Does Domain Authority (DA) matter for link building and is it a metric that you should be looking at when thinking about your link building strategy?
As an SEO agency, it’s a question that we get all the time from prospective clients when they ask about link building practices. Do we offer a certain DA on links, is there a minimum DA, and how does the Domain Authority of links really affect SEO?
To be blunt: It is excruciating having a conversation about domain authority and backlinks.
In most cases, the questions come from would-be clients that have been led to believe – usually by another SEO agency – that DA is a Google search ranking factor instead of what it actually is – a third-party metric.
But let’s be really clear – it’s not the fault of the would-be client. It’s the SEO industry.
As a whole, the SEO industry has been using Domain Authority as a measuring stick for link quality for better part of 20 years (yes – really, the concept of DA came out in 2004).
And, as a whole, SEO professionals have been getting away with it.
So, why do people love to bang on about domain authority so much?
Well, in our reckoning, it’s because DA is a nice, simple way to put a label on something that isn’t always easy to quantify. By using this third-party metric, SEO agencies can tell clients that their links are of a certain quality because a third-party tool shows an agreeable number.
To make things easy, we’re going to turn this rant into a coherent outline of why we no longer report on Domain Authority as a metric for links and why you – as a potential SEO client – should be cautious when an SEO agency begins lamenting the quality of a link based on a third-party metric.
What is Domain Authority?
Domain authority or DA is a third-party metric developed by the SEO software company Moz.
Ok, just in case it wasn’t super clear – the key thing to take away here is that Domain Authority is a third-party metric.
In the same way that the cool wall on Top Gear used a load of seemingly subjective factors to create a cool score, the SEO tool Moz takes a bunch of seemingly subjective factors to come up with a domain authority.
Domain authority, just like Domain Rating from Ahrefs, or Authority Checker from Semrush is a metric created by SEO SAAS companies to estimate the ranking potential of a web page.
Domain authority is not, has never been, and – unless acquired by Google in some bizarre turn of events – will never be an SEO ranking factor. It is an estimation – nothing more.
But going back to our original point, it’s the fault of the SEO industry that this myth has gotten so far out of hand. Just take for example the featured snippet when you Google “how does domain authority work”.
This myth, much to the delight of Moz I’m sure, has been perpetuated by misinformation from those that should know better. For Moz, they aren’t complaining – why should they be – they have become the default authority on what it means to have a strong domain or a backlink that is worth its salt.
Does Domain Authority (DA) matter for link building?
No, Domain Authority or DA does not matter for backlinks or link building and is not a reliable measure of the value of a referring domain. Domain Authority is not a ranking factor – DA is a third-party metric from the SEO tool Moz that aims to mimic Google’s now defunct page rank feature.
We do not recommend that you use DA as a litmus test for link quality. As a metric, DA is far too easy to manipulate to be a worthwhile measuring stick when looking at link quality.
Let’s take a look at some example of why DA is a poor metric to use to guide your link building efforts. All of the websites below were penalised during the March 2024 Google Core Algorithm update. The update systematically and manually de-indexed entire websites that were known PBN/link farm sites.
These are just two of countless examples that exist on this topic. We really could create a gallery to rival the Louvre if we put together all of the examples of ‘high DA’ websites that are completely useless.
If DA is a poor indicator of link quality, what should I use?
Right, so we’ve been pretty explicit – Domain Authority is a very poor indicator of link quality.
People that harp on about the importance of Domain Authority (DA) for links will fall into one of two categories:
1. They have been led badly astray by an SEO agency that uses DA as the be all and end all of link building.
2. They have a very narrow understanding of link building (and SEO in general).
This may seem a little harsh, but it’s a reality of SEO/link building – misinformation spreads poor practice. If you fall into either of these categories, the good news is that it’s not too late!
Here are some tips for how you should be judging the quality of a backlink for your SEO efforts.
1. Does the website match your niche? Sure! Here’s an improved version: Is the website related to the core topic? For a doctor, this would be a health-related website, and for a branding agency, it would be a marketing or branding website. And so on and so forth – apply to your niche.
2. Does the website generate traffic? DA is easy to fake – you know what’s not easy to fake? User engagement. Traffic is one of the best indicators of site quality. Look at the traffic of a website.
3. Does this link provide referral traffic? The golden goose of link building are links that generate referral traffic. Whether this be from an affiliate style (natural) link, or from a PR piece. These links are tough to get but can provide a lot of value.
4. Is the link difficult to get? The reality is that the easier a link is to get – the less valuable it is going to be. If you find a contact page with a list of prices for “Guest Posts” on a website – then there’s a good chance that the link holds very little weight.
There are, of course, plenty of other factors to consider with link building. But if you’re going to stick to four – use the above as a guide. Links don’t have to fulfil all of these categories, But the more the better. At a minimum, you want them to at least meet one or more of these to be deemed a ‘valuable’ reference for your website.
Are there any other SEO tools you recommend for link building?
Look, as much as we are talking down Moz, it’s actually a great SEO tool to keep in your tool stack.
We’re not questioning the tool at all. We use it (although to be totally honest prefer Semrush and Ahrefs) – and hold no ill feelings towards it.
Our caution here is that Domain Authority should not be used to inform your link building efforts. Furthermore, if you are a client of another SEO agency and you hear that ‘DA’ is a ranking factor or a measure of SEO success/link quality, then we’d strongly encourage you to reconsider.
As far as link research goes, Moz, Semrush, Ahrefs, and Majestic are all worthwhile tools for their own reasons. All tools are different, and all tools will display different metrics when measuring link quality, so take each with a grain of salt.
Link building is – by far – one of the toughest aspects of SEO. It takes time and experience to be able to separate a good link from a bad link. If you’re not sure, then consult an SEO expert with experience. If in doubt, don’t do any link building – you’re far more likely to do damage to your SEO performance. Stick to content and technical – there is far less room for error.
