{"id":14778,"date":"2025-10-21T16:47:58","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T12:47:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/?p=14778"},"modified":"2026-03-19T16:38:26","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T12:38:26","slug":"domain-rating-vs-domain-authority","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/blog\/domain-rating-vs-domain-authority\/","title":{"rendered":"Domain Rating vs Domain Authority: Key Differences"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>DR or DA? Which metric should you use for backlink analysis and deciding if a website is worth getting a backlink from?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re confused about the difference, you&#8217;re in the right place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We&#8217;ll define these metrics and do a domain rating vs domain authority comparison, so you&#8217;ll know exactly which one to trust and use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is Domain Rating (DR)?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Domain rating (DR) is a metric created by Ahrefs that shows the strength of any website\u2019s backlink profile. It is calculated on a scale of 0 to 100, where the highest score is top-ranking.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This metric basically shows how &#8220;popular&#8221; your website is and how authoritative it is compared to other websites. Or when you want to understand whether to get a backlink from X website, its DR should be one of the main factors (but not the only one) you should consider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Important things you need to know about domain rating, as DR is closely linked to Google rankings. Here is what Ahrefs has to say about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"say9-infographic-block\">\n\t<div class=\"blockquote-section\" data-id=\"0045f97c-d9de-442e-bd43-ae1b24f92328\">\r\n    <div class=\"say9-blockquote\">\r\n        <div class=\"blockquote-icon\">\r\n            <img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/plugins\/say9blocks\/build\/infographic\/components\/..\/..\/..\/assets\/images\/blockquote-icon.svg\" alt=\"\" \/>\r\n        <\/div>\r\n                    <blockquote class=\"blockquote-text\"><em>&#8220;Our study found a correlation between the DR of the website and the number of keywords it ranks for. This means that Domain Rating can be used to estimate a website\u2019s ability to get organic traffic from Google&#8221;.<\/em><\/blockquote>\r\n        \r\n            <\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>So, DR tells you a lot about how strong a website\u2019s backlink profile is and its chances of getting organic traffic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, you should keep in mind that even Ahrefs considers this a relative metric, and it isn\u2019t the only factor to consider when doing link exchanges or planning SEO strategies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Domain Rating Is Calculated?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/blog\/link-building-metrics\/\">Link building metrics<\/a> aren\u2019t just numbers &#8211; there\u2019s math behind them. So, before jumping into the domain rating vs domain authority comparison, it&#8217;s important to learn how each is calculated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There isn\u2019t exact official information on this, but Ahrefs shared a few details on how this metric is calculated. To understand it better, here are some questions to ask yourself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"say9-infographic-block\">\n\t\r\n<div class=\"say9-list\" data-id=\"7696b388-eeb6-4137-b96f-5518b3df9e64\">\r\n    \r\n            <ul class=\"custom-list\">\r\n                            <li><strong>How many referring domains does your website have?<\/strong> To increase a website&#8217;s DR, you don\u2019t need to get many backlinks from the same website; instead, your goal should be to have backlinks from different websites.<\/li>\r\n                            <li><strong>What DR of those referring domains have?\u00a0<\/strong>Referring domains with higher DR are typically more valuable and share more <a href=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/blog\/link-juice\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">link juice<\/a> or power. So, your obvious decision should be getting backlinks from websites that have high DR\u2024<\/li>\r\n                            <li><strong>How many other websites are referring domain links to?\u00a0<\/strong>If a referring domain links only to you, you get more link value, but if it links to 100 other sites, that value is split among them\u2024<\/li>\r\n                            <li><strong>Whether your link is Do follow or No follow?<\/strong> No follow links have a tag that tells &#8220;search engines&#8221; not to pass ranking value, while <a href=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/blog\/dofollow-vs-nofollow-links\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">do follow links<\/a> give the linking page\u2019s domain strength to the target page.<br><br>So, it makes sense that when you get backlinks for your website, you have to ensure it has the do follow tag\u2024<br><\/li>\r\n                    <\/ul>\r\n    <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"say9-infographic-block\">\n\t\r\n<div class=\"further-reading-item\" data-id=\"205c12e5-8e33-4620-83e8-2fe41a770da9\">\r\n    <div class=\"say9-further-reading\">\r\n        <img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/plugins\/say9blocks\/build\/infographic\/components\/..\/..\/..\/assets\/images\/further_icon.svg\" alt=\"Icon\" \/>\r\n        <div class=\"further-reading-content\">\r\n            <span class=\"further-txt\">Further reading:<\/span>\r\n            <span class=\"further-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/blog\/referring-domains-vs-backlinks\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Referring Domains vs Backlinks<\/a><\/span>\r\n        <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to Check Your Website DR With Ahrefs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Ok, you accepted how important DR is, so you need to know how to find it, especially if you are a newbie in SEO.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can find DR in Ahrefs easily with a few easy steps:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"say9-infographic-block\">\n\t\r\n<div class=\"say9-list say9-list-steps\" data-id=\"d547c622-170a-49bd-b797-b306828b4637\">\r\n    \r\n            <ul class=\"custom-list\">\r\n                            <li>Sign in to your Ahrefs account and type in your domain into &#8220;Site Explorer.