Sequence of heading tags (H1, H2, H3, etc) important?
-
Meaning heading tags (H1, H2, H3, etc) are a critical part of good on-page optimisation. Fair enough. It helps humans and bots make sense of a page's content.
3 questions regarding implementation of heading tags:
-
Should heading tags appear in sequence in the HTML code. I.e. H1 first, then H2 lower down, etc.?
-
Can the page contain more than one H1 tag?
-
Can the page contain multiple H2, H3, H4 tags?
-
-
Thanks!
I have some pages that contein h1, h2, h3 and h4. And I have other pages that dont't have h3 but they do have H2 and H4. Is it a seo mistake?
Thanks!
-
Yeah, should be fine.
-
I just listed about 6 H2 tags. That is ok right?
-
@vtialscom and @Barry Smith,
Thanks for your input. I agree with you both. Your resources are spot on Barry.
Cheers
-
-
Doesn't matter too much.
-
Yes.
Things to maybe think about though is HTML 5 and the
<header>tag for sections. Read - http://html5doctor.com/the-header-element/ - and - http://www.alistapart.com/articles/previewofhtml5
At the moment there will be some accessibility issues with screen readers when using multiple
s but that should get better.
Headers aren't a big ranking factor - http://www.seomoz.org/ugc/the-five-least-important-ranking-factors - http://www.seomoz.org/article/search-ranking-factors#metrics-6
A vast majority of the web isn't coded correctly and the above points to it not really mattering, however, it's worth thinking about your structure and still only really using one
if you can.
</header>
-
-
In my experience, the sequence of the H tags didn't matter at all, but if the H1 tag doesn't deserve to be on top of the other heading tags, I would suspect something may be wrong with your page layout. I don't recommend more than one H1 tag.per page. The H2, H3 and H4 tags are meant for sub headers. If you don't use the header tags as intended, your pages may be flagged as spam, so use cautiously. I have seen so many webmasters unwittingly abusing these tags, like by putting their brand name in a H1 tag on every single page.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Using Hidden Text Behind the Logo as H1 is good seo practice?
Hello Experts, For my website if I use use logo as h1 for homepage but that logo will not be actually h1 but hidden text ( text is my brand name or website name) behind will be h1 so it is okay to use in this way? Using hidden text as H1 is fine as per google? Thanks!
On-Page Optimization | | pragnesh96390 -
Google is putting brandname: in title tag
Hello, I was wondering why this is happening? In html for example the title tag is something like this: keyword 1 | keyword 2 | Brand name. Title is 67 characters.. When I search in google, I see the site but it shows brandname: keyword 1 | keyword 2 Is this bad? does this mean that google doesn't like the title tag that is in the html? I tried looking it up on google, but they were outdated and I honestly didn't really see an answer to what it means when this happens. Does the brandname: affect rankings?? Have any of you dealt with this, or noticed this?
On-Page Optimization | | donnieath0 -
SEO Onpage (where I need to put the H1/2/3)?
Hi everybody, I'm working on my new website, and I have a few questions about the Headers (<h 1="" 2="" 3="">)
On-Page Optimization | | JohnPalmer
please see the attached image, I create a mock-up for you, please tell me which H I have to put on the title.
(** most of the articles will be without sub-titles so...it will be dynamic, but try to take a look on the "sidebar" and "menu link".</h> 6ER0EpK0 -
How to position and structure H1 and H2 on a page
Quick Question: We have been working on a website for an hotel and we are now facing an issue regarding how to position the H1 and H2 on each page: Since the Client has expressed the desire to have the title of the page mentioned right above the textWould it make sense to have the title of the page as H1 and have more descriptive H2 right below it? Ex: H1--> Accommodation H2--> Page Description Thanks,
On-Page Optimization | | travelclickseo0 -
Google pulling in wrong title tag!
Has anyone else seen their title tag different in the SERPS to what you have called it in the <title>?? </p> <p>I work for MITIE and when you type in "facilities management" it shows our title tag as "<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.mitie.com/services/strategic-outsourcing/integrated-facilities-management">Integrated <em>facilities management</em> - Mitie</a>" and it should be "<span>MITIE | Facilities management - Facilities management companies - Facility management UK" </span></p> <p><span>The only thing I can think of is that it's picking it from the H1 on the page but why it'd do that! The page is here www.mitie.com/services/strategic-outsourcing/integrated-facilities-management</span></p> <p><span>Any ideas?</span></p></title>
On-Page Optimization | | KarlBantleman0 -
Do pages with fewer headings rank higher?
I've found several good quality, high ranking pages with excellent content, 500 to 1000 words. These pages are made by people who obviously know what they're doing. These pages only have one headline the h1 at the top of the page. Some of the sites use CSS div boxes and other things to make text look like a heading but do not have h2 or h3 tags or bigger font size. Could it be that a single headline tells Google that this page is about a single topic and that several sub headings muddy the water and so reduce page rank. Do multiple headings or subheadings affect page rank or is it just a personal style choice?
On-Page Optimization | | PhilipGledhill0 -
Will changing the title tags cause me to lose rankings?
I have a site that gets pretty decent rankings. Based on Seomoz's assessment of my site I have ALOT of title tags that are too long. If I make modifications to my title tags will that hurt my rankings? I am also thinking of removing my company name from the title tag as that is taking up too much space.
On-Page Optimization | | webestate1 -
Tags in wordpress -Important?
Hello, I use the Wordpress plataform in my blog. What I want to ask is, how important is the tag field in the posts area. Since I have the title tag and meta description how important is that field? Its really a question that was in my mind since I start doing SEO 😛 Tks in advance guys 🙂
On-Page Optimization | | PedroM0