Title: Recto — Internal Linking &amp; Orphan Pages
Author: eikiyo
Published: <strong>June 21, 2026</strong>
Last modified: June 21, 2026

---

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# Recto — Internal Linking & Orphan Pages

 By [eikiyo](https://profiles.wordpress.org/eikiyo/)

[Download](https://downloads.wordpress.org/plugin/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages.1.0.0.zip)

 * [Details](https://wordpress.org/plugins/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/#description)
 * [Reviews](https://wordpress.org/plugins/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/#reviews)
 *  [Installation](https://wordpress.org/plugins/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/#installation)
 * [Development](https://wordpress.org/plugins/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/#developers)

 [Support](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/)

## Description

**Orphan pages rank poorly.** They have no incoming internal links, so search engines
don’t know they matter — even when the content is great.

Recto finds every orphan page on your site, surfaces the best linking opportunities
across your existing posts, and lets you approve and insert the links with a single
click. No manual searching. No copy-pasting anchor text. No editing posts one by
one.

**How it works:**

 1. Connect your WordPress site to Recto (this plugin handles the handshake)
 2. Recto crawls your site and maps every internal link
 3. AI analyses your content and suggests the highest-impact links to add — with the
    exact phrase to use as anchor text
 4. You review and approve suggestions in the Recto dashboard
 5. Approved links are inserted into your posts automatically via the WordPress REST
    API

**What you get:**

 * Full orphan page audit — every page with zero incoming links, sorted by impact
 * AI-generated anchor text — contextually accurate, reads naturally in the source
   post
 * One-click push — Recto writes the link directly into the post, you never touch
   the editor
 * Google Search Console integration — rank data drives prioritisation so you fix
   the highest-value orphans first
 * Audit log — every pushed link is logged with the source post, target page, and
   anchor phrase

**This plugin is the connector.** The crawl, AI analysis, and dashboard all live
at [rectoapp.com](https://rectoapp.com). A free 14-day trial (1 site) is included;
full access is a one-time payment per site.

#### External Service

This plugin connects your WordPress site to the Recto service (rectoapp.com) to 
provide link analysis and insertion features.

**What data is transmitted:**
 – Your site URL (to identify the site) – WordPress
Application Password credentials (stored encrypted, used to insert links via the
REST API) – Post titles, slugs, and content (crawled to identify linking opportunities)–
Google Search Console data (if you choose to connect it)

**Recto Terms of Service:** https://rectoapp.com/terms
 **Recto Privacy Policy:**
https://rectoapp.com/privacy

No data is sold or shared with third parties. Recto stores only what is needed to
deliver the service.

## Screenshots

[⌊Your Recto dashboard — orphan pages surfaced and quick wins waiting, ranked by
impact since you were last here.⌉⌊Your Recto dashboard — orphan pages surfaced and
quick wins waiting, ranked by impact since you were last here.⌉[

Your Recto dashboard — orphan pages surfaced and quick wins waiting, ranked by impact
since you were last here.

[⌊One click per link — Recto reuses a phrase you already wrote as the anchor, so
your sentence stays exactly as published.⌉⌊One click per link — Recto reuses a phrase
you already wrote as the anchor, so your sentence stays exactly as published.⌉[

One click per link — Recto reuses a phrase you already wrote as the anchor, so your
sentence stays exactly as published.

[⌊Audit log — every pushed link tracked with source page, target page, anchor phrase,
and live-verified status.⌉⌊Audit log — every pushed link tracked with source page,
target page, anchor phrase, and live-verified status.⌉[

Audit log — every pushed link tracked with source page, target page, anchor phrase,
and live-verified status.

[⌊The workbench — every connected site, with orphans found and links verified, in
one place.⌉⌊The workbench — every connected site, with orphans found and links verified,
in one place.⌉[

The workbench — every connected site, with orphans found and links verified, in 
one place.

[⌊Fix every orphan page once —  per site, no subscription, and no AI rewriting your
posts.⌉⌊Fix every orphan page once —  per site, no subscription, and no AI rewriting
your posts.⌉[

Fix every orphan page once — $39 per site, no subscription, and no AI rewriting 
your posts.

