Links and authority · Intermediate

Domain authority

Domain authority is a third-party score, from 1 to 100, that estimates how strong a site's link profile is compared with others. It's a Moz metric, not a Google one; similar tools use names like Domain Rating or Authority Score.

By Thryv StudioUpdated

Level
Intermediate
Also called
DA
Created by
Moz (Ahrefs: Domain Rating; Semrush: Authority Score)
Used by Google
No

What is domain authority?

SEO tools calculate a site-level strength score mostly from the quantity and quality of links pointing to the site. Moz's version is called Domain Authority. Google doesn't use these scores; they're estimates to help compare sites.

How to use it

  • Compare your site with competitors on the same tool.
  • Judge link prospects roughly, then check relevance and quality yourself.
  • Don't chase the number; chase links that real audiences follow.

Frequently asked questions

Why do different tools give different scores?

Each has its own link index and formula, so the scores aren't comparable across tools.

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