Even as Google’s ever-changing algorithms keep digital marketers scrambling for the magic formula for better ranking online, two things have remained consistent in terms of getting your website to the top of organic search results: great content and valuable backlinks. You’ve got the great content locked down, but who has time to scour the internet to see if anyone has mentioned you online? Not to worry. Here are five of the best free backlink checkers that do all the work for you.
What’s a backlink checker?
It’s simple: backlink checkers are the detectives of the internet, checking to see who has linked to one of the pages of your website. Free backlink checker tools are an affordable way to check in to see how you’re doing in terms of creating content that begs to be shared.
And this matters – a lot – to Google. They’re looking specifically for two things when it comes to backlinks:
- Quality: Does your backlinks come from a trusted domain?
- Quantity: How many backlinks do you have?
Google takes this information and uses it as one of its many factors to rank your website. These days, search engines are looking for high-quality backlinks (more than quantity). The most recent update to Google’s tools for search engine ranking eliminated or downgraded many sites with tons of suspicious or spammy backlinks. Now more than ever, quality matters.
A backlink checker can help you keep track of who is linking to your site to figure out what tools or strategies you need to employ to build some higher-quality backlinks.
5 of the best free backlink checkers in 2019
When you are just starting out, and even when you’ve been around for awhile, every link back counts. Here are five of the best free backlink checkers in 2019 to help you get your feet wet.
1. Google webmaster tools
If you’re trying to read Google’s mind, head straight to the source with Google’s free webmaster tools. Once you add your site, you can:
- Check inbound links
- Search your site for negative (spam) backlinks (and disavow them)
- See some of the keywords that are sending traffic your way
Not only are the features easy to use, the price is right for small businesses (or individuals) just starting out.
2. Monitor Backlinks
This free tool allows you to check for backlinks, free, once a week.
The report you get is very basic, and it does not give you much information on the backlinks, but if you’re just looking for a quick check-in this might be a good tool for you.
3. BuzzSumo
BuzzSumo offers a free “lite” version of its backlink checker tools. Enter your URL and see who is sharing, engaging with, and linking your content.
If you want to go deeper, you’ll have to pay, but as far as free backlink checker tools go, this is a great place to start.
4. Small SEO Tools
This may be one of the best free backlink checkers in terms of ease of use as well as the information you get.
Enter your URL and get a report that includes the top backlinks to your domain as well as their domain authority (and yours, too). Small SEO Tools’s backlink checker is integrated with data from the behemoth Ahrefs and because of that is able to provide valuable information.
5. The Hoth
The Hoth also integrate Ahrefs data into their reports to give you valuable information about the quality of your backlinks. You get the same information as the report from Small SEO Tools, but The Hoth offers more options in terms of services related to SEO.
Even though these free backlink checkers don’t offer detailed reports or tons of support, they are a great place for a quick check to see how your website is doing.
3 more affordable backlink checkers
The rare bird is the free backlink checker tools. Here are three options when you are ready to step up to a paid subscription.
1. Linkody
Linkody may just be the best backlink checker of 2019. No, it’s not free, but you can get to know its features for 30 days before you sign up for one of their reasonable subscription plans (starting at $15 a month, it’s one of the more affordable of the subscription options).
Linkody send you notifications when other sites link to yours (or delete the link) as well as some clues as to what your competitors are doing. This tool even offers a daily email update to monitor the health of your backlinks.
2. SEMRush
SEMRush’s backlink checker is only one portion of their comprehensive content marketing tool.
Because of the robustness of this tool, their subscription prices from $100 a month for just the basics to a custom plan that can include features tailored to your business. If you have it in the budget, SEMRush’s features like sorting by type of backlink and domain authority ranking can help you better understand who is consistently sending traffic your way – and who isn’t.
3. Ahrefs
For businesses hit hard by the changes wrought by Google’s Penguin update that reclassified sites based on backlinks (or the lack thereof), Ahrefs can help.
A $7, seven-day trial gives you some time to explore all of the features Ahrefs offers before converting to a monthly plan that ranges from $100 a month for one user to $1,000 for up to five. While this might seem like a hefty chunk of change, this comes with useful tools like a complete site audit, rank tracker, and an SEO toolbar. Again, Ahrefs is one of the largest backlink checkers.
Learn more
Even though the best free backlink checkers give you basic reports with good information, sometimes you want to go deeper. Let Boost handle the reporting side of your online marketing efforts for you.
Get in touch today for more information on how we can manage your online marketing, from search engine optimization to PPC ads, and more.
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