Backlinks remain one of the most important ranking factors for SEO in 2023. Having a good backlink profile can help boost your rankings, traffic, and authority.
That‘s why it‘s crucial to regularly check your backlinks using a backlink checker tool. The right tools provide actionable data to help you build, monitor and manage your backlinks more effectively.
In this guide, we‘ll explore the 10 best backlink checker and analysis tools available right now. For each tool, we‘ll look at key features, pricing, and who it‘s best suited for.
Why Are Backlinks Important for SEO?
Backlinks are incoming links from other websites to your site. When another site links to your content, it signals to Google that your content is valuable.
More backlinks (from reputable sites) tell Google your site is trustworthy and authoritative. This boosts rankings.
Backlinks also help with:
- Increasing referral traffic – Sites linking to you send visitors your way
- Improving brand visibility – More sites linking builds awareness of your brand
- Enhancing user experience – Backlinks allow users to discover more of your relevant content
Simply put, more quality backlinks can lead to better SEO and organic growth.
This is why link building remains such an integral part of any good SEO strategy. And to build smart backlink plans, you need backlink analysis tools.
10 Best Backlink Checker Tools for 2023
Here are the top 10 backlink checkers and SEO tools for backlink research and auditing:
1. SEMrush
SEMrush is the leading all-in-one SEO and digital marketing toolkit. Their backlink analysis enables deep audits into any site‘s backlink profile.
Key features:
- Analyze all backlinks to a domain with link metrics like DR, referring domains, etc.
- Filter links by type, follow/no follow attribute, index status and more
- See lost or new links gained over custom time periods
- Generate SEO content ideas from top performing competitor backlinks
- Export reports in multiple formats (PDF, CSV, Excel)
SEMrush also includes tools for keyword research, rank tracking, site audits, PPC analytics and more. Their database has over 140 million keywords and 9 billion backlinks.
Pricing:
- Pro: $99.95/month
- Guru: $199.95/month
- Business: $399.95/month
Best for: businesses wanting an end-to-end SEO toolkit with in-depth backlink data.
2. Ahrefs
Alongside SEMrush, Ahrefs is considered a top SEO suite and backlink analysis tool. They index over 270 billion backlinks.
Key features:
- See all backlinks pointing to a target domain
- Filter by source site metrics like DR and UR
- Check anchor text distribution for risky over-optimization
- Quickly compare links between two domains or pages
- Discover link opportunities in Ahrefs‘ Link Intersect
For powerful link discovery and research to inform link building tactics or strategies, Ahrefs excels.
Pricing
- Lite: $99/month
- Standard: $179/month
- Advanced: $399/month
Best for: businesses and agencies prioritizing backlink and competitor analysis.
3. Moz
Moz Pro is a favorite SEO tool suite because of its usability and group of robust SEO tools.
Key features:
- See any domain or URL‘s backlink profile via Moz Link Explorer
- Analyze metrics like Domain Authority, Spam score, linking root domains
- Filter links by attributes like dofollow/nofollow
- Check anchor text ratios to avoid over-optimization penalties
- See newly gained/lost links
Besides Link Explorer, Moz Pro offers rank tracking, site crawls, keyword research and more to support various SEO tasks. As an established SEO player, their metrics like Domain Authority and Spam Score carry weight too.
Pricing
- Standard: $99/month
- Medium: $249/month
- Large: $599/month
Best for: SEOs and small businesses wanting robust SEO capabilities coupled with accurate and trusted link data.
4. Majestic
Boasting a fresh web index of over 900 billion backlinks, Majestic offers high-quality link intelligence.
They provide clear and accessible reports on any site‘s backlink profile.
Key features:
- See all backlinks from Majestic‘s superior index in one report
- Assess flow metrics like Trust Flow and Citation Flow
- Check link data history to spot trends
- Filter links by attributes like follow/nofollow
- Export reports in multiple formats
Majestic excels at presenting clean and easy-to-interpret backlink data alongside flow metrics you can count on.
Pricing
- Lite: free
- Standard: $49.99/month
- Plus: $149.99/month
- Premium: $449.99/month
Best for: SEOs who want a straightforward yet mighty backlink analysis solution.
5. Linkody
Linkody specializes in backlink audits and competitive analysis. They offer detailed backlink reports to fuel link building and outreach.
Key features:
- One-click access to full backlink profiles and metrics
- Easy filtering by link type, anchor text, attributes like do/no follow and more
- Custom reporting showing actionable link opportunities
- Data exportable in Excel, JSON and CSV formats
- Graphs and charts to visualize backlink data
Besides link metrics, you can also access data on organic traffic, rankings and search visibility as well.
Pricing
- Starter: $39/month
- Professional: $69/month
- Agency: $139/month
Best for: SEO specialists wanting to drill down specifically into backlink profiles for audits and competitor research.
