Domain Rating (DR) is a metric that gauges the strength and authority of a website’s backlink profile on a scale from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating greater website authority. A website with a high DR increases visibility on search engines like Google. That means more visitors, more trust, and a better chance of high search rankings.
Why Domain Rating Is Important
Think of DR like a book’s reputation in a vast library. Just as a book with many references is deemed more authoritative, a website with a high DR has earned trust through a robust backlink profile.
A website with a high DR attracts incoming links from other authoritative sites and boosts the website’s chances of ranking higher on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). A strong Domain Rating is often perceived as a sign of a website’s longevity and commitment to providing value.
How Domain Rating Relates To Other KPIs
DR gains more significance when assessed alongside other performance indicators. Metrics like Page Authority (PA) and Referring Domains have a reciprocal relationship with DR. The more high-quality referring domains a site acquires, the more its DR increases. Simultaneously, individual pages with high PA boost the overall DR.
While DR gives an overall view of a site’s backlink strength, URL Rating (UR) is more specific, assessing the strength of a single page’s backlink profile. A high DR combined with strong URL ratings across numerous pages indicates a robust, well-linked site.
How To Track Domain Rating
Domain Rating is generated through Ahrefs’ complex algorithm. While it’s not possible to replicate the exact Ahrefs Domain Rating formula, it focuses on analyzing the strength and trustworthiness of a site’s backlinks. The more authoritative and relevant these backlinks are, the higher the DR score. Domain age may also be a factor here, as older domains are often seen as more trustworthy due to their longevity on the web.
What Is a Good Domain Rating?
A good average DR typically ranges from 50 to 60, while anything from 60 to 100 is considered excellent for well-established websites with a strong backlink profile. Sites in this bracket have garnered links from reputable sources and have maintained a consistent backlink acquisition strategy over time.
What Is a Bad Domain Rating?
A below average DR typically falls between 30 to 40, with anything below 30 considered bad unless a website is relatively new. Websites in this range either have a sparse backlink profile, or rely on links from untrustworthy sources. To fix a low DR, acquire high-quality backlinks, produce relevant content, and use a domain authority checker.
How To Set Domain Rating Benchmarks
To create internal benchmarks, agencies typically rely on historical data and assess how DR has grown over time and how that scores correlate with search performance metrics, including keyword rankings, traffic, or conversions. Another approach involves back-calculating — understanding the required domain authority that helps clients reach specific campaign, search traffic, or revenue targets. This blended approach results in unique data and relevant benchmarks.
Why Domain Rating Matters to Clients
From an investment perspective, clients often allocate significant budgets toward improving online visibility. Monitoring DR provides a tangible measure of the returns on such investments, indicating whether their brand’s online reputation is growing or waning.
A high DR indicates that reputable websites vouch for your client’s brand. This could directly affect customer trust and more tangible outcomes (like conversions).
Why Domain Rating Matters to Agencies
DR represents the accumulation of successful outreach, content placements, and partnerships. A favorable DR may also demonstrate that reputable, unique domains link to a client’s site, which further demonstrates an agency’s capabilities.
Achieving a solid DR also amplifies other marketing efforts, further demonstrating an agency’s capabilities. For instance, with a robust DR, outreach becomes easier, and prospective partners are more receptive to collaboration.