Design or audit internal link structure for a website. Use when the user asks about internal linking, link architecture, orphan pages, PageRank flow, anchor text, site structure, silo architecture, or why pages aren't ranking despite good content. For external link building, see build-links.

Fix Linking Design and audit internal link structures using hub and spoke topology, PageRank flow logic, and anchor text budgets. Why Internal Links Matter Internal links do two things: (1) pass PageRank between pages, and (2) signal topical relevance via anchor text. A page with zero incoming internal links is an orphan — invisible to authority flow regardless of content quality. Architecture Model Selection Before auditing links, choose the right architecture model for the site: Model Best For Site Size Key Characteristic Hub and Spoke (Topic Cluster) Content marketing, SaaS, publishers 50 500 pages Bidirectional links between pillar and cluster articles Silo Structure E commerce, directories, large enterprises 100+ categories Vertical only links within topic silos Flat Architecture Small sites, portfolios, startups <100 pages All pages within 2 3 clicks, cross linked freely Pyramid News sites, large blogs, corporate 500+ pages Top down hierarchy, authority concentrates at top Mesh/Matrix Knowledge bases, wikis, help centers Any Free form linking between any related pages Key Metrics by Architecture Metric Hub and Spoke Silo Flat Pyramid Mesh Target click depth ≤3 ≤4 ≤2 ≤4 ≤3 Internal links per page 5 10 3 7 8 15 3 5 8 15 Cross section links Many Few N/A Some Many Authority distribution Distributed to hubs Top of silo Even Top heavy Even Expected ROI from Architecture Changes Change Typical Impact Timeline Fix orphan pages +15 30% traffic to those pages 2 4 weeks Build first topic cluster +10 25% traffic to cluster pages 4 8 weeks Reduce click depth by 1 level +5 15% crawl efficiency 2 6 weeks Anchor text optimization +5 10% ranking improvement 4 12 weeks Full architecture migration +20 50% overall organic traffic 3 6 months Recommended for most sites: Hub and Spoke as the primary model, with silo style isolation between unrelated topic areas. Phase 1: Map the Current Structure Before designing links, understand what exists: 1. Hub pages. Pages that aggregate links and distribute authority — homepage, category pages, pillar articles. List them. 2. Orphan pages. No incoming internal links from crawlable pages. They receive zero PageRank from the internal graph. 3. Link depth. How many clicks from the homepage does each important page require? Depth 4+ pages are effectively buried. 4. Anchor text. Repeated identical anchors are fine. Generic anchors ("click here", "read more") waste relevance signal. Ask the user for their page list or sitemap, or work with what they describe. Phase 2: Hub and Spoke Design Hub Pages (pillar/category) Linked from homepage or main navigation Link out to all supporting pages in their cluster Serve as authority redistribution nodes Spoke Pages (supporting/cluster articles) Receive at least 2 3 internal links from hub and sibling spokes Always link back to their hub page Link to 2 4 sibling spokes where contextually relevant Never link to competing pages (same keyword intent) Cross Cluster Links Only when there is genuine topical relevance Use to signal E E A T connections (e.g., case study → methodology page) Limit to 1 2 per page to avoid diluting cluster coherence Phase 3: Anchor Text Budget For internal links , each page should receive anchor text in this distribution: Anchor Type Target Share Example Exact match 20 30% "content decay detection" Partial match 30 40% "detecting when content decays" Related/semantic 20 30% "pages losing traffic" Branded 5 10% "our decay detection feature" Generic 0 5% "learn more" Diversity improves relevance coverage for semantic search. Phase 4: Orphan Page Resolution For each orphan page, apply this decision tree: 1. Worth ranking? If no (thin, superseded), redirect to the closest relevant page. Stop. 2. Which cluster? Find the nearest hub page. 3. Which 2 3 existing pages would readers logically arrive from? These are injection points. 4. What anchor text fits naturally? Match the orphan page's target keyword. 5. Does the hub page need a content update to include a contextual reference? Phase 5: Link Injection Plan Produce a concrete action plan: Source Page Target Page Suggested Anchor Text Where on Source Page Priority /blog/seo guide /tools/keyword research "keyword research tool" Under "Research Phase" heading high ... ... ... ... ... Priority = high if the target is a revenue critical or high intent page. Output Format Internal Link Audit: [domain] Current State Orphan pages: [count or list] Average link depth for important pages: [value] Hub pages identified: [list] Anchor text diversity: [assessment] Hub and Spoke Map For each cluster: Hub → [Spoke 1, Spoke 2, Spoke 3 ...] Link Injection Plan [Table from Phase 5] Anchor Text Fixes Pages where anchor text is entirely generic and needs replacement. Recommendations 1. Orphan pages that are revenue critical — link them first 2. Pages at depth 4+ that should be at depth 2 — add shortcuts via hub pages 3. Clusters with weak internal connectivity — add sibling cross links 4. Pages with 0 1 incoming links that are important for conversions Pro Tip: Try the free [Internal Link Finder](https://seojuice.com/tools/internal link finder/) and [Anchor Text Diversity](https://seojuice.com/tools/anchor text diversity/) tools at seojuice.com. SEOJuice MCP users can run /seojuice:site health for instant orphan page detection, link depth distribution, and most linked pages — the get site topology tool maps your entire internal link graph automatically.

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