Rel Next
rel="next" is an HTML link relation that marks a page as the next page in a sequence, such as a paginated series.
Key takeaways
- rel="next" indicates the next page in a paginated sequence.
- Google no longer uses rel="next" for indexing or pagination discovery.
- It may still help document structure and human-readable code organization.
- Each page in a series typically canonicalizes to itself.
- Correct implementation requires proper internal pagination links between adjacent pages.
It was historically used to help search engines understand paginated page relationships and consolidate signals across a series.
Example
A blog with 10 pages of articles. Page 1 includes <link rel="next" href="https://example.com/page2/" /> in its <head>. Page 2 includes both <link rel="prev" href="https://example.com/" /> and <link rel="next" href="https://example.com/page3/" />. Page 10 includes only <link rel="prev" href="https://example.com/page9/" />.
When should I use this?
Use rel="next" when you have a paginated series of pages, such as:
- Article archives (e.g., blog page 1, 2, 3)
- Product listings (e.g., category page 1, 2, 3)
- Galleries (e.g., image gallery page 1, 2, 3)
- Any sequential content that spans multiple pages
What it is not
- A replacement for crawlable links or a proper pagination architecture.
- A directive that forces Google to index pages in a specific order.
- A signal that directly improves Google indexing or rankings (as of Google's latest guidance).
- A substitute for canonical tags.
Quick start
- Identify the pages in your paginated series (e.g., page 1, page 2, page 3).
- On each page, add the appropriate
<link>tags in the<head>section. - For page 1:
<link rel="next" href="https://example.com/page2/" /> - For middle pages:
<link rel="prev" href="https://example.com/page1/" />and<link rel="next" href="https://example.com/page3/" /> - For the last page:
<link rel="prev" href="https://example.com/page2/" /> - Ensure each page canonicalizes to itself (unless you have a deliberate alternative strategy).
Common mistakes
- Assuming rel="next" still directly improves Google indexing or rankings.
- Using rel="next" without correct internal pagination links between adjacent pages.
- Pointing canonical tags on paginated pages to the category root when self-canonicalization is intended.
- Treating rel="next" as a replacement for crawlable links or a proper pagination architecture.
Next step
FAQ
Does Google still use rel="next"?
No. Google has stated it no longer uses rel="next" or rel="prev" for indexing or pagination discovery.
Should I still implement rel="next"?
It may help document structure and human-readable code organization, but it is not required for SEO.
What is the difference between rel="next" and canonical tags?
rel="next" indicates the next page in a sequence, while canonical tags specify the preferred version of a page. They serve different purposes.
Related topics
Sources
- Google Search Central Blog: Pagination with rel="next" and rel="prev" — Google’s original official guidance on how rel="next" and rel="prev" were intended to work.
- MDN Web Docs: rel HTML attribute — Authoritative HTML reference for what the rel attribute means in general.
- Google Search Central / Google announcement referenced in SEO coverage — Google later stated it no longer uses rel="next" and rel="prev" for indexing; use Search Central-era guidance and later Google commentary together.
Reviewed by Lucía Marín, Founding editor.