&#8221;<\/li>\r\n                            <li>Review the <em>Domain Rating (DR) <\/em>metric at the top. <\/li>\r\n                    <\/ul>\r\n    <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1109\" height=\"296\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Frame-7-1.png\" alt=\"A screenshot showing Ahrefs Domain Rating for an article comparing comparing domain rating vs domain authority.\" class=\"wp-image-14795\" srcset=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Frame-7-1.png 1109w, https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Frame-7-1-600x160.png 600w, https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Frame-7-1-400x107.png 400w, https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Frame-7-1-768x205.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1109px) 100vw, 1109px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is Domain Authority (DA)?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Domain Authority is a score by Moz that estimates a website\u2019s search engine ranking. The score ranges from 1 to 100, with 100 meaning the highest search engine performance<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This isn\u2019t an absolute metric that you should blindly believe in.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is what Moz wants people to know about DA:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"say9-infographic-block\">\n\t<div class=\"blockquote-section\" data-id=\"411733f9-90ff-4e8d-9012-085c5cb27f19\">\r\n    <div class=\"say9-blockquote\">\r\n        <div class=\"blockquote-icon\">\r\n            <img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/plugins\/say9blocks\/build\/infographic\/components\/..\/..\/..\/assets\/images\/blockquote-icon.svg\" alt=\"\" \/>\r\n        <\/div>\r\n                    <blockquote class=\"blockquote-text\"><em>Unlike Google\u2019s ranking algorithms, Domain Authority is not a direct ranking factor. Instead, it\u2019s a comparative metric to evaluate your website\u2019s search performance. Websites with a high DA typically have strong inbound links, robust off-page SEO strategies, and valuable web pages.<\/em><\/blockquote>\r\n        \r\n            <\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>So, you need to consider a DA for comparing a website&#8217;s link profiles to other websites.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The system is simple at first glance. If you have a strong <a href=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/blog\/backlink-profile-guide\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">backlink profile<\/a> with valuable backlinks, the DA of your website will be higher. But there is more than that, so let\u2019s discuss in more detail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Domain Authority Is Calculated?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Where does this metric come from? That is what we should learn to know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Moz mainly uses backlink data from its <a href=\"https:\/\/analytics.moz.com\/pro\/link-explorer\/overview\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Link Explorer<\/a> tool.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are the key factors for calculating this score:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"say9-infographic-block\">\n\t\r\n<div class=\"say9-list\" data-id=\"fbf16841-7f44-4fde-aae8-3a7fad2a29be\">\r\n    \r\n            <ul class=\"custom-list\">\r\n                            <li><strong>Backlink values<\/strong> \u2013 the number and authority of backlinks pointing to your website.<\/li>\r\n                            <li><strong>Number of referring domains<\/strong> \u2013 how many unique websites link to your website.<\/li>\r\n                            <li><strong>Other factors<\/strong> \u2013 Moz also considers metrics like MozRank, MozTrust, and the overall credibility of linking sites.<\/li>\r\n                    <\/ul>\r\n    <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to Check a Website\u2019s DA in Moz<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To check your DA score, follow these steps:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"say9-infographic-block\">\n\t\r\n<div class=\"say9-list say9-list-steps\" data-id=\"045e76bb-d86e-4718-b9f6-5d854e3b5c5b\">\r\n    \r\n            <ul class=\"custom-list\">\r\n                            <li>Go to Moz\u2019s Domain Authority Checker and type in your website URL.<\/li>\r\n                            <li>\u00a0Now you will then see your Domain Authority (DA) along with other important information, such as the number of linking root domains and ranking keywords, and spam score.<\/li>\r\n                    <\/ul>\r\n    <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1665\" height=\"885\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/frame-8-new.png\" alt=\"Moz's Domain Authority checker dashboard\" class=\"wp-image-14798\" srcset=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/frame-8-new.png 1665w, https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/frame-8-new-600x319.png 600w, https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/frame-8-new-400x213.png 400w, https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/frame-8-new-768x408.png 768w, https:\/\/saynine.ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/frame-8-new-1536x816.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1665px) 100vw, 1665px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, as you can see, a website\u2019s DR and DA are quite different, which leads us to the next point. Now, we will do a domain rating vs domain authority comparison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Domain Rating vs Domain Authority: Key Differences<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Here&#8217;s a quick and simple comparison between the two metrics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"say9-infographic-block\">\n\t\r\n<div class=\"say9-list\" data-id=\"adb01f6b-3552-4e7b-952c-863826e26aa5\">\r\n    \r\n            <ul class=\"custom-list\">\r\n                            <li><strong>Focus<\/strong>: DR&#8217;s goal is to show the power of a site\u2019s backlink profile, while DA is about overall domain strength, including backlinks, on-page SEO, and other factors.