Domain authority is a third-party SEO metric, most famously Moz’s DA score on a 1-100 scale, that estimates how likely a website is to rank in search results. It is calculated mostly from a site’s backlink profile, and it is not a Google ranking factor, even though it tends to correlate with ranking ability.
That single fact answers the headline question. The rest of this guide unpacks the questions that follow: where the metric came from, what moves it up or down, what counts as a respectable score, and how to use it without making decisions for the wrong reasons.
Who Invented Domain Authority and Why
Moz introduced Domain Authority in 2010 because search engines keep their ranking formulas private. SEOs needed a quick, consistent way to compare the relative strength of websites without reverse-engineering Google. The metric filled that gap.
Moz’s DA is built using a machine-learning model trained on its own link index. It weighs factors tied to ranking likelihood and assigns each domain a comparative score. Other platforms built similar metrics under their own names. Semrush uses Authority Score, Ahrefs uses Domain Rating, and the names differ even when the underlying idea is the same.
The thing to keep in mind: DA is a model built by a third party, not a measurement taken from Google. It is a useful shorthand, not a window into the algorithm.
How Domain Authority Is Calculated
The score is driven primarily by backlinks. Moz’s model weighs the quantity, quality, and topical relevance of links pointing to a domain across its link index. Referring domains, which are unique websites linking to you, usually matter more than the raw link count, because a hundred links from one site count less than a hundred links from a hundred different reputable sites.
Links from trusted, topically related websites carry more weight than links from unrelated or low-quality sources. Patterns matter too: a natural-looking mix of links tends to support a higher score than a sudden spike of identical-looking placements.
Why the scale is non-linear
The 1-100 scale is relative, not absolute. Moving from a DA of 20 to 30 is much easier than moving from 70 to 80, because each step gets harder as the score climbs. A score only means something in comparison with competitors in the same niche, not as a universal verdict on the site.
Different tools use different formulas and different link indexes, which is why the same site can show a DA of 42 on Moz, an Authority Score of 35 on Semrush, and a Domain Rating of 51 on Ahrefs. The numbers are not the same unit, even when they look similar.
What Counts as a Good Domain Authority Score
There is no universal threshold, but rough patterns hold across most industries. A “good” score depends almost entirely on who else is competing for your target keywords.
Around 20
Typical for a brand-new or small site with a handful of backlinks.
Around 40
Respectable for many small and mid-sized businesses. In competitive niches, however, it is rarely strong enough to challenge established players ranking for high-value terms.
Above 60
Usually indicates an established site with a strong, aged backlink profile.
The real benchmark is not a number. It is whether your domain outscores the sites already ranking for the keywords you care about. Compare against two or three real competitors, not against an abstract ideal.
Curious how your own site measures up against competitors in your niche? The team at Clickside can run a quick authority and backlink gap analysis so you know exactly where the realistic wins are hiding.
How to Improve Domain Authority the Right Way
You do not optimize DA directly. You improve the inputs, especially the backlinks the model weighs most heavily.
Earning high-quality backlinks from relevant, trustworthy sites is the single biggest practical lever. The most sustainable path is creating linkable content: original research, useful tools, strong opinion pieces, and thorough guides tend to attract links passively over time. Cold outreach to relevant publications still works, but it works best when there is something on your site worth linking to.
Auditing your backlink profile matters too. Identifying and disavowing spammy or manipulative links protects the score from being dragged down by low-quality signals. Internal links, on-page SEO, and technical fixes help individual pages rank, but they do not move domain authority much on their own, because the metric is driven mainly by external links.
A niche blog with a DA of 30 can still outrank a DA-70 publisher on a specific query if that single page is more relevant, better matched to search intent, and earns stronger links to that page. The lesson is that page-level factors still beat domain-level score when the topic is narrow enough.
Common Misconceptions About Domain Authority
Domain authority is a Google ranking factor. It is not. Google does not use Moz’s DA or any equivalent third-party score in its algorithm. Treating it as a Google signal leads to wasted effort chasing a number that does not influence actual rankings.
A high DA guarantees top rankings. It does not. Rankings are page- and query-specific, so a strong domain cannot rescue a page that misses search intent or covers the topic poorly. The opposite is also true: a low-DA site can rank for queries where its page is the most relevant result.
Scores from different tools are interchangeable. They are not. Each platform uses its own link index, weighting, and model, so a DA 50 on Moz and an Authority Score 50 on Semrush do not represent the same level of strength.
Using Domain Authority Without Misusing It
Domain authority works best as a comparison and prioritization tool, not as a goal in itself. Pick one tool, check your score against two or three real competitors for your target keywords, and focus on closing the link gap between you and them. That single step will do more for your actual rankings than any amount of DA-chasing.
Ready to turn that knowledge into real rankings? Talk to Clickside about a tailored link-building and authority strategy built around your actual competitors, not a generic score chase.