diff --git a/app/models/popular_links_edition.rb b/app/models/popular_links_edition.rb
index e08bfb097..080f7136f 100644
--- a/app/models/popular_links_edition.rb
+++ b/app/models/popular_links_edition.rb
@@ -11,12 +11,12 @@ def all_valid_urls_and_titles_are_present
     link_items.each_with_index do |item, index|
       errors.add("url#{index + 1}", "URL is required for Link #{index + 1}") unless url_present?(item)
       errors.add("title#{index + 1}", "Title is required for Link #{index + 1}") unless title_present?(item)
-      errors.add("url#{index + 1}", "URL is invalid for Link #{index + 1}, all URLs should have at least one '.' and no spaces.") if url_present?(item) && url_has_spaces_or_has_no_dot?(item[:url])
+      errors.add("url#{index + 1}", "URL is invalid for Link #{index + 1}, all URLs should start with '/'") if url_present?(item) && url_is_not_valid_relative_url?(item[:url])
     end
   end
 
-  def url_has_spaces_or_has_no_dot?(url)
-    url.include?(" ") || url.exclude?(".")
+  def url_is_not_valid_relative_url?(url)
+    !url.start_with?("/")
   end
 
   def title_present?(item)
diff --git a/test/functional/homepage_controller_test.rb b/test/functional/homepage_controller_test.rb
index e6d32a439..21676b5b7 100644
--- a/test/functional/homepage_controller_test.rb
+++ b/test/functional/homepage_controller_test.rb
@@ -59,18 +59,18 @@ class HomepageControllerTest < ActionController::TestCase
 
     should "update latest PopularLinksEdition with changed title and url" do
       assert_equal "title1", @popular_links.link_items[0][:title]
-      assert_equal "https://www.url1.com", @popular_links.link_items[0][:url]
+      assert_equal "/url1", @popular_links.link_items[0][:url]
 
       new_title = "title has changed"
-      new_url = "https://www.changedurl.com"
+      new_url = "/changedurl"
       patch :update, params: { id: @popular_links.id,
                                "popular_links" =>
                                  { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => new_url },
-                                   "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "https://www.url2.com" },
-                                   "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "https://www.url3.com" },
-                                   "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "https://www.url4.com" },
-                                   "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "https://www.url5.com" },
-                                   "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "https://www.url6.com" } } }
+                                   "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "/url2" },
+                                   "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "/url3" },
+                                   "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "/url4" },
+                                   "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "/url5" },
+                                   "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "/url6" } } }
 
       assert_equal new_title, PopularLinksEdition.last.link_items[0][:title]
       assert_equal new_url, PopularLinksEdition.last.link_items[0][:url]
@@ -81,12 +81,12 @@ class HomepageControllerTest < ActionController::TestCase
 
       patch :update, params: { id: @popular_links.id,
                                "popular_links" =>
-                                 { "1" => { "title" => "title", "url" => "url.com" },
-                                   "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "https://www.url2.com" },
-                                   "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "https://www.url3.com" },
-                                   "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "https://www.url4.com" },
-                                   "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "https://www.url5.com" },
-                                   "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "https://www.url6.com" } } }
+                                 { "1" => { "title" => "title", "url" => "/url" },
+                                   "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "/url2" },
+                                   "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "/url3" },
+                                   "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "/url4" },
+                                   "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "/url5" },
+                                   "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "/url6" } } }
     end
 
     should "redirect to show path on success" do
@@ -94,18 +94,18 @@ class HomepageControllerTest < ActionController::TestCase
 
       patch :update, params: { id: @popular_links.id,
                                "popular_links" =>
-                                 { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "https://www.url1.com" },
-                                   "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "https://www.url2.com" },
-                                   "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "https://www.url3.com" },
-                                   "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "https://www.url4.com" },
-                                   "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "https://www.url5.com" },
-                                   "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "https://www.url6.com" } } }
+                                 { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "/url1" },
+                                   "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "/url2" },
+                                   "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "/url3" },
+                                   "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "/url4" },
+                                   "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "/url5" },
+                                   "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "/url6" } } }
 
       assert_redirected_to show_popular_links_path
     end
 
     should "render edit template on validation error" do
-      links_with_missing_items = { "1" => { "title" => "title has changed", "url" => "https://www.url1.com" } }
+      links_with_missing_items = { "1" => { "title" => "title has changed", "url" => "/url1" } }
 
       patch :update, params: { id: @popular_links.id,
                                "popular_links" => links_with_missing_items }
@@ -123,12 +123,12 @@ class HomepageControllerTest < ActionController::TestCase
 
