Domain Rating is a metric developed by Ahrefs that measures the backlink strength of a website on a 0–100 scale.
It helps SEOs and marketers evaluate the overall authority and backlink profile of a domain. Higher DR often correlates with stronger ability to rank in search engines, though it is not a direct Google ranking factor.
Why DR Matters in SEO:
- Backlink Strength – DR reflects the quality and quantity of backlinks pointing to your domain.
- Link Building Insights – Helps assess the authority of a site before reaching out for backlinks.
- Competitive Benchmarking – DR makes it easier to compare your site with competitors.
- Growth Tracking – Useful for measuring the effectiveness of link building efforts over time.
How DR Is Calculated (by Ahrefs):
- Considers the number of referring domains linking to your site.
- Weighs the strength (DR) of those referring domains.
- Uses a logarithmic scale (harder to grow at higher DR levels).
- Ignores spammy or low-authority links.
Note: Each SEO tool (Moz, Ahrefs, Semrush) has its own authority metric. DR is exclusive to Ahrefs, while Moz uses DA.
How to Improve Your DR:
- Earn High-Quality Backlinks – Focus on editorial links from authoritative sites.
- Avoid Toxic Links – Disavow spammy backlinks that can harm trust.
- Create Link-Worthy Content – Assets like guides, stats, and tools naturally attract backlinks.
- Guest Posting – Contribute to relevant sites with backlinks pointing to your domain.
Example:
A DR 85 website like techcrunch.com has far stronger backlink authority than a DR 20 site and is more likely to rank for competitive keywords.
