Headings

Headings and subheadings create a navigable table of contents for assistive devices, and are used to create structure on a page. They should have a logical, descending order that helps all visitors understand how the information on a page is related. 

Heading levels are meaningful and should not be used out of order. They should correctly show the relationships of all the sections on a page. For example:

  • Heading 1 (page title)

    • Heading 2 (first section on a webpage)

      • Heading 3 (sub-section of content related to Heading 2)

        • Heading 4 (sub-section for content related to Heading 3)
    • Heading 2 (second section on a webpage)

Importance for SEO

Heading tags can also improve a webpage's search engine optimization (SEO). Headings are ranked in order of importance, from Heading 1 to Heading 6. Heading 1 is typically reserved for the title of a page. Search engines crawling webpages favor headings, so it's also a good practice to include keywords in headings. 

Best Practices

  • Keep headings brief and clear.
  • Format headings using the tools in the text editor. 
  • Do not skip heading levels.
  • Never use headings decoratively or to make text a preferred size.
  • Do not use bold text to create fake headings.