Why backlinks matter and what they tell you

A backlink is straightforward another website linking to yours. When someone else's website has a link that points to your site, that is a backlink. Search engines treat backlinks as a signal that your content is worth reading — the more backlinks you have from established websites, the more likely search engines are to show your site higher in results.

Checking your backlinks tells you three useful things: whether other websites are actually linking to you, which sites are sending that traffic, and whether those links are helping or hurting your visibility. A backlink from a well-known local business or news site helps more than a backlink from a spam site. Knowing the difference matters because you may need to ask a site to remove a harmful link.

You do not need special permission to check your own backlinks. Several free and paid tools will show you this information in minutes.

Key Takeaways

  • Google Search Console is free and shows backlinks that Google itself has found, though not every backlink appears there.
  • Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Moz are paid tools that find more backlinks than Google Search Console, but free versions show a limited sample.
  • Check backlinks monthly or quarterly to spot new links, broken links, and sites linking to you that you did not know about.
  • A backlink from a news site or established business helps your search ranking more than a backlink from a new or low-traffic site.
  • If a backlink is from spam or a harmful site, you can ask the site owner to remove it or disavow it in Google Search Console.

Using Google Search Console to see your backlinks

Google Search Console is free and is the fastest way to start. It shows backlinks that Google has already discovered on your site. Go to search.google.com/search-console, sign in with the Google account you use for your website, and select your site from the list.

On the left menu, click Links. You will see a section called "Top linking sites" — this shows which websites link to you most often. Below that, "Top linked pages" shows which of your own pages receive the most backlinks. Click "More details" under either section to see a full list with the exact URLs.

Google Search Console only shows backlinks that Google has found and indexed. It will not show every backlink to your site — some links from very new sites, private sites, or sites Google has not crawled yet will not appear here. For a more complete picture, you will need a second tool.

Finding more backlinks with free tool trials

Three paid tools — Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Moz — find significantly more backlinks than Google Search Console. All three offer free versions or trial periods that show a sample of your backlinks without charging you.

Go to ahrefs.com, semrush.com, or moz.com. Create a free account and enter your website URL in the search box. Within seconds, you will see a list of backlinks, the sites they come from, and how much traffic those linking sites receive. The free version shows fewer backlinks than the paid version, but you will still see the most important ones — the links from high-traffic sites that help your ranking most.

If you plan to check backlinks regularly, a paid subscription ($100 to $400 per year) gives you the full list and alerts when new backlinks appear. For a one-time check, the free version is enough to understand which sites are linking to you.

Understanding what the backlink data means

When you see a list of backlinks, several columns will tell you whether each link is helping you. Look for domain authority or domain rating — a score from 1 to 100 that estimates how much influence that website has. A backlink from a site with a score of 50 or higher usually helps your ranking. A backlink from a site with a score below 20 may not help, and a backlink from a site with a score of 5 or lower may actually hurt.

Also check the anchor text — the words that appear in the link itself. If someone links to your plumbing business and the anchor text says "best plumber in Denver," that link is more valuable than a link with anchor text that says "click here." Anchor text that matches what you do tells search engines what your site is about.

Finally, look at the referring domain — the website the link comes from. A backlink from your local newspaper or chamber of commerce is worth more than a backlink from a random blog. If you see backlinks from sites you do not recognize, visit those sites to decide whether they are legitimate or spam.

Removing or disavowing harmful backlinks

If you find a backlink from a spam site, a site that was hacked, or a site that has nothing to do with your business, you have two options. The first is to contact the site owner and ask them to remove the link. Find the contact page or email address on that site, explain that you found a link to your site, and ask them to take it down. Many site owners will remove it without argument.

If the site owner does not respond or refuses, you can disavow the link in Google Search Console. Disavowing tells Google to ignore that backlink when calculating your ranking. Go to Search Console, click Links, then click the three-dot menu and select Disavow links. Enter the URL of the site you want to disavow, and Google will stop counting that backlink.

Do not disavow links from legitimate sites just because they are from low-traffic sources. Disavow only links that are clearly spam, from hacked sites, or from sites that are trying to manipulate your ranking. Disavowing too many links can confuse Google about what your site is actually about.

Tracking backlinks over time

Check your backlinks once a month or once a quarter to spot trends. Are you gaining new backlinks? Are old backlinks disappearing? A sudden drop in backlinks might mean a site that linked to you has gone offline or removed the link. A sudden jump might mean someone wrote about you or shared your content.

Keep a straightforward spreadsheet or document with the date, the number of backlinks you found, and which new sites linked to you. Over time, you will see whether your backlink count is growing, staying flat, or shrinking. A growing backlink count usually means your search ranking will improve, especially if the new links come from high-authority sites.

If you notice a site that linked to you is now gone, you can remove that backlink from your records. If you notice a new backlink from a site you do not recognize, visit that site to make sure it is legitimate before you count it as a win.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to pay for a backlink checker?

No. Google Search Console is free and shows the backlinks Google has found. Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Moz all have free versions that show a sample of backlinks without payment. You only need to pay if you want to see every single backlink or check backlinks multiple times per week.

What if I have no backlinks?

That is normal for a new website. Backlinks take time to build. Focus on creating content worth linking to, and consider reaching out to local businesses, news sites, or industry groups to ask if they would link to your site. As your site gets older and more established, backlinks will naturally start to appear.

Can I create my own backlinks?

You can ask other sites to link to you, but you should not pay for backlinks or create fake links from sites you own. Google penalizes websites that buy backlinks or use artificial linking schemes. The best backlinks come naturally from other people finding your content valuable.

How long does a backlink take to show up in Google Search Console?

Google usually finds and indexes new backlinks within a few days to a few weeks, depending on how often Google crawls the site that is linking to you. Paid tools like Ahrefs sometimes find backlinks faster than Google does.

What is the difference between a backlink and a redirect?

A backlink is a link on another website pointing to yours. A redirect is when you send visitors from one of your own pages to a different page. They are different things — backlinks help your ranking, redirects help you manage your own site structure.