How to build internal links that help people and search
The Doily team
Reviewed by the Doily team, Oct 2026 Updated 4 min read
Quick answer
Link every page you care about from at least 1 related page, using descriptive anchor text inside a real sentence. Make links standard HTML anchors with an href so crawlers can follow them. Google says there is no ideal number of links per page, and that too many probably means too many.
Why it matters
Google finds most pages by following links from pages it already knows, so a page with no internal links can go undiscovered. Even when it is found, links give context: the words around a link and the link text tell people and Google what the target is about.
Google's guide to AI features also lists making content easy to find through internal links as a base practice. The work is cheap and fully in your control, which is why it comes up in nearly every audit.
Key takeaways
- Every page you care about should be linked from at least 1 other page on your site.
- Anchor text should be descriptive, reasonably concise, and relevant to both pages. Click here and read more tell nobody anything.
- Only links built as an
aelement with anhrefare reliably crawlable. - Put links in context, inside sentences, and do not chain several links together.
Step by step
-
List the pages that must be found
Write down your service pages, top guides, location pages, and any page that drives leads or sales. These are the targets. Pull a second list of pages that already attract visits, since those can pass attention on.
-
Find pages with no internal links
Crawl the site and compare the crawl against your sitemap or CMS page list. Any page that appears in the sitemap but has no internal links pointing at it is an orphan. Put orphans that matter at the top of your fix list.
-
Add links from related pages
Open pages that already discuss the target topic and add a link where a reader would want the next step. A guide on emergency repairs should link to the emergency repair service page. Write the link inside a sentence that explains why the reader should click.
-
Write descriptive anchor text
Read the anchor text on its own. If it does not make sense without the surrounding sentence, make it more specific. Keep it short, and do not cram in extra keywords. Google calls keyword stuffing in anchors a spam policy issue.
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Make sure the links are crawlable
Use ordinary
aelements with anhrefattribute. Links that depend on a script event, or that have nohref, may not be followed. If a script inserts links, use the URL Inspection tool to confirm they appear in the rendered HTML. -
Link from navigation and page footers sparingly
Put your most important pages in the main navigation and breadcrumbs. Use related-page links at the end of articles. Avoid giant footers that repeat hundreds of links, which dilute every one of them.
-
Clean up broken and indirect links
Fix links that return errors and update links that point through redirects to go straight to the final URL. Link to the canonical version of each page, not to a duplicate with parameters. Re-crawl to confirm.
-
Link new pages when you publish them
Make it part of publishing: every new page gets links from at least 3 relevant existing pages, and it links out to at least 2. Review the plan every quarter and update old posts that should point to newer pages.
Anchor text examples
Anchor text should still make sense when you read it alone.
| Weak anchor | Stronger anchor | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Click here | emergency drain cleaning service | Names the target |
| Read more | how water heater replacement is priced | Sets the expectation |
| our website | service areas we cover | Describes the page |
| www.example.com/p/12 | the full cost guide | Readable and specific |
A short internal link plan helps you keep track.
| From page | To page | Anchor text |
|---|---|---|
| How to spot a failing water heater | Water heater repair | water heater repair service |
| Winter pipe freeze checklist | Emergency plumbing | emergency plumbing visits |
How Doily helps
Doily's site audit crawls your site and ranks fixes by priority, which gives you a page list to check against your internal link map.
Questions
How many internal links should a page have?
Google says there is no magical ideal number. Its guidance is that if you think it is too much, it probably is. Link where the reader benefits.
Should internal links be nofollow?
Generally no. Google says nofollow is for links you do not trust, such as paid links or user-submitted links, and not for ordinary links to your own pages.
Do internal links matter for AI answers?
Google lists making content easy to find through internal links as a best practice for its AI features. Engines need to find and fetch your pages before they can use them.
Sources
Primary sources, checked Oct 11, 2026.
