Use Backlinks For SEO, Domain Rating, And Ahrefs Ranking

We remember the first time a client’s Domain Rating jumped by 10 points overnight. Their Ahrefs Rank climbed, the graph looked great, and yet their leads barely moved. That was the moment we stopped chasing vanity metrics and started treating backlinks, Domain Rating, and Ahrefs Rank as tools for decisions instead of trophies.

Quick answer: You use backlinks for SEO, Domain Rating, and Ahrefs Ranking by earning relevant, high quality links that help real pages rank and convert. DR and Ahrefs Rank tell you how strong your backlink profile looks on paper, but the real win is more search visibility, more qualified visitors, and more revenue for your WordPress site.

Quick Answer: How Backlinks, Domain Rating, And Ahrefs Rank Work Together

Backlinks are links from other websites to yours. Search engines treat good backlinks as votes of trust. When we use backlinks for SEO the right way, they support rankings for specific pages and strengthen our overall domain.

Domain Rating (DR) and Ahrefs Rank (AR) sit on top of that link reality:

• DR estimates how strong your backlink profile is on a 0 to 100 scale, based on the number and quality of referring domains.
• Ahrefs Rank orders every site in the Ahrefs index by backlink strength, so a lower number means a stronger profile.

Here is why that matters. You build real, relevant backlinks. Those links help raise DR and improve Ahrefs Rank. In turn, DR and AR help you compare your site to competitors and spot gaps. But they are third party scores, not Google ranking factors, so we treat them as guides, not goals.

If you run a WordPress site built for business, like the ones we create at Zuleika LLC, your backlink work should always connect to real outcomes: pages that rank, traffic that converts, and a site that pays for itself.

What Domain Rating And Ahrefs Rank Actually Measure

Domain Rating: A Shortcut Metric For Site-Level Authority

Domain Rating is Ahrefs’ score from 0 to 100 that estimates how strong a website’s backlink profile is compared to all other sites in its index. The score uses a logarithmic scale, so moving DR from 10 to 20 is much easier than moving from 60 to 70.

According to Ahrefs, DR is based mainly on the number of unique referring domains, the strength of those domains, and how link equity flows through the web.

Source: “Domain Rating (DR): What It Is & How It Is Calculated,” Ahrefs, 2018, https://ahrefs.com/blog/domain-rating/

Here is what that means in practice:

• One link from a strong, relevant site can influence DR more than dozens of links from weak sites.
• New links from sites that link out to many domains pass less value than links from more selective sites.
• DR is site-level. It does not tell you which specific pages can rank.

So we use DR as a quick way to see whether a domain looks strong enough to compete for certain queries. Then we drop to the page level and look at content and on-page SEO.

Ahrefs Rank: How Your Link Profile Compares Globally

Ahrefs Rank is a global ranking of domains, ordered by the strength of their backlink profiles. The domain with the strongest profile sits at number 1. If your site is 2,500,000, it means Ahrefs sees about 2.5 million domains with stronger link profiles.

Source: “Ahrefs Rank (AR): What It Is & Where To Find It,” Ahrefs Help Center, accessed 2025, https://help.ahrefs.com/en/articles/78621-ahrefs-rank

This tells us:

• How far we are from direct competitors in terms of backlink strength.
• How much link growth it might take to compete in tougher niches.
• Whether link campaigns are moving the needle in a crowded space.

Again, AR is not a Google metric. It is a useful leaderboard that lets us see our place in the wider web and plan realistic backlink targets for our WordPress SEO clients.

Why Backlinks Still Matter For SEO (And Where They Can Mislead You)

Quality vs. Quantity: Signals Google Is Actually Likely To Trust

Google still treats links as an important signal. In its Search Essentials documentation, Google says that links from other websites help it understand what content might be helpful and relevant.

Source: “Search Essentials – Spam Policies,” Google Search Central, 2023, https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies

The catch: Google rewards quality, not raw volume. When we use backlinks for SEO, we look for:

• Real sites with real traffic, not link schemes.
• Editors who link because our content helps their readers.
• Natural growth patterns over time.

A site can have a high DR from large numbers of mediocre links but still struggle to rank if content is weak or unrelated to what people search for.

