Understanding Domain Ratings: What’s Considered Good?

This article is from Ahrefs’ Blog, which discusses what constitutes a good domain rating.

One of the most common questions in SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is, “Is my Domain Rating (DR) good?” The answer is: it depends on what you compare it to.

What Is Domain Rating?

Domain Rating is a measure created by Ahrefs to show how strong a website’s backlink profile is. This score ranges from 0 to 100. A higher score means a stronger backlink profile. Your DR does not stand alone; it is always relative to other websites.

For example, a DR of 60 might be excellent in one industry but average in another. It can help you rank for some keywords, but may not help with others.

Understanding the Scale

The scale is logarithmic, meaning that scores are not evenly distributed. Most websites have low scores (0 to 10). Climbing from 20 to 30 might need just a few links, while moving from 70 to 80 could require thousands. So, a “high” number is rarer than it initially seems.

How to Judge Your DR

Instead of chasing a magical number, compare your DR in three ways:

1. Against Your Competitors
2. Against Your Industry
3. Against Specific Keywords You Want to Rank For

Let’s take a look at how to do each one with real data.

Comparison #1: Your DR vs. Your Competitors

The best way to assess your DR is to compare it to your direct competitors. For example, in the SEO software market, here’s how major players rank:

For this industry, a DR of 80 or higher is essential for getting ahead. Ubersuggest, with a DR of 69, has significantly fewer backlinks compared to others.

To compare your DR with competitors, use tools like Ahrefs’ Batch Analysis to see how all the websites rank together. Just paste your domain and your competitors’ domains, set the mode to “Domain,” and hit Analyze.

Comparison #2: Your DR vs. Your Industry

Next, look at your entire sector. This provides additional context. For example, in the SaaS (Software as a Service) industry:

If your SaaS site has a DR of 62, that’s average. A score of 77 puts you in the top quarter. This gives you a much clearer picture than comparing to an arbitrary number.

Comparison #3: Your DR vs. Keywords

The final important comparison is to look at the DR of websites already ranking for your target keywords. Here’s some data for various keywords:

From this, we see that competitive keywords need high authority. A site with a DR of 20 will struggle to rank for “best CRM software” (avg DR 89). However, lower-authority sites can still rank for less competitive topics.

Why High DR Doesn’t Guarantee Rankings

It’s essential to know that a high DR doesn’t automatically mean top rankings on Google. Google has its own ranking criteria, and DR is simply a measure of backlink strength. In fact, DR only has a 0.131 correlation with search engine rankings, meaning a site with a DR of 29 can appear on page one, while a DR 90 site might not.

How to Improve Your Domain Rating

To boost your DR, focus on these aspects:

• Get links from unique websites. It counts more than sheer volume.
• Aim for a variety of sources. Relying too much on a single source won’t help much.
• Create valuable content that others want to share. This includes guides, tools, and original data.
• Repair broken links and reclaim unlinked mentions of your brand.

Remember, improving your DR takes time and effort, especially when you aim for scores above 70.

Conclusion

There’s no universal “good” Domain Rating. What’s important is how your score compares to:

• Your competitors: Are you beating them?
• Your industry: Where do you stand among peers?
• The specific keywords you aim for: Can you compete in your desired topics?

Check your DR against these benchmarks to understand its true value for your site’s success.