When is a hub page that mostly links out thin vs valuable?
- Published November 6, 2026
- Linked from 1 answer
- In a cluster of 26
It is valuable when it does work the pages it links to cannot do on their own: choosing what is worth reading, putting it in order, and telling the reader which page answers which need. It is thin when it is a list of links with titles and nothing else, because a reader gets the same from the site’s menu or a search. A hub can consist largely of links and still be the best page on a site for a broad search, if the links come with the judgment that makes them useful.
What separates the two
| Valuable hub | Thin hub |
|---|---|
| An introduction that explains the subject and how it breaks down | A heading and a list |
| Each link with a line on what that page answers and who it is for | Link titles only |
| An order that follows how a reader learns or decides | Alphabetical or by date |
| A choice of the best pages, with weaker or outdated ones left out | Every page that carries the tag |
| Short answers to the broad question, with links for depth | No answers; the reader has to click to learn anything |
| Kept current as pages are added, merged or retired | Built once and left |
A quick test
Remove the links and read what remains. If the text alone tells a reader something useful about the subject and how to approach it, the page has its own value. If nothing remains but headings, look at the list itself: a selection that is curated, ordered and explained is value of its own, while a bare catalogue of every page has little reason to rank above the pages it lists.
Hubs that rank and hubs that are ignored
Two hubs that look alike can fare differently because one answers a broad search and the other does not. A searcher who types a broad subject wants an overview and a way in; a hub that gives both serves them. A hub built around a tag nobody searches for, or around an internal category name, serves no search at all, however well it is made.
Building one
- Choose a subject people search for broadly.
- Write a short overview that answers the broad question on the hub itself.
- Select the pages that answer the main follow-up questions, and describe each in a line.
- Order them as a reader would need them.
- Review the hub whenever pages in the subject change.
For how a hub and its spoke pages should link to each other, go to whether a hub-and-spoke structure actually helps. Give the hub something to say, and the links become a guide rather than a list.
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