What are Internal Links?

Internal links are hyperlinks that point from one page on a domain to a different page on the same domain. They are a fundamental part of site architecture and technical SEO.

Why internal links matter

• Crawlability — Search engine bots use internal links to discover new content on your site. If a page has no internal links pointing to it, it is considered an "orphan page" and may not be indexed.
• Link Equity (PageRank) — Internal links help spread ranking power (often called "link juice") throughout your site, signaling to search engines which pages are the most important.
• User Navigation — They help users find relevant content, increasing time on site and reducing bounce rates.
• Context through Anchor Text — The clickable text (anchor text) of an internal link gives search engines context about the destination page's topic.

Best practices

• Use descriptive, relevant anchor text instead of generic phrases like "click here".
• Ensure important pages are linked from your site's main navigation or highly trafficked pages.
• Avoid linking to broken pages (404s) or pages that redirect.
• Keep the number of links on a page reasonable to maintain a good user experience and focused link equity.

How BearAudit helps

BearAudit crawls your entire site and builds a complete link graph. In the Page Viewer, you can see exact details about a page's internal links, including anchor text, link status, and exactly where it links to or which pages link back to it (inlinks). BearAudit also highlights Orphan Pages, Broken Links, and provides AI-powered Internal Link Opportunities to help you strengthen your site architecture.

Further reading

• Google SEO Starter Guide: Internal Links