Free tool
Domain Rating Checker
Check the strength of any website’s backlink profile. Enter a website address to see its Domain Rating (DR), the 0–100 score from Ahrefs that SEOs use to compare sites, size up competitors and judge whether a link is worth getting. No sign-up needed.
Try: · ·
What is Domain Rating?
Domain Rating, or DR, is a number from 0 to 100 that Ahrefs gives every website to describe the strength of its backlink profile. A site with a high DR is linked to by many other websites, and by websites that are themselves well linked.
It counts unique websites linking to you rather than the raw number of links, and only followed links count towards it. It is also a logarithmic scale: the higher you go, the more links it takes to gain a single point.
How to read your Domain Rating
- 0–19 (very low): brand-new sites, or sites with very few backlinks.
- 20–39 (low): a handful of links from other websites.
- 40–59 (average): an established site with a healthy backlink profile.
- 60–79 (strong): lots of links from well-linked websites.
- 80–100 (excellent): among the most linked-to sites on the web.
Use it to compare, not to chase
Domain Rating is most useful side by side: check your own domain and the sites you compete with, then see how big the gap is. It is a good yardstick when you are weighing up a guest post, a directory listing or a domain you want to buy.
Want a followed backlink to help yours grow? Launch your product on LaunchStall: every launch gets a permanent product page, and Premium launches always include a dofollow link.
Frequently asked questions
What is Domain Rating?
Domain Rating (DR) is a score from 0 to 100, calculated by Ahrefs, that shows how strong a website’s backlink profile is compared with other sites. The more links a site earns from other websites, and the stronger those websites are, the higher its DR.
Is Domain Rating a Google ranking factor?
No. Domain Rating is an Ahrefs metric and Google does not use it. It measures link strength, not traffic or rankings, so treat it as a handy way to compare sites rather than a guarantee of how a page will perform in search.
What is a good Domain Rating?
It depends on your niche, so compare against the sites you compete with. As a rough guide: under 20 is low, 20 to 39 is growing, 40 to 59 is average to good, 60 and above is strong, and 80 and above is excellent. Most new websites start at or close to 0.
Why is my new website’s Domain Rating 0?
A brand-new domain, or one that no other website links to yet, shows a Domain Rating of 0. It starts to climb once other sites link to you and Ahrefs finds those links.
How can I increase my Domain Rating?
Earn links from other relevant websites: publish content people want to cite, get listed in reputable directories and launch platforms, contribute guest articles and digital PR, and reclaim any broken or unlinked mentions. It is a slow, logarithmic scale, so going from 10 to 20 is far easier than going from 60 to 70.
Does the checker work for subdomains and www addresses?
Yes, but Domain Rating is measured for the whole domain. Entering www.example.com, blog.example.com or a full page URL all show the Domain Rating of example.com.
How fresh is the number?
Ahrefs recalculates Domain Rating regularly as it discovers new links. We cache each result for up to 12 hours, so checking the same domain again within that window shows the same number.