6. Link Explorer
From cognitiveSEO, Link Explorer focuses specifically on backlink analysis powered by its ever-updating backlink database.
Key features:
- See all backlinks from 300+ million websites in one dashboard
- Dig into quality metrics for each backlink
- Filter and segment links however you want
- Compare up to 5 competitors side-by-side
- Custom reporting to highlight trends and opportunities
The tool makes it simple to segment and filter backlinks exactly how you want to spot link building openings. Their database expands weekly too.
Pricing
Link Explorer offers custom packages to meet needs. Contact them for pricing details.
Best for: agencies and enterprises seeking adaptable solutions tailored to backlink and competitor analysis at scale.
7. Linkody
Linkody is another backlink-focused SEO platform great for auditing and research.
They index over 3 billion backlinks for detailed analysis and tracking.
Key features:
- Complete backlink profiles distinguishing followed vs nofollowed links
- Anchor text analysis identifying risky overuse
- Data visualizations spotting impactful links
- Bulk backlink tracking and management
- Robust filters (by source, link type, link attribute and more)
The platform focuses specifically on backlink data, metrics and tracking to power custom link building plans.
Pricing
- Basic: $25/month
- Standard: $66/month
- Premium: $149/month
Best for: businesses wanting affordable yet powerful backlink tracking and auditing.
8. Monitor Backlinks
Monitor Backlinks is a dedicated backlink tracking platform indexing over 3 billion links.
They offer complete backlink tracking and analysis to reveal impactful link building and outreach opportunities.
Key features:
- Shows full list of backlinks from an index of over 3 billion links
- Metrics assessing quality alongside link numbers
- Anchor text analysis preventing risky overuse
- Data exports in multiple formats
- Bulk backlink tracking and management
For understanding your overall link profile authority and discovering competitor gaps, Monitor Backlinks provides the critical data.
Pricing
- Starter: $15/month
- Standard: $35/month
- Company: $125+/month
Best for: small companies with limited budgets still wanting quality backlink tracking.
9. Cognitive SEO
As a dedicated SEO company focused on enterprises, CognitiveSEO provides custom reporting and recommendations tailored to your site.
Key features:
- Human SEO analysts assess your site‘s link profile against competitors
- You get custom-built presentations with specific actions to raise organic growth
- Ongoing recommendations as your needs evolve
- All centered around your KPIs and revenue goals
Rather than just software and data, CognitiveSEO provides strategic SEO guidance from analysts. If you want high-level expertise applied directly to your site and goals, it‘s a fit.
Pricing
Since packages are custom, pricing varies based on needs. Contact Cognitive SEO for details.
10. SEO Review Tools
SEO Review Tools offers its backlink checker alongside other site auditing capabilities.
It‘s a good option for basic backlink tracking and management.
Key features:
- Database with over 450 million backlinks
- Monitor total backlinks gained or lost monthly
- Export link data as a CSV file
- Basic link metrics provided
The platform works well for tracking monthly backlink gains/losses and accessing basic link data. But advanced filtering and analysis features come with higher-priced plans from competitors.
Pricing
- Starter: Free
- Basic: $15/month
- Pro: $39/month
Best for: very small sites on tight budgets wanting to track basic backlink numbers.
Key Features to Look for in Backlink Checkers
As you assess options, keep these key capabilities in mind:
Backlink Index Size
The larger the link index, the more comprehensive the reports. Look for tools indexing 1 billion+ links from across the web.
Link Data and Metrics
Robust tools provide details on link types, attributes like dofollow/nofollow, anchor text, site metrics like Domain Rating/Authority and more.
Filtering and Segmentation
Easy filtering and segmentation help you isolate the best links and spot opportunities. Look for versatility here.
Tracking and Monitoring
Tracking links over time helps you gauge impact of link building efforts. Automatic tracking via APIs pulls the latest data.
Custom/Competitive Reporting
Spot gaps in competitors‘ profiles for smarter link prospecting. Or have analysts build you fully customized plans.
Exports and Integrations
APIs, CSV exports, Slack notifications and more support streamlined analysis workflows.
Choose the Best Backlink Checker for Your Needs
Your backlink software needs depend largely on your level of SEO sophistication.
Beginners may want low-cost but easy-to-use solutions for simple backlink tracking and monitoring.
Businesses more invested in SEO can benefit from robust tools providing actionable and customizable link intelligence.
Large enterprises often get the most value from fully-managed solutions offering strategic plans tailored day-to-day to their sites.
No matter your experience level, monitoring backlinks should be part of your routine.
Using these tools gives you the insights needed to proactively boost your site‘s link profile, authority and organic growth over time.
Choose software fitting your budget, skills and needs to maximize how much you benefit.
