Backlink Audits That Separate Link Assets from Liabilities

Backlinko's research shows the #1 Google result has 3.8x more backlinks than positions 2-10. We audit your entire link profile to find toxic links dragging you down and competitive gaps holding you back.

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3.8x

more backlinks on the #1 Google result compared to positions 2-10

Backlinko, 2023

Backlink Audit

Thorough analysis of your backlink profile to identify toxic links, lost high-value opportunities, anchor text issues, and competitive link gaps with actionable disavow files and outreach target lists.

What's Included

Everything you get with our Backlink Audit

Full Backlink Profile Export

Complete inventory of every backlink pointing to your domain with source URL, anchor text, link type (dofollow/nofollow), linking domain authority, and first/last seen dates.

Toxic Link Identification

Flagging of links from spammy, penalized, or irrelevant domains using multiple toxicity signals -- not just a single score threshold. Includes a ready-to-submit Google disavow file.

Lost Link Recovery List

Identification of high-authority backlinks you've lost in the past 12 months, with the referring page, when the link dropped, and whether recovery outreach is viable.

Competitor Link Gap Analysis

Side-by-side comparison showing which domains link to your competitors but not to you, ranked by authority and relevance, with outreach-ready target lists.

Anchor Text Distribution Review

Analysis of your anchor text profile for over-optimization patterns (too many exact-match anchors) or under-optimization (mostly branded/URL anchors on money pages).

How the Backlink Audit Works

Data Collection

We pull your complete backlink profile from Ahrefs and cross-reference with Google Search Console's link report to capture both tool-indexed and Google-confirmed links for maximum coverage.

Link-Level Classification

Every backlink is evaluated for toxicity using multiple signals: linking domain authority, spam indicators, relevance to your industry, link neighborhood quality, and anchor text naturalness. Links are classified as valuable, neutral, or toxic.

Competitor Profile Comparison

We pull backlink profiles for your top 3-5 SERP competitors and run a link gap analysis -- identifying authoritative domains that link to them but not to you, ranked by domain authority and topical relevance.

Anchor Text and Distribution Analysis

Your anchor text profile is mapped against natural distribution benchmarks. We flag over-optimized patterns, branded anchor deficiencies, and money-page anchor concentrations that could trigger penalties.

Deliverable Assembly

You receive: a disavow file ready for Google submission, a lost-link recovery list with outreach recommendations, a competitor link gap target list, and an anchor text optimization plan -- all prioritized by impact.

Key Benefits

Remove Toxic Link Risk

Toxic backlinks can trigger algorithmic demotions that suppress your entire domain. Our audit identifies every risky link and produces a disavow file you can submit directly to Google Search Console.

Recover Lost Link Equity

High-authority links drop off over time due to site changes, removed pages, or broken URLs. We identify the most valuable links you've lost and recommend whether to pursue recovery outreach or rebuild the linking page.

Close Competitor Link Gaps

See exactly which authoritative domains link to your competitors but not to you. Each gap opportunity includes the linking page URL, its domain authority, and the content that earned the link -- giving your outreach team specific, actionable targets.

Fix Anchor Text Imbalances

An unnatural anchor text profile (too many exact-match keyword anchors) is a well-known penalty trigger. We analyze your distribution against natural benchmarks and flag any patterns that could attract algorithmic scrutiny.

Research & Evidence

Backed by industry research and proven results

Pages Without Backlinks

66.31% of all indexed pages have zero backlinks, meaning they compete in search results without the single strongest off-page ranking signal.

Ahrefs (2023)

Link Authority and Rankings

The #1 result in Google has 3.8x more backlinks than positions 2-10, with referring domain diversity being a stronger predictor than raw link count.

Backlinko (2023)

Zero-Traffic Correlation

96.55% of pages receive zero organic traffic, and lack of backlinks is one of the primary reasons pages fail to rank for any keyword.

Ahrefs (2023)

Frequently Asked Questions

Should we disavow links or is that risky?

Disavowing is low-risk when done correctly. Google's disavow tool tells their algorithm to ignore specific links when evaluating your site. We only recommend disavowing links that show clear toxicity signals -- spammy directories, foreign-language link farms, PBN patterns, or penalized domains. We never recommend bulk-disavowing based on a single metric score. Every link we flag for disavow is individually reviewed.

We've never done link building. Is a backlink audit still useful?

Especially useful. Even without active link building, your site has accumulated backlinks organically and through scraper sites, directories, and mentions. Some of these may be toxic. More importantly, the competitor gap analysis shows you exactly which links your competitors have that you don't -- giving you a roadmap for building authority instead of guessing where to start.

How often should we audit our backlink profile?

Every 6 months for most sites. If you're actively building links or have a history of spammy links, quarterly. You should also audit immediately after any unexplained ranking drop, as a new batch of toxic links or a lost high-authority link can cause sudden visibility losses.

How do you determine if a link is toxic vs. just low quality?

We evaluate multiple signals in combination: the linking domain's spam score, whether it's been penalized, its topical relevance to your site, the quality of its content, how many outbound links it has, whether it's part of a known link network, and the naturalness of the anchor text. A single low-quality link isn't a problem -- it's patterns of low-quality links that create risk.

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