Internal Linking Checklist

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

Create a target list from real navigation needs, business priorities and useful content. Open each destination and name its task: browse a category, understand a topic, use a service or finish another action. Confirm the URL is the intended version. Do not prioritize a page only because a tool assigns it a high authority score.

1. List important reader tasks.
2. Match each to its intended destination.
3. Check that the page actually serves the task.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

Compare a crawl started from the site’s normal navigation with CMS, sitemap, analytics or Search Console URL lists. Review useful URLs absent from the crawl and pages with no meaningful incoming internal links. A missing page is an orphan candidate, not proof: crawl limits, blocked resources or rendering settings may explain the gap. Open the page and inspect the supposed source paths.

1. Compare known URL inventories with the navigation crawl.
2. Filter missing or zero-incoming-link candidates.
3. Check crawl scope and real source paths before diagnosing.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

Start at the homepage or relevant category and follow the route a visitor would reasonably choose. Check menu wording, intermediate page relevance and whether the target stays reachable after content moves off a recent-posts widget. A page with many irrelevant footer links may still be difficult to find. There is no universal required number of clicks for every site.

1. Choose a realistic starting page.
2. Follow labels and intermediate pages to the target.
3. Identify confusing or temporary parts of the path.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

In your crawl’s internal-link report, filter error responses and inspect the pages linking to each affected URL. Open the destination to confirm the actual problem. Edit the source link in its CMS content or shared template to point to the correct useful page. If there is no suitable destination, remove the link while keeping the sentence accurate. Do not replace every broken link with the homepage.

1. Filter internal error destinations.
2. Inspect incoming source pages and confirm the failure.
3. Correct or remove the source link.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

Review internal links that redirect or point to duplicate URL variants. Check the real final page and the site’s preferred canonical version, then update source links to that destination where appropriate. Preserve necessary redirects for old external links. Do not change a functional filter or variant link when users genuinely need that specific state.

1. Identify redirecting or duplicate internal targets.
2. Confirm the intended destination and any useful variant state.
3. Update source links that should use the final canonical URL.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

In the browser’s element inspector, check important navigation links. A page link should normally be an anchor element with a real href URL. JavaScript can create that anchor, but a script-only click handler on a span or button is not a reliable substitute for a crawlable page link. Ask the developer to fix the component, then verify its rendered HTML.

1. Inspect the link element and destination.
2. Replace script-only navigation with a real anchor where needed.
3. Check the rendered HTML and click behavior.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

Search the CMS or crawl’s page-text data for the target topic and meaningful synonyms. Open each candidate source and read the passage. Add the target only if it answers a question raised there or helps the next step. An exact keyword mention is not automatically a good link opportunity, and a useful link can use different natural wording.

1. Search relevant topic language in existing content.
2. Read the surrounding passage.
3. Choose sources where the target adds practical value.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

Select a concise phrase in the source passage that explains the linked page. Replace vague labels such as “click here” when the purpose is unclear. Use natural wording rather than forcing the same exact keyword everywhere. Keep surrounding text helpful and avoid several adjacent links that become hard to distinguish.

1. Name what the destination provides.
2. Write a natural descriptive anchor.
3. Read the anchor in its surrounding sentence.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

Open the selected source page in the CMS, select the intended words and use its link control to insert the destination URL. Save or publish through the site’s normal review process. Reopen the public source and follow the link. If the link is in a shared component, verify another affected page so a template error is not repeated across the site.

1. Insert the verified URL in the chosen passage.
2. Publish through the normal review process.
3. Open the public source and test the link.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

Review the relevant menu, category listing and breadcrumb component. Link categories to the useful pages they contain and give child pages a sensible route back to their parent context. Use categories that reflect the site’s actual organization. Do not add every page to the main menu or invent rigid topic silos that prevent genuinely useful cross-links.

1. Review the actual parent and child relationships.
2. Add missing useful collection or breadcrumb links.
3. Check labels and destinations across affected templates.

Use this for: Collections that paginate or load more content.

Inspect collection or blog pages that use pagination, infinite scroll or load-more buttons. Ensure there are crawlable URLs and links that expose the later content. Google’s crawlers generally do not click buttons to reveal another batch. Distinct paginated pages should not all be treated as duplicates of page one when they list different items.

1. Open later batches of the listing.
2. Inspect their URLs and links.
3. Ask the developer to provide a crawlable pagination path when needed.

Use this for: Image links and navigation cards.

For a linked image or card, check the accessible link purpose as well as the visible design. If an image is the link’s only meaningful label, give it alternative text that identifies the destination or action. If adjacent text already supplies the same link name, avoid needlessly repeating it. Make sure the card crop and text still describe the page it opens.

1. Inspect the card’s image and text link labels.
2. Add an appropriate accessible name or alt text.
3. Test the card’s actual destination.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

After publishing, crawl the affected area again using comparable settings. Check that new source links are present, error destinations are fixed and confirmed orphan candidates have relevant incoming paths. Manually follow important routes on a narrow screen. A crawler’s internal-link count is useful diagnostic evidence, but relevance and destination quality still need a human check.

1. Recrawl changed source and destination pages.
2. Compare the specific previous failures.
3. Walk the important routes as a visitor.

Use this for: The selected draft or published page being reviewed.

Add incoming-link and destination checks to your normal publishing and URL-change workflow. When a page moves or is merged, update important source links to the approved destination. When a new page appears, give it a relevant durable route. Review affected paths after template changes instead of adding links on a fixed quota.

1. Add link checks to relevant publishing and change tasks.
2. Assign a source-content or template owner.
3. Recheck the affected paths after the change.