Heading Structure Template: The H1–H6 Checklist for Every Post
Headings are the skeleton of your article. Search engines read them to map what each section covers, screen readers use them to navigate the page, and skim-readers decide in seconds whether your post is worth their time — based on the headings alone. Yet most drafts arrive with skipped levels, multiple H1s, and headings that say nothing about the content beneath them. This checklist fixes that. It is a reusable H1–H6 structure template you can apply to every post you write, with 15 rules covering hierarchy, keyword placement, length, and the mistakes that quietly sabotage on-page SEO.
What’s inside this checklist
The template starts with the one-H1 rule and walks down through every heading level: what H1 through H6 are actually for, when H4–H6 are useful (spoiler: rarely on a blog), and how H2s should carry your keyword variants while H3s handle sub-topics. The checklist covers keyword placement without stuffing, heading length (under 70 characters so they scan well), parallel structure for list-style sections, and the four sins to avoid: skipped levels, headings as links, empty headings, and styling text to look like headings instead of using real tags. Bloggers, freelance writers, and SEO beginners get a pre-publish ritual that takes two minutes and prevents the heading mistakes that hold pages back in search results.
The H1–H6 checklist (abridged sample)
Six of the fifteen rules — the full checklist with the complete template is in the free download below.
- One H1 per page: the post title only. Never add a second H1 in the body.
- Never skip levels: an H3 must sit under an H2, never jump straight from H1 to H3.
- Put your primary keyword (or a natural variant) in the H1 and at least one H2.
- Make every heading descriptive: it should make sense even if read alone, out of context.
- Keep headings under 70 characters so they scan well and display fully in search results.
- Use real heading tags, not bold paragraphs styled to look like headings.
How to use this checklist
- Before publishing, paste your post’s headings into the template structure from the download and check each level.
- Confirm there is exactly one H1 and no skipped levels (H1 → H2 → H3 in order).
- Read each H2 and H3 aloud: if a stranger cannot guess the section’s content from the heading alone, rewrite it.
- Verify your primary keyword appears in the H1 and one H2, and that no heading repeats another verbatim.
- Run the “four sins” check at the end: no heading-as-link, no empty headings, no fake bold headings, no heading deeper than H4 without a reason.
The checklist works in any editor. Keep it open in a second tab during your final read-through and it will catch the structural mistakes your eyes glaze over after hours of writing.
Frequently asked questions
Should my H1 match my title tag exactly? They can match, but a slight variation is often better: make the title tag keyword-focused for search results and the H1 reader-focused for the page. Both must describe the same topic — never promise different things.
How many H2s should a post have? Roughly one H2 per 200–300 words. A 1,200-word post works well with 4 to 6 H2s. Too few and the page looks like a wall of text; too many and sections feel thin. Let the content’s natural sections decide.
Are H4, H5, and H6 ever needed? On most blog posts, no. They exist for deep technical documentation and legal documents. If your post needs H4s, consider whether it is actually two posts trying to be one.
Download the full H1–H6 checklist
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