Internal linking works differently on an ecommerce category page and a blog post because the two are built for different jobs: one moves a shopper toward a purchase, the other moves a reader deeper into a topic. The linking logic diverges from there.
On an ecommerce category, links serve commercial intent and hierarchy. The category page sits in a structure, and its internal links mostly run along that structure: down to the products it contains, across to closely related categories a shopper might also want, and up to its parent. The goal is to guide a buyer efficiently toward the right product and to signal which products and subcategories belong under this category. Links here are about navigation and conversion paths more than topical exploration. You are not trying to teach the shopper a subject, you are trying to route them to what they came to buy.
On a blog post, links serve topic depth and authority. The post links outward to related articles, supporting explanations, and the pillar page that anchors its topic cluster. The goal is to connect the post into a web of related content so that both readers and search engines see the site’s depth on the subject. Links here are about building topical authority and giving a reader the next relevant thing to read, not pushing them toward a transaction.
The reason they diverge is the intent behind the page. A category page is transactional, so its links optimize for the shortest sensible path to a product. A blog post is informational, so its links optimize for topical coverage and exploration. Linking a category page like a blog post scatters a buyer’s attention; linking a blog post like a category page strands a reader without the related reading that builds authority.
Map each page on your site to one of the two models before you link it. If it exists to sell, link it for navigation and conversion: products, sibling categories, parent. If it exists to inform, link it for topic depth: related posts, supporting articles, the pillar. The structure follows the page’s job, and matching the linking to that job is what keeps each type doing what it is for.