The homepage H1: what it should say

Key takeaways

The homepage H1 is the main heading of the page, and it should plainly state what you do and for whom. Use your visible headline as the H1, not your logo or a slogan. One clear H1 helps screen reader users and search engines, and it forces you to decide what the page is really about.

• Make your visible headline the H1.
• Say what you do and who it helps.
• Do not wrap the logo in an H1 by default.
• Check it in the page source after building.

What should a homepage H1 say?

A homepage H1 should state your offer in plain language, including your main service and, where relevant, your area. 'Emergency plumbers in Bristol' is stronger than 'Welcome to Smith & Sons'. It does not need to be clever. It should match what a buyer searched for and confirm that they have arrived at the right place.

• How to create a high-converting homepage for an SME
• 'Welcome to our website': the wasted first line
• Website value proposition: say it in five seconds

Is the H1 the same as the title tag?

No. The title tag appears in search results and browser tabs, while the H1 appears on the page. They should agree in meaning but need not match exactly. A title tag often includes your brand name and location, and an H1 can be written more naturally for someone reading the page.

• Homepage title and meta description that set expectations
• Page titles and headings: the navigation visitors forget

Can a page have more than one H1?

Technically yes, and Google says that multiple H1s are not a problem for search. For people using screen readers, however, a single H1 gives a clearer structure. Aim for one. Many themes wrongly set the logo or a section heading as H1, so check rather than assuming.

• How screen reader users navigate your site

How do you check your H1?

Right-click the page, view the source and search for '<h1'. A browser extension for headings shows the outline more quickly. Check that your visible headline is the H1 and that heading levels follow in order. Builders sometimes use styled text in place of real heading tags.

• Homepage section headings that carry the message

What if the design shows an image instead?

If your headline is inside an image, move it into live text. Words in images cannot be read by screen readers or reliably by search engines, and they do not scale on phones. If the designer insists on a particular typeface, a web font will almost always do the same job.

• Text in images: why it hurts your website
• Web fonts and page speed: brand type without the wait

When does the H1 matter less?

It matters less for ranking than many guides suggest. Changing an H1 alone rarely moves a page much, because search engines weigh the whole page and its reputation. Its main value is clarity for people. Do not stuff it with keywords, as that makes the page read worse.

• Homepage SEO vs conversion: write for both
• Which keywords should your homepage target?

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see in theme checks: the only H1 on the homepage is the word 'Welcome' or the company logo, with the real headline set as styled paragraph text. Promoting the real headline to H1 takes minutes, and it gives search engines and screen readers a true description of the page.

• See client work
• Website Design & Development for UK businesses

Homepage H1 checklist

• Write your offer in plain words.
• Make the visible headline the H1.
• Check there is one H1 in the source.
• Keep heading levels in order.
• Use live text, not images.
• Avoid keyword stuffing.

• Hand a homepage design to a developer
• New homepage not showing on Google? Check these first

Next step

View your homepage source now and search for '<h1'. If it does not contain your main headline, you have a five-minute fix.