Glossary
What is a backlink?
A backlink is a link on another website that points to a page on yours. Search engines treat backlinks from relevant, trusted sites as a sign that your page is worth ranking, and people use them to discover you. A link from a directory listing to your product is a backlink.
How search engines use backlinks
Google's original ranking idea, PageRank, treated links as votes: a page linked from many important pages is probably important. Modern ranking uses many more signals, but links are still one of them. Google says it uses links to find new pages and to understand how relevant a page is. The words in the link, the anchor text, tell search engines what the target page is about.
What makes a backlink valuable
| Factor | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Relevance | A link from a site in your topic means more than one from an unrelated site |
| Authority | Links from sites with many good links pass more value |
| Traffic | A link people click sends visitors, not just signals |
| Placement | A link in the main content beats one in a footer |
| Link type | Followed links can pass link equity; nofollow usually doesn't |
| Editorial choice | A link someone chose to give beats one anyone can create |
Counting backlinks
SEO tools count both total backlinks and referring domains, the number of unique sites linking to you. Referring domains matter more: 100 links from one site count far less than 10 links from 10 sites.
Backlinks from directories
A directory listing is a backlink from the directory to your product. Of the 352 directories we checked, 214 gave a dofollow link and 79 a nofollow one. Directory links are one of the few backlinks a new product can get on day one, which is why directory submission is usually the first step of link building.
Example
A new SaaS has zero backlinks. In its first month it gets listed on 30 relevant directories (22 followed links), a guest appearance on a podcast with a link in the show notes, and a mention in a niche newsletter. Ahrefs now shows 32 referring domains and its DR rises from 0 to the low teens.
Common mistake
Chasing link counts. Hundreds of links from irrelevant or spammy sites do nothing, and buying them violates Google's spam policies. A few links from sites your buyers read are worth more. See our backlink statistics.
FAQ
Do backlinks still matter for SEO?
Yes. Google still uses links as one of many ranking signals and to discover pages. Quality and relevance matter far more than count.
How do I check my backlinks?
Google Search Console's Links report shows the links Google knows about. Ahrefs, Semrush and Moz show more, with authority scores.
What's the difference between a backlink and a referring domain?
A backlink is a single link. A referring domain is a unique site linking to you, however many links it has.
Are directory backlinks good?
From real directories with traffic, editorial review and relevance, yes. From link farms, no.
Sources
- Google Search Central: How Search works (links)
- Google Search Central: SEO link best practices
- Ahrefs: What are backlinks