Anchor Text
SEOAlso: Link Text · Link Anchor
Quick definition
Anchor text is the visible, clickable text used in a hyperlink. Search engines like Google read anchor text as a signal about what the linked page is about. A link saying 'accounting software' points to a page Google will associate with accounting software.
How it varies across Australia
Australian sites with strong organic rankings tend to have a naturally varied anchor text profile. Branded anchors dominate, followed by generic anchors like 'click here' or 'read more', with exact-match keyword anchors making up a small share. Sites that have received paid or manipulative links often show an unnaturally high proportion of exact-match anchors.
See SEO performance patterns across Australian industries →The four anchor text types
The anchor is the precise keyword you want to rank for.
High signal, high risk if overusedThe anchor includes the keyword plus surrounding natural words.
Lower risk, still passes relevanceThe anchor is your business name or URL.
Safe and builds brand associationNon-descriptive anchors like 'click here' or 'read more'.
Minimal relevance signalWhat it actually means
Anchor text is the deal your link makes with Google. When another site links to you with the words 'Melbourne accountant', it's telling Google that your page is relevant to the query 'Melbourne accountant'. Do that hundreds of times across your backlink profile and Google treats it as a strong vote for that ranking.
The four types you'll encounter in any SEO conversation: exact-match anchors use the precise keyword you want to rank for ('conveyancing solicitors Sydney'). Partial-match anchors include the keyword plus surrounding words ('find experienced conveyancing solicitors in Sydney'). Branded anchors use your business name or URL ('Greenway Legal' or 'greenwaylegal.com.au'). Generic anchors are non-descriptive phrases like 'click here', 'read more' or 'this article'.
The mix matters as much as the volume. A backlink profile that's overwhelmingly exact-match looks manipulated, because it is. Natural link-building produces a varied distribution: mostly branded and generic anchors with a modest share of keyword-rich ones.
Google's Penguin algorithm update targeted exact-match anchor manipulation specifically. Sites with over-optimised anchor profiles have been penalised and had to file disavow requests to recover. The risk is real and still active.
Anchor text tells Google what the linked page deserves to rank for. Get the distribution wrong and you either under-signal or trigger a penalty.
How it shows up
Anchor text shows up in two places that matter. In your backlink profile, it's what the sites linking to you chose to say. In your internal linking, it's the words you choose when linking from one page on your own site to another.
Internal anchor text is often overlooked. When you link from a blog post about 'content marketing' to your services page using the words 'our team' instead of 'content marketing services', you're wasting the relevance signal. Internal links with descriptive anchor text pass context from page to page across your site and are one of the cheapest SEO improvements available.
The Australian context
Australian search results in competitive local categories like legal, finance and real estate have historically seen aggressive exact-match anchor building. As Google's quality signals have tightened, many of those sites have seen ranking volatility. Australian SEO practitioners now generally treat heavy exact-match anchor profiles as a risk indicator rather than a strength signal.
For local businesses, branded anchor text ('Smith Plumbing Melbourne') performs well because it reinforces the name-plus-location association Google uses for local pack rankings. Exact-match local keyword anchors ('plumbers in Melbourne') can help but should stay a small share of the overall profile.
Where people get this wrong
Related terms
Common questions
Does anchor text still matter for SEO in 2025?
Yes. Google still reads anchor text as a relevance signal for the linked page. The difference from a decade ago is that over-optimised exact-match anchor profiles are now a ranking risk rather than a ranking boost. Distribution and naturalness matter more than raw exact-match volume.
What anchor text should I ask for when doing outreach?
Avoid scripting exact-match anchors in outreach. Ask for a natural mention of your brand name or a partial-match anchor that fits the linking page's context. Scripted exact-match asks look unnatural in a link profile audit and increase penalty risk.
How do I check my current anchor text profile?
Run your domain through Ahrefs, Semrush or Moz's link explorer. Look at the anchor text distribution table. If exact-match keyword anchors make up a large share, that's worth investigating. A healthy profile has branded anchors as the dominant category.
Does internal anchor text matter as much as external anchor text?
It matters differently. External anchors carry stronger authority signals because they come from other sites. Internal anchors are fully in your control and pass topical relevance between your own pages. Both are worth optimising and internal links are the quicker win.
Keep exploring
About New Rebellion
New Rebellion is a marketing intelligence consultancy. We build tools, score Australian businesses on how their marketing actually performs, and publish Debrief every day. This dictionary is part of how we work in the open.
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