One of the best ways to take your SEO strategy to the next level is by building high DA backlinks.
But what exactly are high DA backlinks and why are they so important for ranking high on search engine result pages?
In this article, we’ll cover all of that and more, along with a bonus list of 200+ high DA sites that you can use today for your link building campaign.
Let’s dive in!
What is Domain Authority?
In the eyes of search engines, a site’s authority can be seen as its reputation in the online world.
The concept of Domain Authority (DA) was created by the popular SEO company Moz for their ranking system, giving domains a score between 1 – 100. The higher the score, the better the domain’s authority.
DA vs DR (Domain Authority vs Domain Rating)
These days, there’s another popular term in use: Domain Rating (DR), a similar rating system created by the SEO giant Ahrefs.
Similar to Moz, Ahrefs also scores domains between 1 – 100 and is widely believed to be more accurate than DA scores.
For the sake of simplicity, however, we’ll be talking about Domain Authority in this article.
Why is DA so important?
Your domain authority is a huge factor in where you rank on search engine result pages.
Not surprisingly, we can see from the graph that the higher a site’s DA rating, the more organic traffic it gets because it ranks high.
How to Increase DA Rating
We can see how having a high DA score correlates with great traffic and rankings. So how does a site get a higher DA rating?
The answer: through high-quality outbound links from high DA websites to a site, i.e. high DA backlinks.
Notice the focus on high DA sites when we talk about link building, since not just any DA score will do when it comes to backlinks.
For example, if 10 brand new blogs link to your site, it will barely move the needle on your DA score. But if 10 high-authority editorial domains like Forbes, Business Insider, etc. all link to your site, then in Google’s eyes, you are worthy of ranking higher.
That’s because Google uses links to understand a site’s reputation, so if these well-established sites are vouching for you through backlinks to your site, then you are likely doing a lot of things right and deserve the recognition.
What are High DA Backlinks?
High DA backlinks are links that come from trustworthy sources.
Examples of high DA websites would be large news outlets, popular social media platforms, and just about any site with healthy traffic that is a leader in its industry.
Backlinks can come in many types, such as follow (also called dofollow), nofollow, and sponsored links.
Follow (Dofollow) vs Nofollow backlinks
Follow links are links that make it clear to search engine crawlers to go ahead and crawl the hyperlink (backlink) on a page. This means that the host site vouches for the site it is linking to.
Nofollow links (that have a rel=”nofollow” attribute in their HTML tag) inform crawlers to do the opposite of following links, signaling that the webmaster does not want crawlers to crawl the site when crawling their page.
Created back in the days when spam reigned supreme, Google introduced nofollow links for bloggers to use against spammers leaving their links in comment sections.
Nofollow links are rather outdated these days, but can still be used for placing ads on a page. Google has since introduced other HTML link tag attributes like “sponsored” and “ugc” (user-generated content) to better classify links.
What is a Good DA Score for Backlinks?
While any link with a DA score of 60 or 70 or above would be considered a high authority website, it also depends on the industry.
A site in the home building space could have a DA score of 50 and still be considered high authority because there are far fewer sites in that industry compared to other competitive spaces like health or business.
Although DA or DR scores correlate with high rankings, they can also be manipulated through black hat link building (as we’ll see later), so DA scores are not the sole sign of a good site.
How to Land High DA Backlinks
1. Guest Posting
Guest posting is one of the safest and most reliable ways to build high DA backlinks. The key is to reach out to high authority websites with content pitches that are so good, saying yes would be a no-brainer.
That means drafting an incredible content pitch that’s backed by research, is professional, and based on industry expertise.
Sometimes, however, a high authority site will ask for money in return for publishing a guest post, which violates Google’s rules.
But depending on the site’s DA and reputation, paid guest posting is something to consider when link building, as we’ll find out.
2. HARO
HARO, short for Help a Reporter Out, is a site that helps journalists find sources for their reports and is often used by big publications i.e. high authority domains.
The way it works is that journalists send out requests for resources on specific topics, and you reply with something relevant from your website, like an article or a press release.
If successfully chosen, the journalist will reference your article in their publication, landing you a nice high authority backlink.
3. Link Exchange or Link Swapping
Link exchanges, link swapping, or reciprocal linking is when two website owners agree to exchange backlinks between their sites.
When done incorrectly, it can result in a penalty. But there are plenty of safe ways to exchange links, and it can be a powerful technique to build backlinks for all parties involved.
ABC link exchange and indirect link swapping are two examples of safe link exchange methods.
4. Skyscraper Technique
Famously coined by the SEO guru Brian Dean, the skyscraper technique is all about offering value that outdoes the competition.