Relevance, Anchor Text, And Link Placement

Three details separate helpful backlinks from noise:

• Relevance. A mention on a respected marketing blog means more for a marketing agency than a random link from a recipe directory.
• Anchor text. Brand names, mixed topical anchors, and naked URLs look natural. Exact match anchors repeated over and over can look manipulative.
• Placement. Contextual links in the main article body carry more weight than links in sidebars, footers, or long blogrolls.

Google’s spam policies warn against large-scale guest posting for links, link exchanges, and paid links that are not disclosed or tagged as sponsored.

Source: “Link Spam,” Google Search Central, 2023, https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies-link-spam

So we treat every backlink tactic through that lens. Would this link exist if SEO did not? If the answer feels shaky, we skip it.

How To Use Ahrefs To Audit And Prioritize Your Backlink Work

Core Ahrefs Reports: DR, Referring Domains, And Best By Links

Before we touch tools for a client, we map questions:

• How strong is the domain today versus competitors?
• Which pages already earn links?
• Where are the obvious risks?

Then we open Ahrefs:

• Overview shows DR, Ahrefs Rank, total referring domains, and organic traffic estimates.
• Referring domains lists each site that links to you, with its DR and traffic.
• Best by links reveals which URLs attract the most backlinks.

Source: “Site Explorer: Overview of Backlinks,” Ahrefs, 2024, https://ahrefs.com/site-explorer

This gives us a simple story. Maybe your homepage and one blog post carry 80 percent of your backlink equity. Maybe your WooCommerce category pages have almost no links. We use that story to decide where new backlink efforts should focus.

Filtering Backlinks By Domain Rating, Traffic, And Spam Signals

Next steps: clean the noise.

In Site Explorer → Backlinks, we:

• Filter by DR range, such as 30 to 90, to focus on stronger referring domains.
• Add a traffic filter so we only see referring sites that get visitors.
• Exclude spam terms such as casino, pills, or adult, and filter out irrelevant foreign TLDs.

We also look at:

• Link type: dofollow vs nofollow.
• Anchor text balance.
• Sudden spikes that might signal a bad vendor or a hack.

If we see risky patterns, we document them, tighten security on the WordPress side, and sometimes prepare a disavow file for Google Search Console.

Source: “Disavow Links,” Google Search Central, 2023, https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/2648487

Practical Backlink Strategies For WordPress And Business Websites

Create Content Assets That Naturally Attract Links

If you want backlinks for SEO that keep paying off, you need pages people are proud to reference. For WordPress and business sites, strong candidates include:

• In depth guides and how tos in your niche.
• Original data from your internal analytics, surveys, or experiments.
• Simple tools, calculators, or templates built into your site.
• Visual explainers or reference pages others can cite.

We often pair this with solid on page SEO and internal linking. For example, a guide on “how to choose a small business website” on Zuleika LLC can link to our WordPress website development packages and still earn backlinks because the content helps readers make a better decision.

Outreach, Partnerships, And Digital PR Without Crossing The Line

Content alone rarely earns all the links you need. We add targeted outreach:

• Offer guest posts with original angles to sites that your audience already reads.
• Pitch journalists and bloggers with data or stories they can quote.
• Join industry directories that people actually use, not link farms.
• Partner with complementary businesses and cross publish case studies.

The rule we teach: every outreach email should make sense even if Google did not exist. If our only argument is “please link to us for SEO,” we rewrite.

What To Avoid: Toxic Links, Cheap Packages, And Sudden Spikes

You will see offers like “1,000 backlinks for $49” or “DR 80 home page link” in your inbox. These tempt fast gains in DR and Ahrefs Rank, but they come with risk.

We avoid:

• Private blog networks and obvious link farms.
• Sitewide footer links on unrelated domains.
• Automated comment spam or forum profile links.
• Paid links that ignore disclosure laws or nofollow / sponsored attributes.

Google has stated for years that unnatural links can trigger manual actions or algorithmic filters.

Source: “Link schemes,” Google Search Central, 2023, https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies-link-spam

If your DR jumped from 10 to 40 in a month only because of cheap packages, your rankings will likely not hold. Worse, recovery can take months.

Measuring Progress: From Higher DR To Real Leads And Revenue

Benchmarking Against Competitors In Ahrefs

We want backlink work to feel like a project with clear checkpoints, not a science project. So we start by benchmarking in Ahrefs:

• List 3 to 5 direct competitors.
• Record DR, Ahrefs Rank, referring domains, and organic traffic estimates.
• Compare who wins links for important topics.

