A backlink is a link from another website to yours. An internal link is a link between two pages on your own site. People frame these as a choice, but they aren't interchangeable: backlinks bring authority into the site, and internal links decide which of your pages get to use it. Ignore either one and the other underperforms.
You don't have to pick one. If you only earn backlinks, the authority piles up wherever the link points, often the homepage, and never reaches the page you want ranking. If you only tidy internal links, you're shuffling around authority you never built. The work is to do both, in the right order.
What each one does
Backlinks are the hard part, because you can't create them yourself. Another site has to choose to link to you, which is why search engines treat them as a vote of confidence. Internal links are entirely in your control. As Yoast explains, internal linking distributes "link equity," the SEO value or authority passed between pages through hyperlinks, and a site's homepage usually carries the highest link value because it earns the most backlinks. Link from it, or from any strong page, to weaker ones, and some of that value flows through. One link type is a signal of external trust; the other is plumbing you own.
| Aspect | Backlinks | Internal links |
|---|---|---|
| Where they come from | Other websites | Your own pages |
| What they do | Bring authority and third-party trust in | Route that authority to the right pages |
| Who controls them | The linking site; you have to earn them | You, entirely |
| Effect on indexing | Indirect | Direct: orphaned pages with no internal links are, in Yoast's words, almost invisible to search engines |
| Main risk | Low-quality or paid links that drag on trust | Orphan pages, thin structure, links pointing nowhere useful |
| How to improve them | Editorial PR, useful resources, relationships | Clear site structure, descriptive anchors, deliberate links from guides to commercial pages |
How authority moves
PageRank, the original idea behind link-based ranking, flows through any link, which is why your internal linking behaves like a distribution system for the authority your backlinks bring in. A useful way to picture it: a backlink deposits authority on the page it points at, and your internal links decide how much of that reaches your money pages. Links from your stronger pages pass more value than links from weak or buried ones, so where you place internal links matters. Internal links also speed up indexing, letting a new page start accumulating authority on the day it goes live.
How they work together
Picture a data-led campaign that earns coverage linking to an in-depth guide. That guide now holds authority, but a guide rarely converts. Sensible internal links from it to the relevant service and category pages carry the authority on to where it can earn money. The backlink did the earning; the internal links did the routing. Skip the routing and the campaign looks like it underdelivered when the authority simply had nowhere to go.
The order matters as much as the existence of both. Internal linking is fully within your control and costs nothing but attention, so it makes sense to get your structure right first: map your priority pages, link to them from your strongest existing pages, and make sure nothing important is orphaned. Only then does it pay to invest in backlinks, because every link you earn now lands on a site already built to spread that authority where it counts. Do it the other way round and you're pouring authority into a structure that can't carry it.
Common mistakes
- Pointing every earned link at the homepage and hoping authority trickles down on its own. It needs internal routes to flow.
- Leaving important pages orphaned with no internal links at all, which keeps them nearly invisible to crawlers no matter how good they are.
- Burying commercial pages so deep that neither users nor crawlers reach them in a couple of clicks.
- Using vague link text like "click here," which tells search engines nothing about the destination. Descriptive anchors carry more meaning.
- Building backlinks first, planning routes later. Decide your target pages and the internal links to them before you spend on a campaign.
How SEO Backlinks approaches this
Before a campaign starts, we agree which pages you want to strengthen. Then we earn digital PR backlinks through journalist relationships and suggest the page that best fits each story; the journalist decides the final link. Your internal links carry the authority on from there, so they're worth a look before the first placement lands. To map your target pages and the routes to them, book a call.
Keep reading
- What are backlinks?, the fundamentals in plain English
- Digital PR backlinks, our core editorial link service
- How link building works, the mechanics end to end
- Anchor text, getting your link text right
- Link building services, the managed offer
FAQs
What is the difference between an internal link and a backlink?
A backlink comes from a different website and acts as a third-party vote of trust. An internal link connects two pages on your own site, helps search engines understand your structure, and passes authority between your pages. One brings value in; the other distributes it.
Which matters more for rankings?
Neither in isolation. Backlinks tend to be the harder signal to get because you can't create them yourself, but they're wasted if your internal linking never carries the authority on to your commercial pages. As Yoast puts it, internal links distribute the link equity your backlinks earn. The two only work properly together.
Can internal links replace backlinks?
No. Internal links can move authority around your site but can't create it; you still need other sites to vouch for you. What good internal linking does is make sure the authority you earn lands on the pages that need to rank, instead of pooling on the homepage.
Do internal links pass PageRank?
Yes. PageRank flows through any link, internal or external, so your internal linking is effectively a distribution system for the authority your backlinks bring in. Links from your strongest pages pass more value, which is why pointing them deliberately at priority pages matters.
How do PR backlinks fit with internal links?
Coverage usually links to one page, often a guide or the homepage. Internal links then carry that authority on to the commercial pages you want ranking. We agree target pages before a campaign starts, so it helps to have internal routes from likely landing pages to those commercial pages.