Here are the main steps:
- Through backlink research, find a content piece in your niche that has lots of backlinks from other sites.
- Create content that is much better by a long shot.
- Reach out to those linking to the original piece of content and ask them to link to your superior content instead.
This is all a lot easier said than done, but well worth it in the end.
With a great piece of content and a good outreach plan, the skyscraper technique can help you land a decent number of high DA backlinks both in the short and long-term..
5. Reverse Outreach
Not too different from the skyscraper technique, reverse outreach is another of Brian Dean’s masterpieces.
Rather than reaching out to get people to link to your awesome content, you create content that attracts journalists through “journalist keywords.”
These are keywords usually related to trending topics that journalists or bloggers would typically search for but can’t easily find data about.
The idea is to create data-packed content that isn’t easy to find around these keywords.
In turn, your valuable content becomes a hot source for journalists and bloggers to reference as they find your piece in search results.
How to Track the Number of Backlinks
Knowing how many links point to your site is important to keep track of your link building progress and its effects on rankings.
There are two ways to check how many backlinks point to your site.
1. Google Search Console
Luckily, Google Search Console is a free and powerful tool to measure organic traffic, backlinks, and general performance, but only for the sites you own.
Once logged in, simply click on “Links” in the sidebar.
Underneath “External links” you will find the total number of backlinks pointing to your site.
The dashboard also includes info on your top linked pages, top linking sites, and even the top linking text that includes the most used anchors within backlinks.
2. Third-Party Backlink Apps
If you’re looking to see how your competition fares when it comes to backlinks, you’ll need third-party backlink checkers.
Most notable SEO services like Ahrefs, Moz, SEMRush and plenty of others include a backlink research tool, and often come with a free trial.
Knowing how many backlinks your competition has, where those backlinks come from, and their pages with the most backlinks, are all valuable insights you’ll need to compete.
Black Hat Link Building
Black hat SEO is all about manipulating search engine results using techniques that go against the rules.
One major black hat SEO practice is buying backlinks to improve rankings, which violates Google’s guidelines.
Love it or hate it though, buying backlinks is a major part of link building and the SEO economy, and occurs on all levels of the DA spectrum.
What Not to Do When Building Links
When you look at the number of backlinks top sites have, it can be easy for some website owners to believe that more is better.
Of course, having plenty of backlinks should be a good thing. But like in most industries, quality trumps quantity.
That’s why focusing on landing high DA backlinks far outweighs anything you can buy in the thousands from shady third parties, which will also likely get your site banned from search engines.
When to Purchase Backlinks
Purchasing links for advertising purposes is fine and doesn’t affect rankings, but doing so to manipulate search engines to believe you are trustworthy, that’s where things get a little murky..
The question is: if presented with the opportunity, is it right to purchase backlinks from a high DA domain?
There is no easy answer, as it relies solely upon your judgment and weighing the pros and cons.
More often than not, purchasing links is one of the main ways of landing high quality backlinks in most industries.
That’s because many high DA web owners leverage their authority with “pay-to-play” setups when it comes to backlinks.
That could mean paying anything from tens to hundreds of dollars for a guest post, getting a shoutout, or being referenced in an article.
Even with a high DA (which some sites can manipulate through black hat SEO), it’s best to do your due diligence when deciding if you should pay for a backlink. Make sure to check:
- Is the site an authority in its space?
- Does the site have more inbound links than outbound?
- Is the site well-designed?
- Does the site have healthy monthly traffic?
- Is the site old and well-established?
- Does the site have high-quality content?
Answering no to any of these should be a clear red flag.
Ultimately, buying backlinks shouldn’t be the core of your link building strategy, but if the right opportunity arises, it could be worth considering.
List of 200+ High DA Backlinks Sites (Dofollow & Nofollow)
FAQ on High DA Backlinks
1. What are High DA Backlinks?
High Domain Authority (DA) backlinks are links to your site from trustworthy authority sites. They pass on authority to your site, increase your DA score, and lead to better rankings on SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages).
2. Are High DA Backlinks Good for SEO?
Yes! High DA backlinks indicate to search engines that your site is being vouched for by well-established domains and can greatly improve your rankings.
3. Where to Find High DA Backlinks?
You can land high DA backlinks through a number of ways, like guest posting, HARO (Help A Reporter Out), or pitching valuable content as a reference.
Key Takeaways
As we’ve covered in this article, there are several safe ways of getting a high DA backlink to your site.
Keep in mind that quality far outweighs quantity when it comes to backlinks. Steer clear of shady vendors or sites offering unrealistic backlink claims, as they can only harm your rankings.
Building a healthy backlink profile from high DA websites is the backbone of SEO and, when done correctly, is key to getting your site up in the ranks.
