Backlink
A backlink (also called an inbound link or incoming link) is a hyperlink on one website that points to a page on another website. When a credible publication links to your site, Google interprets that link as a vote of confidence — evidence that your content is worth citing.
Example
If the Guardian publishes an article about SEO pricing and links to this site’s budget comparison page, that Guardian link is a backlink to this site. One high-quality link from a domain with strong domain authority carries more ranking weight than 50 links from low-quality directories.
Dofollow vs Nofollow
Dofollow links pass “link equity” (ranking signal) to the linked page. This is the default behaviour for most links on the web.
Nofollow links include a rel="nofollow" attribute that tells Google not to pass link equity. Google treats nofollow as a “hint” rather than a directive since 2019 — it may still pass partial equity from high-quality nofollow links.
Sponsored links should use rel="sponsored" to indicate a paid or affiliate relationship. All affiliate links on this site use rel="sponsored" per UK ASA and FTC guidelines.
UGC links use rel="ugc" for user-generated content (forum posts, comments). Google treats these as low-trust by default.
Why Backlinks Matter
Backlinks are consistently one of the top three ranking factors in Google’s algorithm alongside content relevance and technical SEO. The logic: if many credible sites link to your page, it is more likely to be genuinely useful than a page with no inbound links.
The quality signals Google weights most heavily:
- Referring domain authority — a link from a high-DA publication carries more weight than a link from a new blog
- Relevance — a link from an industry-relevant site carries more topical weight than an off-topic link
- Anchor text — the words used as the hyperlink text signal what topic the linked page is about
- Link placement — editorial links within the body of an article carry more weight than footer or sidebar links
Tools That Track Backlinks
- Ahrefs Lite at $129/mo — the deepest backlink index (50 trillion links), fastest indexing of new links; the best tool if backlink analysis is your primary use case
- Semrush Pro at $139.95/mo — 43 trillion backlinks; excellent for competitive link gap analysis alongside keyword research
- Moz Pro at $99/mo — smaller index but unique Spam Score metric; most useful for qualifying outreach prospects
How Backlinks Are Earned
The three strategies that still work in 2026:
- Digital PR — creating data-driven research or original studies that publications want to cite
- Broken link reclamation — finding broken links on competitor or industry sites and offering your content as a replacement
- HARO and journalist outreach — tools like Connectively (the HARO replacement) connect you with journalists looking for expert quotes
What does not work (and risks a penalty): paid link schemes, private blog networks (PBNs), and mass directory submissions.