         patch :update, params: { id: @popular_links.id,
                                  "popular_links" =>
-                                   { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "https://www.url1.com" },
-                                     "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "https://www.url2.com" },
-                                     "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "https://www.url3.com" },
-                                     "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "https://www.url4.com" },
-                                     "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "https://www.url5.com" },
-                                     "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "https://www.url6.com" } } }
+                                   { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "/url1" },
+                                     "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "/url2" },
+                                     "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "/url3" },
+                                     "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "/url4" },
+                                     "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "/url5" },
+                                     "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "/url6" } } }
 
         assert_equal "Due to an application error, the edition couldn't be saved.", flash[:danger]
       end
@@ -138,12 +138,12 @@ class HomepageControllerTest < ActionController::TestCase
 
         patch :update, params: { id: @popular_links.id,
                                  "popular_links" =>
-                                   { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "https://www.url1.com" },
-                                     "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "https://www.url2.com" },
-                                     "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "https://www.url3.com" },
-                                     "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "https://www.url4.com" },
-                                     "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "https://www.url5.com" },
-                                     "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "https://www.url6.com" } } }
+                                   { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "/url1" },
+                                     "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "/url2" },
+                                     "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "/url3" },
+                                     "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "/url4" },
+                                     "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "/url5" },
+                                     "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "/url6" } } }
 
         assert_template "homepage/popular_links/edit"
       end
@@ -159,12 +159,12 @@ class HomepageControllerTest < ActionController::TestCase
 
         patch :update, params: { id: @popular_links.id,
                                  "popular_links" =>
-                                   { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "https://www.url1.com" },
-                                     "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "https://www.url2.com" },
-                                     "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "https://www.url3.com" },
-                                     "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "https://www.url4.com" },
-                                     "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "https://www.url5.com" },
-                                     "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "https://www.url6.com" } } }
+                                   { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "/url1" },
+                                     "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "/url2" },
+                                     "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "/url3" },
+                                     "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "/url4" },
+                                     "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "/url5" },
+                                     "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "/url6" } } }
 
         assert_template "homepage/popular_links/edit"
       end
@@ -174,12 +174,12 @@ class HomepageControllerTest < ActionController::TestCase
 
         patch :update, params: { id: @popular_links.id,
                                  "popular_links" =>
-                                   { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "https://www.url1.com" },
-                                     "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "https://www.url2.com" },
-                                     "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "https://www.url3.com" },
-                                     "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "https://www.url4.com" },
-                                     "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "https://www.url5.com" },
-                                     "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "https://www.url6.com" } } }
+                                   { "1" => { "title" => new_title, "url" => "/url1" },
+                                     "2" => { "title" => "title2", "url" => "/url2" },
+                                     "3" => { "title" => "title3", "url" => "/url3" },
+                                     "4" => { "title" => "title4", "url" => "/url4" },
+                                     "5" => { "title" => "title5", "url" => "/url5" },
+                                     "6" => { "title" => "title6", "url" => "/url6" } } }
 
         assert_equal "Popular links save was unsuccessful due to a service problem. Please wait for a few minutes and try again.", flash[:danger]
       end
diff --git a/test/integration/homepage_popular_links_test.rb b/test/integration/homepage_popular_links_test.rb
index bb25687e9..fb012d4ac 100644
--- a/test/integration/homepage_popular_links_test.rb
+++ b/test/integration/homepage_popular_links_test.rb
@@ -130,11 +130,11 @@ class HomepagePopularLinksTest < JavascriptIntegrationTest
     end
 
     should "trim spaces from start and end of urls" do
-      fill_in "popular_links[1][url]", with: " www.abc.com "
+      fill_in "popular_links[1][url]", with: " /abc "
       click_button("Save")
 
-      assert page.has_text?("www.abc.com")
-      assert_not page.has_text?(" www.abc.com ")
+      assert page.has_text?("/abc")
+      assert_not page.has_text?(" /abc ")
     end
 
     should "render create page when 'Cancel' is clicked" do
@@ -144,10 +144,10 @@ class HomepagePopularLinksTest < JavascriptIntegrationTest
     end
 
     should "not save any changes when 'Cancel' is clicked" do
-      fill_in "popular_links[1][url]", with: "www.abc.com"
+      fill_in "popular_links[1][url]", with: "/abc"
       click_link("Cancel")
 
