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Heading elements are an essential part of creating a well-structured webpage that is easy to read and understand. The <H1> to <H6> HTML tags are used to indicate what a section of a webpage is about, and each tag has a different level of importance, with <H1> being the highest. In this blog post, we will discuss the benefits of using a hierarchical structure with heading elements, as discussed by Google’s John Mueller.

The Proper Use of Heading Elements

According to the official HTML specifications, a document should have at least one heading within the outline with a heading level of 1. While using multiple <H1> tags on a page is technically allowed, it is not considered a best practice. The Mozilla developer reference page about the use of headings recommends using only one <H1> tag to describe the content of the page, similar to the document’s <title> tag. This is because the <H1> tag used to be counted as an important ranking factor, one that was more important than an <H2>. However, nowadays, Google is able to understand what sections of a webpage are about, and using a hierarchical structure with heading elements is more useful for search engines to know what a page is about.

The Importance of Hierarchical Page Structure

A hierarchical structure communicates the sections of a webpage and any subsections within each section. The best practice is to use one <H1> tag to describe the content of the page and then use the rest of the tags in order of rank to give a webpage a hierarchical structure. This helps search engines understand what each section of a page is about and rank the page for the topic.

John Mueller’s View on Header Hierarchy

John Mueller, a member of Google’s Webmaster Trends Analyst team, has affirmed the usefulness of using a hierarchical structure when using heading elements. He tweeted that header hierarchy is not just useful to Google, it’s also important for accessibility. Mueller’s view is that the level of the heading isn’t as important as how they are used, with the best practice being the use of headings for indicating what a section of content is about.

Heading Elements Are Important

Using a hierarchical structure with heading elements on web pages is a best practice that benefits both search engines and users. While using multiple <H1> tags on a page is technically allowed, it is not considered a best practice. Instead, using one <H1> tag to describe the content of the page and then using the rest of the tags in order of rank to give a webpage a hierarchical structure is recommended. This helps search engines understand what each section of a page is about and rank the page for the topic, and it also helps users with disabilities and limited short-term memory.