This quick snapshot tells us whether we need a small push or a serious backlink campaign. A local law firm might only need DR 20 to 30 and a few strong citations. A national ecommerce site needs far more.

We revisit this snapshot every quarter and adjust targets. The goal is not to chase the highest DR. The goal is to be strong enough to compete in your actual market.

Tracking Rankings, Organic Traffic, And Conversions Over Time

Better backlinks should eventually show up in your numbers. So alongside DR and Ahrefs Rank, we track:

• Rankings for target keywords.
• Organic traffic from Google Search Console and analytics.
• Lead and sale metrics in your CRM or ecommerce platform.

Studies from Ahrefs and other SEO research firms have shown strong correlation between the number of referring domains and higher search traffic, but correlation is not causation. You still need strong content, technical SEO, and a clear site structure.

Source: “Do Backlinks Still Matter For Rankings?,” Ahrefs, 2020, https://ahrefs.com/blog/backlinks-seo

On WordPress, that can mean cleaning up slow plugins, using clean URL structures, and pairing link worthy content with a clear navigation. That is why our WordPress SEO services focus on both links and site quality. One without the other delivers half the result.

Conclusion

If you remember only one idea, make it this: use backlinks for SEO as fuel, and treat Domain Rating and Ahrefs Rank as the dashboard, not the destination.

Map your backlink work around real business goals. Build content people actually want to cite. Use Ahrefs to spot gaps, not to chase pretty numbers. Keep Google’s link spam rules on your desk, and keep a human in the loop for every outreach decision.

If you want help turning your WordPress site into a link worthy, search ready asset, we are happy to walk through your current DR, Ahrefs Rank, and backlink profile together on a free consult.

Sources referenced:

1. “Domain Rating (DR): What It Is & How It Is Calculated,” Ahrefs, 2018, https://ahrefs.com/blog/domain-rating/
2. “Ahrefs Rank (AR): What It Is & Where To Find It,” Ahrefs Help Center, accessed 2025, https://help.ahrefs.com/en/articles/78621-ahrefs-rank
3. “Search Essentials – Spam Policies,” Google Search Central, 2023, https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies
4. “Link Spam,” Google Search Central, 2023, https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies-link-spam
5. “Disavow Links,” Google Search Central, 2023, https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/2648487
6. “Do Backlinks Still Matter For Rankings?,” Ahrefs, 2020, https://ahrefs.com/blog/backlinks-seo
7. “Site Explorer: Overview of Backlinks,” Ahrefs, 2024, https://ahrefs.com/site-explorer

Backlink, Domain Rating, and Ahrefs Rank FAQs

How should I use backlinks for SEO instead of just chasing Domain Rating and Ahrefs Rank?

Use backlinks for SEO by earning relevant, high-quality links to pages that can actually rank and convert. Treat Domain Rating and Ahrefs Rank as diagnostic gauges, not goals. The real objective is more qualified organic traffic, leads, and revenue, especially for key pages on your WordPress site.

What is Domain Rating in Ahrefs and how does it affect SEO?

Domain Rating (DR) is Ahrefs’ 0–100 score estimating the strength of your site’s backlink profile based on the quantity and quality of referring domains. It’s useful for gauging competitiveness, but it’s not a Google ranking factor. DR doesn’t replace strong content, technical SEO, and solid on-page optimization.

What does Ahrefs Rank measure and how is it different from Domain Rating?

Ahrefs Rank (AR) is a global ranking of domains ordered by backlink strength, where #1 is the strongest. Domain Rating scores your site on a 0–100 scale, while AR shows your position relative to all sites in Ahrefs’ index. Both are third-party metrics used for comparison and planning, not direct ranking factors.

What’s the best way to audit backlinks in Ahrefs for better SEO results?

Start in Site Explorer to review DR, Ahrefs Rank, referring domains, and “Best by links” pages. Then filter backlinks by DR range, traffic, and spam signals, and check anchor text and link type. Use this to spot toxic links, gaps in important pages, and opportunities to build safer, more relevant backlinks.

What is a good Domain Rating for a small business or WordPress site?

“Good” Domain Rating is relative to your niche and competitors. A local business may compete effectively with DR 15–30 if nearby competitors are similar. National or SaaS brands usually need higher DR. Benchmark 3–5 real competitors in Ahrefs and aim to match or slightly exceed their DR and number of quality referring domains.