Anchor Text
The clickable text inside a hyperlink.
Key takeaways
- Anchor Text is the clickable text inside a hyperlink.
- Write anchors that describe the destination in plain words, as part of a natural sentence.
- Avoid: using the identical keyword-rich anchor for every link to a page.
What is Anchor Text?
Anchor text is one of the strongest topical relevance signals. Over optimising exact match anchors looks unnatural. Aim for varied, descriptive anchors that read well in context.
Google publishes its own anchor text best practices, with examples of good and poor link text.
Why Anchor Text matters for SEO in 2026
Anchor text tells search engines what the linked page is about before they visit it. Natural, descriptive anchors help the target rank for the right topics; repetitive exact-match anchors look engineered and can do more harm than good.
For a wider view of where this fits, see our full SEO glossary or explore the SEO and GEO service we run for clients.
How to apply Anchor Text on your site
Knowing the concept is only half of it. Work through these steps in order to put Anchor Text into practice on your own pages:
- Write anchors that describe the destination in plain words, as part of a natural sentence.
- Vary internal anchors across pages instead of repeating one keyword phrase.
- Review the anchors pointing at your key pages in Search Console's links report.
Common mistakes to avoid
Most sites that struggle with Anchor Text fall into the same traps. Check your pages against each of these before moving on:
- Using the identical keyword-rich anchor for every link to a page.
- Linking generic words such as 'here', which tell nobody anything.
- Buying links with exact-match anchors, a pattern Google's spam systems look for.
Questions about Anchor Text
The clickable text inside a hyperlink.
Anchor text tells search engines what the linked page is about before they visit it. Natural, descriptive anchors help the target rank for the right topics; repetitive exact-match anchors look engineered and can do more harm than good.
Start here: write anchors that describe the destination in plain words, as part of a natural sentence. Then vary internal anchors across pages instead of repeating one keyword phrase.
The most common is using the identical keyword-rich anchor for every link to a page. Another is linking generic words such as 'here', which tell nobody anything.