What Is a Heading Tag? Structure, Not Font Size
DICTIONARY · SEO

What Is a Heading Tag?

Heading tags, H1 through H6, describe the structure of a page: what the sections are and how they nest.

In plain English

Headings are structural markup, not styling. They tell a machine and a screen reader how the page is organised, which is why using an H3 because it looks the right size breaks something invisible.

Well-structured headings also make a page scannable, and scannable pages are what get extracted into snippets and AI answers.

What to know

One H1
The page's main subject, usually matching the visible headline.
Nest properly
H2 for sections, H3 for subsections. Do not skip levels for appearance.
Describe honestly
A heading should say what its section contains, not tease it.
Style separately
Use CSS for size. Never choose a heading level for its appearance.

Why it matters

Heading structure is how machines understand a long page and how screen reader users navigate one. It is also what makes a passage extractable, which now matters for snippets and generated answers.

Common mistakes

×Multiple H1s used for visual emphasis.
×Skipping from H2 to H4 for styling reasons.
×Vague headings that describe nothing.
×Headings used on text that is not a heading, for the font size.

FAQs

Can a page have more than one H1?

It is technically valid but rarely useful. One H1 keeps the structure unambiguous.

Do keywords in headings help?

Describing the section accurately helps. Repeating keywords does not.

WRITTEN BY TARIQ SALLAM
Marketing Consultant. Entrepreneur. Content Creator.

I'm a marketing consultant, entrepreneur and content creator. I help businesses grow through practical marketing, websites, SEO, content and AI.

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