## Installation

 1. In your WordPress admin, go to **Plugins  Add New  Upload Plugin**
 2. Upload the `recto.zip` file and click **Install Now**
 3. Click **Activate Plugin**
 4. Go to **Settings  Recto**
 5. Enter your WordPress username and an Application Password, then click **Connect
    to Recto**
 6. You’ll be redirected to rectoapp.com to authorise the connection — sign in or create
    a free account
 7. Once authorised, you’ll return to wp-admin and see **Connected ✓**
 8. Open the Recto dashboard to start your first site crawl

**Generating an Application Password:** Go to **Users  Profile**, scroll to **Application
Passwords**, type `Recto` as the name, and click **Add New**. Copy the generated
password and paste it into the plugin settings.

## FAQ

### Is Recto free?

There’s a free 14-day trial for one site. After that, full access is a one-time 
payment per site (no subscription). AppSumo lifetime deals are also available. See
[rectoapp.com](https://rectoapp.com) for current pricing.

### How is this different from Link Whisper or Internal Link Juicer?

Recto focuses on **orphan pages** specifically — pages that have zero incoming links
and are therefore invisible to search engines. Instead of auto-inserting links based
on keywords, Recto uses AI to find the best contextual linking opportunity for each
orphan, shows you exactly what it will do, and waits for your approval before making
any change.

### Does it work with the block editor (Gutenberg)?

Yes. Recto uses the WordPress REST API to read and write post content, which works
with both the classic editor and Gutenberg.

### Does it work with page builders (Elementor, Divi, Beaver Builder)?

It depends on how the page builder stores content. If the builder uses standard 
WordPress post content (common with Elementor), Recto works fine. Builders that 
store content outside post_content (some Divi setups) are not supported in v1.

### What happens if I deactivate the plugin?

Deactivating sends a disconnect notification to Recto. Your site data (crawl results,
link suggestions) is kept in Recto — you can reconnect anytime. Deleting the plugin
removes all local options and revokes the Application Password.

### Is my WordPress password safe?

Recto uses WordPress **Application Passwords** — not your main login password. An
Application Password is scoped to Recto only; revoking it in your WordPress profile
removes Recto’s access instantly and has no effect on your other logins.

### Does this plugin slow down my site?

No. The plugin adds one lightweight admin settings page and one REST endpoint. It
has zero front-end footprint — no scripts or styles are loaded for site visitors.

### Can I connect multiple sites?

Yes. Install the plugin on each site and repeat the connect process. How many sites
you can connect depends on your Recto plan.

### What WordPress version is required?

WordPress 6.0 or later. Application Passwords (used for authentication) were introduced
in WordPress 5.6; the plugin falls back gracefully on earlier versions (manual credential
entry still works).

### Do I need PHP 8?

Yes. PHP 8.0 or later is required, which aligns with WordPress’s own recommendation
for all sites.

## Reviews

There are no reviews for this plugin.

## Contributors & Developers

“Recto — Internal Linking & Orphan Pages” is open source software. The following
people have contributed to this plugin.

Contributors

 *   [ eikiyo ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/eikiyo/)

[Translate “Recto — Internal Linking & Orphan Pages” into your language.](https://translate.wordpress.org/projects/wp-plugins/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages)

### Interested in development?

[Browse the code](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/),
check out the [SVN repository](https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/),
or subscribe to the [development log](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/)
by [RSS](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/?limit=100&mode=stop_on_copy&format=rss).

## Changelog

#### 1.0.0

 * Initial release.
 * OAuth-style connect flow via Application Passwords.
 * Admin settings page (connected / not-connected state).
 * REST endpoint GET /wp-json/recto/v1/status for health checks.
 * Automatic Application Password generation on activation (WordPress 5.6+).
 * Clean uninstall — removes all options and revokes the Application Password.

## Meta

 *  Version **1.0.0**
 *  Last updated **13 hours ago**
 *  Active installations **Fewer than 10**
 *  WordPress version ** 6.0 or higher **
 *  Tested up to **7.0**
 *  PHP version ** 8.0 or higher **
 * Tags
 * [internal linking](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/internal-linking/)[internal links](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/internal-links/)
   [link building](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/link-building/)[orphan pages](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/orphan-pages/)
   [seo](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/seo/)
 *  [Advanced View](https://wordpress.org/plugins/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/advanced/)

## Ratings

No reviews have been submitted yet.

[Your review](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/reviews/#new-post)

[See all reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/reviews/)

## Contributors

 *   [ eikiyo ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/eikiyo/)

## Support

Got something to say? Need help?

 [View support forum](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/recto-internal-linking-orphan-pages/)