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Links say where they lead: how the world's top websites do
Of 392 of the world's most popular websites that we audited, 257 pass this check and 135 fall short.
66%
pass
257 of 392 sites
34%
fall short
135 of 392 sites
19 of 51
by how often it fails
1 is the most-failed check · area: Page entered
What this check means
A link's words tell search engines and screen readers what the linked page is about. Wording such as “click here” or “learn more” carries no information.
Popular sites that fall short (135)
onelink.megrammarly.comwiley.comcasalemedia.comanthropic.comzendesk.comdebian.orgvungle.comrubiconproject.comunisys.comwithgoogle.comea.comchatgpt.siteokta.comnvidia.comgnu.orgtradingview.comcheckpoint.comdell.comdotomi.comweebly.comcdc.govdynatrace.comatlassian.netwps.complesk.comcalendly.comduckduckgo.comsteamcommunity.comintel.comdyndns.orgappsflyer.comtrendmicro.combraze.comshein.comhuawei.comietf.orgpushy.ioscribd.comteamviewer.comopenstreetmap.orgfoxnews.comstatista.complaystation.comgoogle.dedocker.cominmobi.comtaboola.commega.co.nzmysql.comgoogle.com.hkeset.com3lift.commedia.nettime.comdailymail.comadsrvr.orgmediatek.comdreamhost.comjquery.comunesco.orgtechcrunch.comintercom.ionintendo.comtrueconf.netonetrust.comberkeley.edubox.comdoubleverify.comverisign.comring.commeta.comloc.govtencent.comredhat.comsurveymonkey.comuber.comspiegel.decbsnews.comdeepl.comfontawesome.combugsnag.comglobalsign.comitch.iooutbrain.comcookielaw.orgasus.comdailymail.co.uksharethrough.comcraigslist.orgindependent.co.ukpython.orghihonorcloud.comzoho.com2gis.comgoogle.co.ukwpguardian.comlinode.comviber.comwpguardian.ioauth0.comcloudinary.commlb.comprnewswire.comdisneyplus.commixpanel.comsalesforceliveagent.comusps.comkleinanzeigen.deflipkart.comgoogle.com.brmyspace.comparklogic.comspamhaus.orgzoom.comagoda.combiblegateway.comdeepseek.commax.comworldbank.orginstructure.comliftoff.iothreema.chappcenter.msclasslink.comlg.comwyzecam.comparamountplus.comqualtrics.comnetworkadvertising.orgflashtalking.comcpmstar.comdocker.ioapp-ads-services.comclever.com
Popular sites that pass (257)
www.gov.uksteampowered.comtinyurl.comgamepass.comip-api.comspringer.comalibaba.comcloudflareinsights.commiui.comweibo.comuserapi.comamazon.co.ukharvard.edunflxvideo.netespn.comphp.netpaloaltonetworks.comok.runaver.comsmartadserver.combilibili.combranch.iogmail.comtp-link.comelasticbeanstalk.comun.orgaliyun.combsky.appnetease.comgoogle.cnamazon.dego.comglobo.comdns.googlestanford.edugitlab.comxboxlive.comissuu.comopendns.comlive-video.netname.comamazontrust.comnasa.govadobe.netyandex.comsubstack.com163.comaol.comtemu.comline.metaobao.comdailymotion.comnetcraze.iovisualstudio.comarxiv.orgsberbank.rueye4.cnmzstatic.comg.pageyahoo.co.jplijit.comduolingo.comdropcatch.comspeedtest.netdrom.ruwalmart.comgoodreads.comcnbc.comddnss.denetangels.ruwp.combusinessinsider.comamazon.co.jpsina.com.cneventbrite.comtplinkcloud.comoraclecloud.comaddtoany.comindiatimes.comshare.googleblogger.comamzn.toklaviyo.comshop.appcapcut.comamagi.tvselectel.rumozilla.comfirefox.comoup.comfast.comnease.neticloud-content.comslideshare.netcornell.eduwired.comthreads.comatlassian.comsohu.comca.govsophos.com360yield.comuol.com.brrakuten.co.jpsquarespace.comwix.comieee.orgconviva.comvercel.appadriver.rutimeweb.rutarget.comsupercell.commaricopa.govcloudns.netdigitalocean.comcrpt.ruflurry.comhotjar.comsagepub.comezvizlife.comoptimizely.comikea.comamazon.frfree.frstackadapt.comtelefonica.deamazon.caampproject.orgjotform.comnewrelic.comservice.gov.ukivi.ruhstgr.netnike.comamazon.insknt.ruprimevideo.comsupabase.cokick.comgosuslugi.rulemonde.frbandcamp.comfb.comrfc-editor.orgnetflix.netbeget.rucertcenter.comreverse.italipaydns.com
And 107 more. The full list is in the data file.
How this was measured
The figure comes from Adnave's own audits of 551 popular websites, each read as a search engine first receives it and re-checked about once a month. A site “falls short” when the result is anything other than a pass. That is not always a mistake: a very large site may skip something on purpose. Sites that refuse automated visits are not in the sample, so the figure describes the popular sites that could be read, not the whole web. Full method and limits
Put this figure on your own page
The picture is drawn fresh from our data, so it stays up to date wherever you place it. Free to use; the code links back to this page as the source.
<a href="https://adnave.com/research/stats/link-text"><img src="https://adnave.com/embed/link-text.svg" alt="Share of the world's top websites that pass the check “Links say where they lead”. Live figure by Adnave." width="480" height="200" loading="lazy"></a>
Use this figure
Free to quote, chart and republish with a link to this page. Check the page before quoting: the figure moves as sites are re-audited.
Suggested citation: Adnave, “Links say where they lead: how the world's top websites do”, https://adnave.com/research/stats/link-text
Download the data (CSV)