Internal linking is an essential part of search engine optimization. Connecting your website’s pages through links will help you establish an easily crawlable structure for crawlers while enhancing the user’s experience. However, as with any SEO strategy, you should be mindful of the number of links you include per page to avoid over-optimization. So, how many internal links per page should you include?
In this article, we’ll elaborate on the meaning and types of internal links while focusing on their inclusion on web pages. By having insights into the factors you should consider before applying the links, you’ll be able to find the right balance and avoid hurting your chances of getting ranked.
Continue reading to discover the optimal number of links you should include on your website pages!
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Understanding Internal Links
Before explaining how many links you should include per page, we want to elaborate on their use and importance. Regarding linking strategies, the two types of links you should know are internal and external. While the first redirects the visitors to a different page on the same website, the latter takes them to a page with a different website domain.
In many SEO strategies, you’ll notice that the focus falls on external backlinks to increase page authority and make the website seem more authoritative to search engines. However, you should never overlook the importance of internal links because they highly affect your ranking opportunities and user experience.
A well-thought-out website structure helps search engine crawlers identify and index your pages while satisfying the users’ search intent by including additional information. This practice leads to improved engagement metrics, such as increased average time on-site and organic traffic, improved click-through and conversion rates, and decreased bounce rates. Since search engines like Google prioritize user experience, achieving better engagement leads to higher ranking.
Types of Internal Links
After discovering the use of internal links, you should also be aware that there are different types you can incorporate within your strategies. The two most common types of internal links you’ll come across are the following:
They are the most important internal links because they represent the website’s main navigational structure and are always present on your main menu. They’re most commonly found on the page’s top menu and redirect to your brand’s main information.
For example, they can lead to the “About us” section, blog, product page, services, and other main content topics. They also act as a roadmap for users to find what they want quickly.
Contextual links
They are found in the page’s main body content, also referred to as in-text links. Since they’re part of the text, they have to have appropriate anchor texts that describe the content of the pages the user is redirected to.
The main goal of these links is to provide additional information to the readers by pointing them to relevant content. They also help search engines understand how the pages relate to each other.
How Many Internal Links per Page?
Now that you’re well-informed about the types of internal links and their use, we want to emphasize the importance of including a precise number of links per page. We’ve seen many clients misuse the power of internal links and over-optimize their pages.
This practice promotes a negative user experience. It leads to search engines considering your page as spam and lowering your chances of getting ranked.
Even though the number of links isn’t directly specified, Google has indicated they can crawl hundreds of links per page. However, to ensure these SEO efforts don’t backfire, you should always be mindful of how many links you include per page.
That’s why many use the general rule of thumb to start with three to four links in long-form content and important pages. Then, you can add another link with every 300 words you write for that page.
The best way to determine the number that works best for your website is by experimenting. You can do it until you’ve determined what works best for your needs and audience.
Factors to consider
If you’re unsure how many internal links to include on your page, there are several factors you should consider before experimenting with their number. The ones that have the biggest impact on the success of your internal linking strategy are the following:
- Content relevance and context
- User experience and readability
- Size and complexity of the website
Content relevance and context
The first factor you should consider is the content relevance and context. For example, if the page you’re linking from is a pillar blog post, you can include multiple links to the pages that elaborate on the subtopics.
This way, you’ll give additional information to the readers about the topic while ensuring an organized content hierarchy. On the other hand, if the page represents the “About us” section of the business, there’s no need to include multiple links because all the information should be present there.
User experience and readability
Next, you should always be mindful of the user experience and readability. Remember that search engines prioritize the user’s satisfaction, so you always have to ensure the content you produce has a natural flow and is easily readable. Including too many links within your page’s content will make the text harder to read, negatively affecting the user experience.
Furthermore, you should always add appropriate anchor texts to ensure you don’t disrupt the reader’s flow while describing the page content to which you redirect the users. While it is recommended to include keywords within the anchor texts, we highly advise against keyword stuffing since it can only hurt your ranking chances.
Size and complexity of the website
You should be aware of your website’s size and complexity. It’s only natural that more developed websites with more pages and content should include more links per page. However, these websites should always plan their structure and content hierarchy to ensure easy navigation for users and search engines.
Smaller websites should include fewer links because they often have smaller volumes of content. Even though you may be tempted to include multiple links per page to spread page authority, you should always link only relevant pages that satisfy user search intent.
Finding the right balance
We want to emphasize the importance of finding the right balance based on your website’s content and business goals. When crafting an internal linking strategy, you must be mindful of both the users and search engines. Any optimization effort focusing on only one of these aspects will lead to insufficient and undesirable results.
Thus, when planning the number of links you should include on your pages, you must ensure they’re relevant to the topic. This way, the visitors will get additional information about what they’re looking for, and you’ll inform the search engines about the keywords and topics for which you’re trying to rank.
To ensure your link-building strategy goes as planned, you should conduct frequent site audits to analyze its performance. If you notice any issues, such as broken links, you should always assess the problems and make the necessary changes.
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Conclusion
How many internal links per page should you include to ensure the best results? As mentioned, there are several factors you should consider before deciding the optimal number of links that should be included in a single page. By crafting your strategy with both users and search engines in mind, you should always provide relevant links that don’t interfere with the readability of your content.
Since we understand that this process is troublesome for those without any prior experience in search engine optimization, we encourage you to contact our team at CLICKVISION SEO whenever you need a professional SEO service. By utilizing cutting-edge SEO practices, we’ll develop the right solutions for your business regardless of its niche to maximize your online reach and organic traffic.
Moreover, by prioritizing customer satisfaction, we take pride in elevating your online visibility and driving digital success for your business. Contact us at CLICKVISION SEO today and discover your best options for online success!