Anchor Text Checker

See Exactly How Every Link on a Page Is Anchored

Anchor text is the clickable wording of a link, and it tells both readers and search engines what the destination page is about. The LinkPanda Anchor Text Checker reads every link on any page, shows you its anchor text and target, and sorts the wording into clear types so you can spot patterns at a glance.

What Is the Anchor Text Checker?

It is a free tool that analyses the links on a single web page. You enter a URL, the tool fetches that page, and it reads every link it finds. For each link you get the anchor text, the destination URL, whether the link is internal or external, and whether it is dofollow or nofollow.

It works as a complete anchor text analysis tool: it shows your anchor text distribution across the five types and makes it easy to check your anchor text ratio on any page, so you can see in one view whether the profile leans too hard on keyword anchors.

On top of the raw list, the tool classifies each anchor into one of five types and shows you the overall distribution. That makes it quick to audit your own pages, review a backlink placement, or study how another site structures its links. There is nothing to install and no account to create.

Why Anchor Text Matters for SEO

Search engines use anchor text as a strong signal of what a linked page is about. A page that earns links described with relevant, varied wording sends a clear and trustworthy signal. A page where almost every link uses the same exact keyword phrase sends a different signal, one that can look engineered rather than earned.

A healthy link profile mixes branded anchors, descriptive keyword anchors, generic phrases, and plain URLs. Checking the anchor text on your pages, and on the placements that point to you, helps you keep that mix natural and catch problems before they affect rankings.

The Five Anchor Text Types

Every link the tool finds is sorted into one of these categories so you can read the distribution quickly.

Keyword

Keyword / descriptive

Wording that describes the destination with relevant terms, such as "link building services". Useful in moderation, risky when overused.

Branded

The anchor contains a brand or domain name. These are common, natural, and low risk because they describe the source rather than a keyword.

Generic

Non-descriptive phrases like "click here", "read more", or "this page". They carry little SEO value but look natural in real content.

Naked URL

The anchor is the raw web address itself. Very natural and a normal part of any balanced link profile.

Empty

Empty / image

Links with no text, or where the clickable element is an image. The tool reports the image alt text where one is set.

Why Use Our Anchor Text Checker

Every link, surfaced

Internal and external links are all read and listed, with the anchor text and target shown side by side.

Instant distribution

A live breakdown shows the share of branded, keyword, generic, naked, and empty anchors, with a warning if keyword anchors run high.

Dofollow and nofollow

Each link is checked for a nofollow, sponsored, or ugc rel value, so you can see which links pass authority.

Filter and export

Filter by anchor text, switch between internal, external, dofollow and nofollow views, and export the full table to CSV.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the Anchor Text Checker analyse?+

It analyses every link on a single page you give it. For each link it reports the anchor text, the destination URL, whether the link is internal or external, whether it is dofollow or nofollow, and which of the five anchor text types it falls into.

How are anchors classified?+

The tool sorts each anchor into branded, keyword, generic, naked URL, or empty. Branded anchors contain the destination's domain name, generic anchors match common phrases like "click here", naked anchors are plain URLs, and empty covers links with no text or image links. Anything descriptive that is left is treated as a keyword anchor.

Does it check the whole website?+

No. This tool reviews one page at a time, which is ideal for auditing a specific article, landing page, or backlink placement. To crawl a whole site for dead links, use the LinkPanda Broken Link Checker instead.

Why does the tool flag a high keyword percentage?+

When exact keyword anchors make up a large share of a page's links, it can look like the links were placed for ranking rather than earned naturally. The warning is a prompt to review the mix, not a penalty. A varied profile of branded, generic, and naked anchors is generally safer.

The page would not load. What can I do?+

Some sites block automated requests. If a fetch fails, use the "Paste the page HTML instead" option: open the page in your browser, view the page source, and paste it into the box. The tool will analyse the pasted HTML the same way.

Is the tool free?+

Yes. The Anchor Text Checker is completely free, with no sign-up and no software to install. You can check as many pages as you like.

What is a good anchor text ratio?+

There is no single official number, but a natural profile usually keeps exact keyword anchors well under 30% of external links, with branded and descriptive anchors making up most of the rest. This free anchor text tool scores your page against those thresholds and flags an over-optimised anchor text ratio automatically.

Get Access to All SEO Tools

The Anchor Text Checker is one of several free tools from LinkPanda. Explore the full set, including the Broken Link Checker and the Dofollow / Nofollow Link Checker, on our SEO Tools page.

Want strong, natural anchors pointing at your site?

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Anchor Text Distribution