If you are into SEO, you have probably heard of Domain Rating (DR) and Domain Authority (DA). These are two metrics that measure the strength and popularity of a website’s backlink profile. But what exactly are they, how are they calculated, and how can you increase them?
In this guide, we will explain everything you need to know about DR and DA, how they differ from each other, and how you can improve them for your website. We will also show you what tools you can use to check your DR and DA scores and monitor your progress.
How DR is calculated?
DR is a metric developed by Ahrefs, which is one of the most popular SEO tools in the market. Ahrefs measures the strength of a website’s backlink profile based on the number and quality of referring domains (i.e., unique websites that link to your website).
The more referring domains you have, and the higher their DR scores are, the higher your DR score will be. Ahrefs also considers the internal links within your website, as they can help distribute the link juice and boost your DR score.
Ahrefs updates its DR scores daily, so you can always see the latest changes in your backlink profile. It also uses a logarithmic scale from 0 to 100 to calculate DR, which means that it is easier to grow from 10 to 20 than from 80 to 90.
How DA is calculated?
DA is a metric developed by Moz, which is another popular SEO tool in the market. Moz predicts a website’s ranking potential on search engines based on various factors, such as MozRank, MozTrust, domain age, domain size, domain popularity, etc.
MozRank measures the popularity of a website based on the number and quality of links pointing to it. MozTrust measures the trustworthiness of a website based on the quality and relevance of its linking websites. Domain age measures how long a website has been registered. Domain size measures how many pages a website has. Domain popularity measures how many unique root domains link to a website.
Moz updates its DA scores monthly, so you may not see immediate changes in your backlink profile. Moz uses a logarithmic scale from 0 to 100 to calculate DA, which means that it is easier to grow from 10 to 20 than from 80 to 90.
Difference between DR and DA
As you can see, DR and DA are two different metrics that measure different aspects of a website’s backlink profile. Here are some of the main differences between them:
- Calculation method: DR is calculated by Ahrefs based on the number and quality of referring domains and internal links. DA is calculated by Moz based on various factors like MozRank, MozTrust, domain age, etc.
- Update frequency: DR is updated daily by Ahrefs, so you can see the latest changes in your backlink profile. DA is updated monthly by Moz, so you may not see immediate changes in your backlink profile.
- Inclusion of internal links: DR includes internal links in its calculation, as they can help distribute the link juice and boost your DR score. DA does not include internal links in its calculation, as they do not affect your ranking potential on search engines.
- Influence of high-quality links: DR is more influenced by high-quality links from high-DR websites than low-quality links from low-DR websites. DA is less influenced by high-quality links from high-DA websites than low-quality links from low-DA websites.
- Prediction capability: DR does not predict how well a website will rank on search engines, as it only measures the strength of its backlink profile. DA predicts how well a website will rank on search engines based on various factors that affect its ranking potential.
- Weightage of links: DR gives equal weightage to all links from a referring domain, regardless of their position or context. DA gives more weightage to links from a referring domain that are closer to the homepage or have more relevant content.
- Range: DR has a wider range than DA, as it can go from 0 to 100. DA has a narrower range than DR, as it can go from 1 to 100.
- Factors considered: DR considers only the number and quality of referring domains and internal links. DA considers many factors like MozRank, MozTrust, domain age, domain size, domain popularity, etc.
These differences mean that DR and DA may not always correlate with each other. For example, a website may have a high DR score but a low DA score, or vice versa. This can happen because of various reasons, such as:
- A website may have a lot of links from high-DR websites but not from high-DA websites, or vice versa.
- A website may have a lot of links from relevant and trustworthy websites but not from popular and authoritative websites, or vice versa.
- A website may have a lot of links from new and fresh websites but not from old and established websites, or vice versa.
- A website may have a lot of links from large and diverse websites but not from small and niche websites, or vice versa.
Therefore, it is important to use both metrics together to get a better picture of your website’s SEO health and potential. You should not rely on one metric alone, as it may not reflect the true value of your backlink profile.
How to improve DR and DA?
Now that you know the difference between DR and DA, you may wonder how you can improve them for your website. The good news is that there are some common tips and strategies that apply to both metrics, as well as some specific tips and strategies that apply to each metric separately.
Here are some general advice on how to improve both DR and DA for your website:
Create relevant and engaging content
Content is the king of SEO, as it attracts both users and links to your website. You should create content that provides value to your audience, solves their problems, answers their questions, and satisfies their intent. You should also optimize your content for keywords, titles, headings, meta tags, images, etc. to make it more appealing to search engines.
Build more backlinks from authoritative websites
Backlinks are the backbone of SEO, as they signal to search engines that your website is trustworthy and popular. You should build more backlinks from authoritative websites that have high DR and DA scores, as they can boost your DR and DA scores as well. You should also diversify your backlink profile by getting links from different types of websites, such as blogs, news sites, forums, directories, etc.
Avoid spammy or low-quality links
Not all links are created equal, as some links can harm your DR and DA scores rather than help them. You should avoid spammy or low-quality links from websites that have low DR and DA scores, as they can lower your DR and DA scores as well. You should also avoid buying or exchanging links, as they can violate Google’s guidelines and result in penalties.
Monitor your backlink profile
You should monitor your backlink profile regularly to see how it affects your DR and DA scores. You should use tools like Ahrefs or Moz to check your DR and DA scores, as well as the number and quality of referring domains and links pointing to your website. You should also use tools like Google Search Console or Bing Webmaster Tools to see how your website performs on search engines.
Wrapping Up
DR and DA are two metrics that measure the strength and popularity of a website’s backlink profile. They are calculated by different SEO tools, Ahrefs and Moz, based on different factors and methods. They have different advantages and disadvantages, and they may not always correlate with each other.
Therefore, it is important to use both metrics together to get a better picture of your website’s SEO health and potential. You should not rely on one metric alone, as it may not reflect the true value of your backlink profile.
To improve both DR and DA for your website, you should create relevant and engaging content, build more backlinks from authoritative websites, avoid spammy or low-quality links, and monitor your backlink profile regularly.
By following these tips and strategies, you can increase both DR and DA for your website and improve your SEO performance. You can also use tools like Ahrefs or Moz to check your DR and DA scores and monitor your progress.
