Internal linking
in-TUR-nul LINK-ing
Links between pages on the same website that help users navigate and help search engines understand site structure.
Internal linking is connecting pages on your own site through hyperlinks. When a blog post links to another blog post, a glossary page links to a related term, or a documentation page links to a tutorial, those are internal links.
Internal links serve two purposes. For users, they create natural paths through your content. A reader who finishes an article about ARR can click through to a related piece about MRR. For search engines, internal links distribute link equity across your site and signal which pages are most important.
Most sites under-invest in internal linking. They publish new content and never go back to add links from older content to newer content. This is a missed opportunity. Every time you publish a new blog post, you should add links to it from 3-5 existing posts on related topics. The compound effect of consistent internal linking is significant.
Examples
A glossary page links to related terms.
The page for 'annual recurring revenue' links to 'monthly recurring revenue,' 'net dollar retention,' and 'churn.' Each related term page links back. This creates a web of connections that helps both users and search engines.
A new blog post gets linked from older content.
A new post about 'developer onboarding metrics' gets published. The content team finds five older posts that mention onboarding and adds a contextual link to the new post in each one. This passes existing link equity to the new page.
A content team audits internal links.
An audit reveals that 40% of blog posts have zero internal links pointing to them. These 'orphan pages' get less organic traffic. The team adds 2-3 internal links to each orphan page from related content.
In practice
Read more on the blog
Frequently asked questions
How many internal links should a page have?
There is no fixed number. Use as many as are genuinely helpful to the reader. A 2,000-word blog post might naturally include 5-10 internal links. A pillar page might have 15-20. The links should feel natural, not forced.
Does internal linking really help SEO?
Yes. Internal links help search engines discover pages, understand site structure, and distribute link equity. Pages with more internal links pointing to them tend to rank better, all else being equal. It is one of the few SEO tactics entirely within your control.
Related terms
A group of interlinked content pieces organized around a central pillar page, covering a topic from multiple angles.
A long, comprehensive page that covers a broad topic and serves as the hub for a topic cluster.
Links from other websites pointing to your site, which signal authority and trust to search engines.
A systematic review of all existing content to evaluate what to keep, update, consolidate, or remove.
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