# Deep link

Category: [Link Building & Off-Page](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/category/link-building-off-page/) › [Backlinks & link profile](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/category/link-building-off-page/backlinks-link-profile/) · Also known as: deep linking, deeplink

A **deep link** is a link that points directly to specific content instead of a start page. On the web, it targets an inner page of a site. In mobile apps, it opens a certain place in an app.

## Deep link on the web

In SEO, the term is used in contrast to a link to the homepage. A link from a trade article to a specific product category page is a deep link. Wikipedia describes the web meaning as a link to specific content within a site instead of its homepage. In affiliate marketing, it also describes a link to a particular product page that includes a tracking code.

Google says it uses links as a signal for the relevance of pages and to find new pages to crawl. Google can only crawl a link if it is an `<a>` element with an `href` attribute. That applies to deep links like any other link.

## Deep link in apps

On Android, deep links are defined through intent filters in the app manifest. Android distinguishes three kinds.

- Custom deep links with their own URI scheme, such as `example://products/123`
- Web links that use `http` or `https`
- App Links, which are verified web links. They open the app without a disambiguation dialog and require verification through an `assetlinks.json` file on the website. App Links are supported on Android 6.0 and later.

## Example

```html
<a href="https://www.example.com/shoes/running-shoes/">Running shoes overview</a>
```

This link points to a category page, so it is a deep link in the web sense. A link to `https://www.example.com/` would go to the homepage.

## FAQ

**What is the difference between a deep link and an App Link?** An App Link is a deep link whose domain ownership was verified, so Android opens the app directly.

**Are deep links good for SEO?** Google describes links as a signal in general. It does not publish separate guidance for deep links in the web sense.

## Related terms

- [Link building](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/link-building/index.md)
- [Link profile](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/link-profile/index.md)
- [Dofollow link](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/dofollow-link/index.md)
- [Internal linking](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/internal-linking/index.md)
- [Anchor element](https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/anchor-element/index.md)

## Sources

- [Create deep links to app content – Android Developers](https://developer.android.com/training/app-links/create-deeplinks)
- [Android App Links – Android Developers](https://developer.android.com/training/app-links)
- [SEO link best practices – Google Search Central](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/links-crawlable)

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Last updated: October 7, 2026
URL: https://seo-geo-glossary.com/en/glossary/deep-link/