While HTML5 technically allows multiple H1 tags in sectioning elements, SEO best practice is to use exactly one H1 per page. Multiple H1 tags dilute the primary topic signal and confuse search engines about what the page is really about. It often indicates a structural problem in the page template.

This guide shows you how to find every page with multiple H1 tags using the crawler.sh CLI.

Step 1: Install crawler.sh CLI

Install the CLI with a single command:

curl -fsSL https://install.crawler.sh | sh

This downloads the correct binary for your operating system and architecture, places it in ~/.crawler/bin/, and adds it to your PATH. Restart your terminal or run source ~/.bashrc (or ~/.zshrc) to pick up the new PATH entry.

Verify the installation:

crawler --version

Step 2: Crawl the target website

Run a full crawl of the website you want to audit:

crawler crawl https://example.com

The crawler counts H1 tags on every page. Results are saved as an NDJSON file (.crawl) in the current directory. For larger sites:

crawler crawl https://example.com --max-pages 5000

Step 3: Run SEO audit

Run the SEO analysis on your crawl data:

crawler seo example-com.crawl

The multiple H1 tags check flags every page that contains more than one <h1> element.

Step 4: Identify multiple H1 tags

Look for the Multiple H1 Tags section in the SEO report. Common causes:

The site logo wrapped in an H1 tag in the header (appears on every page alongside the content H1)
Widget or sidebar headings styled as H1 instead of H2 or H3
CMS editors using H1 for visual emphasis within the content body
Template components that each include their own H1
Embedded content (iframes, includes) bringing in additional H1 tags

Step 5: Fix and re-crawl

Ensure each page has exactly one H1:

Change extra H1 tags to H2 or lower based on their position in the content hierarchy
Fix the site header if the logo is wrapped in H1 - use a div, span, or the <a> tag instead
Train content editors to use H1 only for the main page heading and H2–H6 for sections
Review shared components that may inject unwanted H1 tags

After fixing, re-crawl to verify:

crawler crawl https://example.com
crawler seo example-com.crawl

Why multiple H1 tags matter for SEO

A single H1 gives search engines a clear, unambiguous signal about the page’s primary topic. Multiple H1 tags split that signal, making it harder for search engines to determine what the page should rank for. Google’s John Mueller has confirmed that while multiple H1s are not a critical error, using one H1 provides clearer heading structure. Fixing multiple H1s is a simple change that strengthens your on-page SEO signals.