Overview
Proper heading structure is essential for SEO and readability. Screaming Frog SEO Spider can quickly crawl a website and identify issues with H1, H2, and H3 tags before launch.
Step 1: Open Screaming Frog and Crawl the Website
1. Launch Screaming Frog SEO Spider.
2. Enter the website URL in the “Enter URL to Spider” field.
3. Click “Start” to begin the crawl.
4. Wait for the crawl to complete (progress is shown at the bottom of the screen).
Step 2: Access the Heading Data
1. Click on the “H1” or “H2” tab in the top navigation panel.
2. To see H3 headings, click on the “Custom Extraction” tab (if set up) or export the data for deeper analysis.
3. Use the filters to check for:
• Missing headings (important for SEO).
• Multiple H1 tags on a single page (can cause ranking confusion).
• Duplicate headings (reduces keyword effectiveness).
Step 3: Review H1, H2, and H3 Structure
H1 Tags (Primary Page Title)
• Each page should have exactly one H1 tag.
• Ensure the H1 is descriptive, keyword-rich, and unique.
• Avoid using multiple H1s on a single page.
H2 Tags (Main Subheadings)
• H2s should logically structure the content, breaking sections into clear topics.
• Include relevant keywords without keyword stuffing.
H3 Tags (Subsections within H2s)
• Used for organizing detailed points under H2s.
• Should flow logically and provide better content hierarchy.
Step 4: Export and Analyze Data
1. Click Export to download the heading data in CSV format.
2. Open the file in Excel or Google Sheets.
3. Sort and filter to check for missing or duplicate headings.
Step 5: Fix Issues Before Launch
• Ensure each page has one unique H1.
• Optimize H2s and H3s for logical flow and SEO.
• Remove duplicate or unnecessary headings.
Conclusion
Using Screaming Frog, you can efficiently audit and improve heading structures for both SEO performance and user readability before a site launch. Regularly performing this check ensures a clean, well-optimized website structure.