-      assert_not page.has_text?("www.abc.com")
+      assert_not page.has_text?("/abc")
     end
   end
 
diff --git a/test/models/popular_links_edition_test.rb b/test/models/popular_links_edition_test.rb
index d640be6d2..3b37a20ed 100644
--- a/test/models/popular_links_edition_test.rb
+++ b/test/models/popular_links_edition_test.rb
@@ -15,12 +15,12 @@ class PopularLinksEditionTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
   end
 
   should "validate all links have url and title" do
-    link_items = [{ url: "https://www.url1.com", title: "" },
+    link_items = [{ url: "/url1", title: "" },
                   { title: "title2" },
-                  { url: "https://www.url3.com", title: "title3" },
-                  { url: "https://www.url4.com", title: "title4" },
-                  { url: "https://www.url5.com", title: "title5" },
-                  { url: "https://www.url6.com", title: "title6" }]
+                  { url: "/url3", title: "title3" },
+                  { url: "/url4", title: "title4" },
+                  { url: "/url5", title: "title5" },
+                  { url: "/url6", title: "title6" }]
     popular_links = FactoryBot.build(:popular_links, link_items:)
 
     assert_not popular_links.valid?
@@ -31,14 +31,14 @@ class PopularLinksEditionTest < ActiveSupport::TestCase
   should "validate all urls are valid" do
     link_items = [{ url: "", title: "" },
                   { url: "invalid", title: "title2" },
-                  { url: "www.abc.co.uk", title: "title3" },
-                  { url: "www.cde.co.uk", title: "title4" },
-                  { url: "www.efg.co.uk", title: "title5" },
-                  { url: "www.ijk.com", title: "title6" }]
+                  { url: "/abc", title: "title3" },
+                  { url: "/cde", title: "title4" },
+                  { url: "/efg", title: "title5" },
+                  { url: "/hij", title: "title6" }]
     popular_links = FactoryBot.build(:popular_links, link_items:)
 
     assert_not popular_links.valid?
-    assert popular_links.errors.messages[:url2].include?("URL is invalid for Link 2, all URLs should have at least one '.' and no spaces.")
+    assert popular_links.errors.messages[:url2].include?("URL is invalid for Link 2, all URLs should start with '/'")
     assert popular_links.errors.messages[:url1].include?("URL is required for Link 1")
   end
 
diff --git a/test/support/factories.rb b/test/support/factories.rb
index 77bdac0b6..9ea6d1fa5 100644
--- a/test/support/factories.rb
+++ b/test/support/factories.rb
@@ -183,7 +183,7 @@
 
   factory :popular_links, class: "PopularLinksEdition" do
     title { "Homepage Popular Links" }
-    link_items { [{ url: "https://www.url1.com", title: "title1" }, { url: "https://www.url2.com", title: "title2" }, { url: "https://www.url3.com", title: "title3" }, { url: "https://www.url4.com", title: "title4" }, { url: "https://www.url5.com", title: "title5" }, { url: "https://www.url6.com", title: "title6" }] }
+    link_items { [{ url: "/url1", title: "title1" }, { url: "/url2", title: "title2" }, { url: "/url3", title: "title3" }, { url: "/url4", title: "title4" }, { url: "/url5", title: "title5" }, { url: "/url6", title: "title6" }] }
   end
 
   factory :programme_edition, parent: :edition, class: "ProgrammeEdition" do
diff --git a/test/unit/presenters/formats/popular_links_presenter_test.rb b/test/unit/presenters/formats/popular_links_presenter_test.rb
index 275c641f5..478e96651 100644
--- a/test/unit/presenters/formats/popular_links_presenter_test.rb
+++ b/test/unit/presenters/formats/popular_links_presenter_test.rb
@@ -20,12 +20,12 @@ def subject
       assert_equal "link_collection", @result[:document_type]
       assert_equal "publisher", @result[:publishing_app]
       assert_equal "frontend", @result[:rendering_app]
-      assert_equal ({ link_items: [{ url: "https://www.url1.com", title: "title1" },
-                                   { url: "https://www.url2.com", title: "title2" },
-                                   { url: "https://www.url3.com", title: "title3" },
-                                   { url: "https://www.url4.com", title: "title4" },
-                                   { url: "https://www.url5.com", title: "title5" },
-                                   { url: "https://www.url6.com", title: "title6" }] }),
+      assert_equal ({ link_items: [{ url: "/url1", title: "title1" },
+                                   { url: "/url2", title: "title2" },
+                                   { url: "/url3", title: "title3" },
+                                   { url: "/url4", title: "title4" },
+                                   { url: "/url5", title: "title5" },
+                                   { url: "/url6", title: "title6" }] }),
                    @result[:details]
     end