Can a page have more than one H1?

In HTML5 it is valid, and Google has said it handles it fine. That is different from it being a good idea: one H1 states the subject unambiguously, and people navigating by headings get a clearer map. Treat several H1s as a smell rather than an error.

Does the H1 need to match the title tag?

They should agree, not be identical. The title is written for a results page and often carries the brand; the H1 is read in context on the page and can be shorter and more natural.

What happens if there is no H1?

Nothing breaks, and the page can still rank. You lose a clear statement of subject, and a screen reader user loses the top level of the outline they use to move around the page.

Is an H1 in the site header a problem?

Usually, yes — if every page has the same H1 because the logo is wrapped in one, no page states its own subject. That is one of the most common causes of a duplicate-H1 finding.

Do heading levels have to be in order?

They should descend one at a time. Skipping from H2 to H4 is not an HTML error but it breaks the outline, and WCAG treats a coherent heading structure as part of making content navigable.

SEO

H1 Tag Checker

Check a page for a missing H1, several H1s, an empty one, or a heading level skipped in the outline.

100% free
No sign-up
No limits
Instant results

Page HTML

The short version

What is H1 Tag Checker?

The H1 is the heading that states what a page is about, and it is the first thing a screen reader announces after the title.

HTML5 permits more than one, which is why so much advice about this is contradictory — the honest position is that several H1s are legal and one is clearer, to a crawler and to a person navigating by heading. This checker reports how many you have and what they say, catches the H1 that is present but empty (invisible in a code review, useless to a reader), and looks for skipped levels — an H1 followed by an H3 — which break the outline assistive technology builds from your headings.

Step by step

How to use H1 Tag Checker

1
Fetch or paste
Enter a URL, or paste the HTML of a page you have not shipped.
2
Check the count first
None is a real problem. More than one is usually a template accident worth understanding.
3
Read the H1 text back
If it does not describe the page on its own, out of context, it is not doing its job.
4
Fix skipped levels
Going H1 to H3 leaves a hole in the outline. Screen reader users navigate by that outline.

What's inside

Everything this tool
does for you

H1 count with the text of each
Empty-H1 detection
Skipped heading level detection
Explains the accessibility impact
Reads a live URL or pasted HTML
Free, no signup, no daily limit

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Questions

Frequently asked questions

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What this tool does

Counts H1s and shows their text
Catches an empty H1, which looks fine in the source
Finds skipped heading levels
Explains the accessibility cost, not just the SEO one
Free, no account, no daily limit

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