<\/li>\r\n                            <li><strong>Calculation<\/strong>: DR is based on the number and credibility of referring domains. On the other hand, to develop a DA score, Moz uses a machine learning model to predict ranking potential and considers multiple SEO factors, although these are not fully disclosed.<\/li>\r\n                            <li><strong>Spam handling<\/strong>: When calculating DR, Ahrefs doesn\u2019t calculate backlink spam while also being extra careful to spot toxic backlinks. DA, on the other hand, measures the overall authority and health of your website.<\/li>\r\n                            <li><strong>Primary use<\/strong>: When you need to check how good your website\u2019s backlink profile is, your preferred metrics should be DR. But when you need to understand what chances your website has to rank on search engines, and compare its ranking potential with competitors, you may need a DA.<\/li>\r\n                    <\/ul>\r\n    <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why Is DR the Preferred Metric At SayNine?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Why DR? The reason is simple: Ahrefs has a massive backlink database and one of the most active crawlers among all SEO tools. DR reflects your \u201cbacklink situation\u201d and is excellent for <a href=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/blog\/backlink-analysis\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">backlink analysis<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We couldn\u2019t do link building effectively without Ahrefs\u2019 powerful features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But we are not alone; many link building companies share this opinion with us. Not long ago, we did a link building survey, where 83% of link builders said that their preferred SEO tool is Ahrefs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Counts as a Good DR<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>At SayNine, we know that link building isn\u2019t just about metrics; it\u2019s about using common sense when deciding which websites are worth exchanging links with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>High DR doesn\u2019t always equal a strong website; content, on-page SEO, and technical SEO matter a lot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But still, we need to somehow classify websites. So, for link building collaboration, we prefer 50+ DR domains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But why 50 and not 90 too, let\u2019s say. What is a good DR, anyway?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>First and foremost, a DR of 50+ isn\u2019t excellent, but it\u2019s a solid metric. Also, there aren\u2019t many websites with a DR of 90 or higher, so eventually, you\u2019ll run out of sites to get backlinks from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On the other hand, regularly getting <a href=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/blog\/saas-link-building\/\">SaaS backlinks<\/a> from SaaS websites will ensure real results and high DR for your website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>P.S.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are many websites out there with high DR, but actually, they are spammy and low quality. So, always be careful when looking for link building opportunities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you want non-shitty backlinks for your website, you may <a href=\"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/contact-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">contact us<\/a>, and we will be happy to answer any questions you may have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">To Sum Up<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Yes, we stand by our word \u2013 link building metrics aren\u2019t absolute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But understanding them still matters a lot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We\u2019ve compared Domain Rating vs Domain Authority for you, so you can decide which metric to focus on and which one matches your SEO goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">FAQ about domain rating vs domain authority <\/h2>\n\n\n<div id=\"rank-math-faq\" class=\"rank-math-block\">\n<div class=\"rank-math-list\">\n<div id=\"faq-question-1760692981467\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\"><strong>Should I focus on DR or DA?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>The best choice depends on your goals. DA provides a broader look at your overall ranking potential, whereas DR shows how strong your backlink is.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-1760693014764\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\"><strong>Are DR and DA the same in SEO?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>No. DR is an Ahrefs metric that measures the strength of a website&#8217;s backlink profile, while DA is a Moz metric that predicts a website&#8217;s potential to rank.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-1760693017634\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\"><strong><strong>What is a good domain authority score?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>There&#8217;s no universally good DA score, as it&#8217;s a relative metric. Anything above 50 is generally considered good.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><br><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DR or DA? Which metric should you use for backlink analysis and deciding if a website is worth getting a backlink from? If you&#8217;re confused about the difference, you&#8217;re in the right place. We&#8217;ll define these metrics and do a domain rating vs domain authority comparison, so you&#8217;ll know exactly which one to trust and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":16030,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[11],"class_list":["post-14778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-linkbuilding","tag-link-building"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14778","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14778"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14778\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14801,"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14778\/revisions\/14801"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16030"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14778"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14778"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/saynine.ai\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14778"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}