Page linking itself

Advisable or not?

[OutdoorMan]

Hi.

Since only my front page (www.example.com) is listed in G's SERPs I have plenty of time to double check my pages over and over again.

I use breadcrumbs in all my pages with active links. Every page therefore has a link to itself.

Now I have becomed a bit worried and wonder if my pages' self linking might could have caused a penalty or some other kind of filter?

Self linking -- good or bad?

[tedster]

It's not good for the user. But it is extremely common, so I doubt there's a penalty.

[OutdoorMan]

It's not good for the user.

Glad to read it shouldn't trigger a penalty.

But why isn't it good for the user?

[tedster]

Clicking on a link that reloads the very same page can create various kinds of confusion. Usability maven Jakob Nielsen has often included this particular "sin" on his various Top 10 Mistakes lists. He noted in 2003 that only 41% of pages actually comply with this usability rule.

Active links to current pages cause three problems:

If they click it, a link leading to the current page is an utter waste of users' time.

Worse, such links cause users to doubt whether they're really at the location they think they're at.

Worst of all, if users do follow these no-op links they'll be confused as to their new location, particularly if the page is scrolled back to the top.

Jakob Nielsen's "The Ten Most Violated Homepage Design Guidelines" [useit.com]

[OutdoorMan]

Okay, it makes sense why one shouldn't have links that points at the same page.

Thanks for your answer, Tedster.

[tedster]

You're very welcome, OM!

[steveb]

Self links are good especially in topic areas where content gets stolen because most thieves are too stupid to change such links so they give themselves away.

All important pages should have self links in navigation, which is required for user friendliness unless you have a site that you are trying to get people off of. It boils down to are you interested in helping your users or forcing them where you want them to go.

[Beachboy]

I use a flat menu on a site I have that ranks very high in a highly competitive field, each page has the same complete menu, which would include a link back to whatever page you happen to be on. No problems whatsoever.