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Anchor text for guest posts: how to choose it without over-doing it
The words you link with matter. Use the same keyword-heavy phrase everywhere and the pattern becomes easy to spot.
17 October 2026 · 4 min read
Anchor text is the clickable words of a link. If a guest post says "see this explanation of DA and DR", the anchor text is "explanation of DA and DR".
Why it deserves a minute of thought
Google's spam policies name large-scale guest posting campaigns with keyword-rich anchor text as an example of link spam. A single post that links with a descriptive phrase is fine. Thirty posts that all link with the same commercial keyword are a pattern, and patterns are what get noticed.
The types of anchor, in plain words
- Brand. Your company name, for example "Revntra". Safe, readable and the most common anchor on real sites.
- Naked URL. The address itself, such as
www.revntra.com. Looks natural, especially in a bio or a source line. - Descriptive phrase. Words that describe the page, such as "a guide to judging guest post sites". Good for readers, and often the best fit inside a sentence.
- Generic. "Click here", "this article", "read more". Harmless in small amounts, but give a reader no clue about the page.
- Exact-match keyword. The search phrase you want to rank for, such as "buy guest posts". Use it rarely, if at all, and never as a habit across many posts.
A simple way to choose
- Read the sentence first. The anchor should read like part of the sentence. If the sentence sounds odd with the link in it, change the anchor, not the sentence.
- Describe the page the reader will land on. If the anchor promises one thing and the page delivers another, readers leave.
- Vary between posts. Keep a short list of brand, URL and two or three descriptive phrases, and rotate. Do not paste the same anchor into every brief.
- Link to the right page. A link to a relevant guide often fits better than a link to the home page, and does a better job for the reader.
- One link, in context. A link in the middle of a relevant paragraph beats a link stuffed into the first line.
What to put in your brief
Give the writer the target URL and two or three anchors you would be happy with, and say that the final choice should follow the sentence. That keeps control with you without forcing an unnatural line into the article. Our guest post checklist shows where this fits in the order process.
One honest note
No anchor mix is a guarantee. Search engines use many signals, and the quality and relevance of the site the link sits on usually matters more than the exact words. Choose anchors the way you would want a reader to see them.
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