--- title: "Anchor Text | Aemorph" url: https://aemorph.com/guides/anchor-text/ description: "What anchor text is, the six types, examples and best practices from Google's guidance: descriptive, relevant, natural and never stuffed with keywords." schema_type: Article publisher: Aemorph publisher_entity: https://aemorph.com/entitymap.json#org_aemorph entities: [concept_anchor_text] language: en-SG updated: 2026-10-22 --- Guides # Anchor Text: Types, Examples and Best Practices for SEO **Anchor text is the clickable text of a link, and Google wants it descriptive, reasonably concise and relevant to both the page it sits on and the page it points to ([Google Search Central, link best practices](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/links-crawlable)).** Good anchors tell readers and search engines what the destination covers, which helps the right pages rank for the searches your buyers make. Use natural wording that names the destination, vary it across links, and avoid repeating one exact keyword. [See Aemorph's SEO service](https://aemorph.com/services/seo/) Written by [Kevin Dam](https://aemorph.com/about/), founder of Aemorph, who has practised SEO since 2010 and sits on the [Forbes Agency Council](https://councils.forbes.com/profile/Kevin-Dam-Global-Search-Architect-%7C-SEO-GEO-AEO-IMO-LLM-Visibility-Aemorph/4c8c7a38-1285-470d-8ea8-e517a310a00b). Aemorph is a [Google Partner](https://www.google.com/partners/agency?id=4441861842). [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevindam) --- ## What Is Anchor Text? **Anchor text is the visible words inside an HTML link element, written as an a tag with an href attribute.** In the example below, the anchor text is the phrase "on-page SEO audit checklist". ``` on-page SEO audit checklist ``` Readers use anchor text to decide whether to click. Search engines use it as a description of the linked page, which is why a vague anchor wastes the signal. ## What Are the Six Types of Anchor Text? **Six anchor types cover almost every link: generic, branded, exact match, partial match, naked URL and image.** | Type | Example | What it tells the reader | When to use it | Risk | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Generic | "click here", "read more" | Nothing about the destination | Avoid | Wastes the description signal | | Branded | "Aemorph" | Who the destination belongs to | Brand mentions and profile links | Low | | Exact match | "keyword research" | The target topic, word for word | Sparingly | Repetition reads as manipulation | | Partial match | "a beginner's guide to keyword research" | The topic in natural wording | Default for body links | Low | | Naked URL | [https://aemorph.com/guides/keyword-research/](https://aemorph.com/guides/keyword-research/) | The address only | Citations and references | Low, but describes little | | Image link | An image whose alt text names the destination | Whatever the alt text says | Banners and logos | Empty alt text leaves the link undescribed | *The six anchor text types.* ### How does anchor text work on an image link? **On an image link, Google uses the image's alt attribute as the anchor text, so a linked image needs descriptive alt text.** Never leave the alt text empty on a linked image. The [image SEO guide](https://aemorph.com/guides/image-seo/) covers how to write it. ## What Are the Anchor Text Best Practices? **Five practices keep anchor text useful and safe: write naturally, link to relevant pages, vary the wording, keep links distinct and vet who links to you.** ### How do you write anchor text naturally? **Write the anchor as part of the sentence, so a reader sees what the destination offers without leaving the paragraph.** Read the anchor on its own: if it does not tell you what the page is about, it needs more description. Replace "click here" with the name of the thing. ### Which pages do you link to? **Link only where the destination adds to the sentence, because a relevant link helps the reader and a forced one dilutes both pages.** A link from a keyword research paragraph to a keyword tracking guide helps the reader. A link to an unrelated service page does not. Google's guidance is that every page you care about has a link from at least one other page on your site. ### How much exact-match anchor text is too much? **Keep exact-match anchors rare, because repeating one keyword phrase across many links reads as manipulation.** Google asks you to resist the urge to cram in every keyword related to the page you link to. The risk is highest on external links: Google's spam policies list links with optimised anchor text in articles, guest posts or press releases distributed on other sites as an example of link spam ([Google Search Central, spam policies](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies)). ### How do you keep links distinct? **Surround each link with context and avoid chaining several links side by side, because readers struggle to tell chained links apart and each link loses its surrounding text.** Insert anchors in the rendered HTML as crawlable a elements, and test JavaScript-inserted links with the URL Inspection Tool in Search Console. ### How do you vet who links to you? **Review your inbound links in Search Console and a backlink tool, and qualify every link you paid for or that users added.** Mark paid links with rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow", and user-inserted links in forums and comments with rel="ugc" or rel="nofollow". Ask owners of spammy sites to remove links you did not earn. ## How Do You Audit Anchor Text on Your Own Site? **Export internal links from a crawler, sort by anchor text and fix three patterns: generic anchors, one anchor used for many different targets and one target linked with many unrelated anchors.** Rewrite generic anchors to name the destination. Give each target one or two stable descriptive phrases, then vary within them. Re-crawl after the change. Combine the results with the [on-page SEO audit](https://aemorph.com/guides/on-page-seo-audit/) and the [off-page SEO guide](https://aemorph.com/guides/off-page-seo/). Choose link targets with [keyword research](https://aemorph.com/guides/keyword-research/) and track the pages those links support with [keyword ranking tracking](https://aemorph.com/guides/keyword-rankings/). --- ## Build Links That Describe Your Pages **Clear anchors and relevant links help search engines understand which of your pages answers which search, so the right page reaches your buyers.** Aemorph's [SEO service](https://aemorph.com/services/seo/) covers internal linking, link building and the audits that keep both clean. THE STRATEGIC CONVERSATION ## Start with a free *strategic conversation*. Every Aemorph engagement starts with a free strategic conversation. It is the fastest way to see whether Aemorph fits your business before you commit budget. [Book a strategic conversation →](https://aemorph.com/contact/) STARTING POINT Free You talk through your goals with Aemorph, and Aemorph quotes your engagement after the conversation.