actual text that shows up in a link (see what we did there?). Keep the anchor text relevant to what you’re linking to, but don’t hyper-fixate on matching the exact key phrases. Just keep it natural. Like we said before, gimmicks will not work on Google, but don’t be afraid of it matching when it’s relevant. Staying as user-friendly as possible will never steer you wrong.
Internal Linking Basics: Link Smart
Link Smart in Every New Post Add at least 4 internal links per post:
• 1 “up” link to the relevant money page (in the first half of the post)
• Create an external “Follow Link” to high-authority website post on your subject
• Link to relevant internal post
Focus on Value and Relevancy
Make sure your internal links are relevant to each other. For example, say you own a website about outdoor sports. Linking from a page about mountain biking to a page about mountain climbing won’t do you much good. However, linking to a blog you wrote about the newest bike model on the market will!
Best Practices
- Fix Orphan Pages (the fast win) Once a month, find posts with 0 internal links pointing to them and give each: • 1 link from its closest money page • 1–2 links from related posts
- Make Links Obvious, Not Hidden
- Add a short “Keep Reading” section at the bottom with three genuinely related articles, and use clear, specific link text—skip vague stuff like “click here.
What is Pillar Content? It’s Your Content Library’s Main Desk
Think of your website like a massive library. Your pillar content is the reference desk with the head librarian—it’s the comprehensive resource center where visitors start their research journey. From there, they get directed to specific sections, books, and specialized materials (your cluster articles) that dive deep into exactly what they need.
The Magic Behind How It Works
Picture a bicycle wheel: your pillar content is the center hub, and all your related articles are the spokes radiating outward.
The Hub (Your Pillar Page) This is your content powerhouse—typically a meaty 2,000+ word guide that tackles a broad subject. Think of it as writing the definitive handbook on your topic. For instance, if you run a pet business, your hub might be “Everything You Need to Know About Keeping Your Dog Happy and Healthy.”
The Spokes (Your Cluster Articles)
These are your focused, bite-sized pieces that zoom in on specific aspects mentioned in your main guide. They’re easier to digest and target exactly what someone is searching for:
- “5 Signs Your Dog Food Isn’t Working”
- “Puppy Training Mistakes That Actually Make Things Worse”
- “When to Worry: Dog Behavior Red Flags”
The Connecting Magic (Smart Linking) Here’s where the strategy gets powerful: everything connects back to everything else. Your main guide points visitors toward the detailed articles, and those articles send people back to the comprehensive resource. It’s like creating a helpful web of knowledge that keeps people engaged and shows search engines you’re the go-to expert on this topic.
Why This Approach Works So Well Instead of having random articles scattered across your site, you’re building a logical, helpful ecosystem. Visitors can start broad and drill down to specifics, or jump in on a narrow topic and discover there’s so much more you can teach them.
Automated AI Interlinks: Use Them But Always Monitor What They Due
Tools like Link Whisper (WordPress) and LinkBoss can scan posts, suggest links, identify orphans, and automate bulk linking. They’re great accelerators—but they’re not your strategy. If you don’t know what the street signs mean (pillars, clusters, anchor intent), you’ll just take bad turns faster. These are excellent tools but you need to become familiar with the terms to craft a strategy.
What AI interlink tools do (the useful stuff)
- Scan your site and spot natural places to add semantic internal links
- Suggest anchors that match the paragraph/topic
- Find orphan pages posts with zero links pointing at them
- Bulk-add (with your approval) so you don’t hand-link everything
- Keep pillars in view so link equity flows to your money pages
- Create new content that naturally uses the anchor text pointing to your target page
What not to do
- Don’t auto-link everything. Speed without judgment = messy UX.
- Don’t anchor-stuff (repeating the exact phrase everywhere).
- Don’t overlink. Rule of thumb: ~1 link per 300–400 words; cap ~3–5 per post unless it’s long-form.
- Don’t link off-topic just to hit a quota (reader first, crawler second).
- Don’t hide links—avoid H1s, hero copy, and vague “click here” text.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, internal linking can be relatively simple and has amazing benefits for your search engine rankings. Even though there’s no way to get a 100% perfect look inside Google’s algorithm for ranking pages when it comes to internal links, by following best practices we can ensure greatly increased SEO.
Remember, the key takeaways are that as long as you’re keeping your internal linking strategy user-friendly and relevant, you’re on the right track.
If you have any unanswered questions or comments, Contact Mighty Fine Co for link strategy. We’d be more than happy to assist!
