Page Authority measures how likely a single page on your website is to rank in search results
Page Authority is a score from 1 to 100 that predicts whether a specific page will perform well when someone searches for something related to that page's topic. It is not a Google metric — Google does not publish page-level scores. Page Authority comes from Moz, a company that analyzes search patterns and builds its own ranking predictions based on what it observes.
The score looks at factors like how many other websites link to that page, how trustworthy those linking sites are, and how recently those links were created. A page with a score of 65 is predicted to rank better than a page with a score of 35, all else being equal. The score updates roughly monthly as Moz recalculates based on new link data.
Page Authority is different from Domain Authority, which measures your entire website. You can have a domain with low authority but one page with high authority if that page has attracted many quality links. Conversely, a high-authority domain does not may provide every page will rank well.
Key Takeaways
- Page Authority is a prediction tool from Moz, not an official Google ranking factor, but it correlates with how pages actually perform in search results.
- The score ranges from 1 to 100 and is based primarily on the number and quality of links pointing to that specific page.
- A page can have high authority even if your overall domain has low authority, because links accumulate at the page level.
- Checking Page Authority helps you understand which of your pages are likely to be found in search and which ones need more visibility work.
How Page Authority is calculated
Moz builds Page Authority by analyzing backlinks — links from other websites that point to your page. The algorithm weighs these links by the authority of the site they come from. A link from a well-known news site carries more weight than a link from a brand-new blog. Links from sites in your industry or topic area also carry more weight than random links from unrelated sites.
The score also considers how many total links point to your page, how recently those links were added, and whether the links are from unique domains or clustered on a few sites. A page with 50 links from 50 different websites will score higher than a page with 50 links from the same 5 websites.
Moz does not publish the exact formula, but the general principle is consistent: pages that have attracted links from reputable, relevant sources tend to rank higher in actual search results. Page Authority is essentially Moz's prediction of that ranking potential.
Why Page Authority matters for your website
Page Authority gives you a quick way to spot which pages on your site are likely to be found in search results and which ones are invisible. If you have written a detailed guide on a topic but it has a Page Authority score of 12, you know that page is unlikely to show up when someone searches for that topic — at least not on the first few pages of results.
This helps you decide where to focus effort. If you want a page to rank better, you can work on getting links to that specific page, rather than hoping your overall domain authority will lift all pages equally. You can also compare your pages to competitors' pages: if a competitor's similar page has a Page Authority of 58 and yours is 22, you have a concrete target to work toward.
Page Authority also helps you understand the realistic timeline for visibility. A brand-new page starts at a low score and builds authority only as it accumulates links. Expecting a new page to rank when ready is unrealistic; expecting it to rank after six months of link-building is more aligned with how search actually works.
How to check Page Authority for your pages
You can check Page Authority using Moz's Link Explorer tool, which is available at moz.com. You enter your page URL, and the tool shows you the Page Authority score along with information about the links pointing to that page. Moz offers a free version with limited data and a paid version with more detailed breakdowns.
Other tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Majestic also provide similar metrics with different names — Ahrefs calls it URL Rating, SEMrush calls it Authority Score — but they all measure roughly the same thing: how many quality links point to that page and how likely it is to rank.
When you check your pages, look for patterns. Pages with high scores usually have attracted links naturally because they answer a question people search for or provide information people want to share. Pages with low scores often have no links at all, or links only from your own website.
The difference between Page Authority and actual search ranking
Page Authority is a prediction, not a may provide. A page with a high Page Authority score might still not rank if the search intent does not match. For example, if your page is titled "How to Fix a Leaky Faucet" and has a Page Authority of 72, it might rank well for that exact phrase, but it will not rank for "plumber near me" even though both are plumbing-related.
Google also considers factors that Page Authority does not measure directly, like how well your page answers the specific question someone typed, how fast your page loads, whether it is mobile-friendly, and how recently it was updated. A page with lower Page Authority can outrank a page with higher authority if the lower-authority page is a better match for what someone is searching for.
Page Authority is most useful as a relative measure. If two pages are competing for the same search term and one has higher Page Authority, the higher-authority page usually wins. But Page Authority alone does not determine ranking.
How to improve Page Authority for a specific page
The primary way to improve a page's authority is to earn links to that page from other websites. This happens naturally when your content is useful enough that other people want to link to it. A detailed guide, original research, or a tool that solves a problem attracts links more reliably than generic content.
You can also actively seek links by reaching out to relevant websites and asking them to link to your page if it genuinely adds value to their content. This works best when you have something unique to offer — a tool, data, or perspective that complements what they are already publishing.
Internal linking — links from other pages on your own website to the page you want to boost — does not directly increase Page Authority the way external links do, but it does help search engines understand which pages are important to you and can improve how that page ranks for related topics.
When Page Authority is not the right metric
Page Authority is useful for competitive, search-heavy topics where ranking position directly affects traffic. If you are writing about a niche topic with very little search volume, Page Authority matters less because few people are searching for it anyway. In that case, focus on whether your page answers the question clearly rather than whether it has high authority.
Page Authority is also less relevant if your website's main traffic comes from social media, email, or direct visits rather than search. If people find you through a newsletter or Facebook, the Page Authority of individual pages does not affect that traffic.
For brand-new websites, Page Authority scores will be very low across the board straightforward because no external links exist yet. This is normal and does not mean your content is poor — it means you have not yet had time to accumulate links. Focusing on creating good content and building your audience is more productive than obsessing over low Page Authority scores in month one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Page Authority affect how Google ranks my page?
Page Authority is not a Google metric, so Google does not use it directly. However, Page Authority is based on backlinks, which Google does use. If your page has high Page Authority, it likely has many quality links, and those links do influence Google's ranking. Page Authority is a prediction tool, not a ranking factor itself.
Can I improve Page Authority without getting external links?
Not significantly. Page Authority is built almost entirely on external links from other websites. Internal links and on-page optimization help with ranking, but they do not move the Page Authority needle. If you want higher Page Authority, you need other websites to link to your page.
What is a good Page Authority score?
It depends on your industry and competition. A score of 40+ is solid for most small business websites. Scores above 60 are strong. Scores below 20 are typical for new pages or pages with no external links. Compare your pages to your direct competitors' pages to see where you stand relative to them.
How often does Page Authority update?
Moz updates Page Authority roughly once a month, though the exact timing varies. You might see your score change week to week as Moz's crawlers discover new links, but the official score update happens monthly. Do not check daily — changes are too small to be meaningful on that timescale.
Should I focus on Page Authority or Domain Authority?
Both matter, but for ranking individual pages, Page Authority is more directly relevant. If you are trying to rank a specific page for a specific search term, focus on getting links to that page. Domain Authority matters more for overall site visibility and for pages that have not yet accumulated their own links.