Domain Rating vs. Domain Authority – Do Metrics Even Matter?

If you’ve spent more than five minutes inside an SEO tool, you’ve seen these two acronyms plastered everywhere: DR and DA.

Some SEOs swear by Domain Rating (Ahrefs), others obsess over Domain Authority (Moz), and a few still pretend like they’re not using either (they’re lying).

But here’s the real question: Do either of them actually matter? And if so, how should you use them without screwing up your link building strategy, audits, or prospecting?

In this post, I’m breaking it all down, no fluff, no fanboy bias, and no trying to sell you as an affiliate on an overpriced tool subscription…

Just the brutal truth about:

• What DR and DA really measure (and what they don’t)

• Why they’re constantly misused by SEOs, clients, and vendors

• How to use each one strategically for audits, outreach, and risk assessment

• When you should ignore both

So without any further ado, let’s jump straight into answering the title of this entire post:

What Is Domain Rating (DR) and Domain Authority (DA)?

Both DR and DA are third party site authority metrics created by Ahrefs and Moz respectively, they’re not part of Google’s algorithm, but SEOs use them as proxies for measuring trust and power in a domain’s link profile.

But they come from different companies, use different data, and calculate authority in very different ways to Google and it’s algorithm.

Here’s the simple breakdown:

Domain Rating (DR) by Ahrefs, is like measuring a site’s raw link equity, how many unique domains link to it, how strong those links are, and how frequently they’re earned. It’s what you’d use to decide if a backlink from that domain is worth chasing.

Domain Authority (DA) by Moz, on the other hand, is more of a SERP prediction score. It doesn’t just look at links, it factors in things like site age, link velocity, spam score, and even traffic (depending on tool version). It’s ideal for showing clients how they stack up against competitors.

Ahrefs tends to also have considerably more data, which can mean a more reliable prediction even though it only looks at links.

So, with that being said, DA and DR can, and often do, give wildly different scores for the same domain.

You might plug a site into Ahrefs and see a DR 71. Then throw it into Moz and it comes back with DA 39. That kind of discrepancy trips up junior SEOs, misleads clients, and makes a lot of link sellers look sketchy when you start digging beyond the metrics and charts.

Why? Because the methodologies behind them aren’t just different, they’re fundamentally measuring different things against a completely different data set and size.

How Domain Rating (DR) Is Calculated

Ahrefs’ Domain Rating is built around backlink data only, that’s it.

No traffic data. No content quality analysis. No OnPage signals. Just links.

Here’s what DR actually measures:

• The number of unique referring domains pointing to a site

• The “strength” of those domains (i.e., their own DR)

• How many other sites those domains are linking to

It’s scored logarithmically on a scale of 0–100, so jumping from DR 10 → 20 is much easier than going from DR 60 → 70.

And because Ahrefs updates their index every 15–30 minutes, changes to your backlink profile can affect DR in almost real time.

Now here’s the fun part…

DR Is Stupidly Easy To Inflate

Because DR is based on volume and equity of referring domains, you can blow it up artificially with the right kind of spam, and Ahrefs will still pat you on the back.

There are Fiverr gigs that will get your domain to a DR70 for as little as $25 –

And services on black hat forums for even cheaper!

Here are some of the most common manipulation tactics:

• A>B>C Link Exchange
  You run link exchanges by pointing PBNs or tier 2 links at their Tier 1 sites that then link to you. On the surface, you’ve got clean, powerful domains giving you juice…

• Homepage link rentals
  Rent links on a DR 80 tech blog’s homepage. DR jumps. Traffic? Zero. Relevance? None – And plenty of hacked dark net services that rent links for 50c to $1 per month…

• Mass Link Spam Software
  There are still tools out there that can boost up your DR, SEO Neo being a good example.

This is why DR alone doesn’t mean the domain is good, it just means it has links that also have DR. Good SEOs check for link quality, relevance, traffic, and indexation alongside metrics like DR.

How Domain Authority (DA) Is Calculated

Domain Authority is Moz’s baby and has been around for longer than I’ve been in SEO. And unlike DR, it tries to be a bit more sophisticated by pulling in multiple SEO factors, not just backlinks.

Unfortunately, I can’t verify if it does do everything it says on the tin, and due to the much smaller data sets, you’re still usually better off going with DR.

Here’s what Moz says goes into calculating DA:

• Linking root domains (just like DR)

• Total number of backlinks (again, similar to DR)

• Link quality (using Moz’s internal Page Authority system)

• Spam score

• Search traffic and visibility trends

• Machine learning models trained on real SERPs

So while DR is a pure link power number, DA is a predictive model, trying to guess how likely a domain is to rank in search compared to others.

Sounds cool in theory, right?

But in practice?

It’s still not a Google metric, and just like DR, it can be faked, manipulated, and easily misunderstood at scale.

DA Can Be Inflated Too

Because DA incorporates more factors, it’s a bit harder to game… but not impossible.

Here’s how it’s done:

• Build traffic manipulation bots
  Yes, people still send garbage search traffic from mobile proxies to inflate visibility metrics. DA loves sites that look like they rank.

• Repurpose aged, expired domains
  Moz’s index still gives legacy credit to some old links, grab an expired domain with a historical DA 40, put up generic content, and DA holds or 301 it at the domain you want to boost.

• Engage in domain reshuffling
  You’d be shocked how many “new” outreach sites are just recycled domains from the 2010s, kept alive purely to hold DA 50+ for resale value.

The reality is: DA can lag behind your actual SEO performance, especially if you’re relying on links that Moz hasn’t crawled or metrics they devalue differently.

So while it feels like a more well-rounded metric, it’s just as easy to misinterpret or misuse as DR, but the white hat SEO crowd will swear it’s the best thing since sliced bread…

When DR and DA Actually Matter in SEO

Let’s not be too cynical though, DR and DA do matter in SEO… When you actually understand what they’re good for, and you have the skills to use them properly.

They’re not gospel. They’re not ranking factors. But they are still useful directional indicators, especially when you’re working at scale or need to make quick decisions.

Here’s where they actually make a difference:

1. Prospecting Link Opportunities at Scale

If you’re sifting through hundreds or thousands of domains, you need some kind of shorthand to prioritize your targets.

DR and DA give you that baseline filter.

For example:

• You’re running a PressWhizz competitor scan for a crypto casino, and get 187 domains linking to your rival.

• Filtering by base criteria like DR20+ instantly helps you cut out a lot of sites that aren’t powerful enough for those niches.

• Then you layer on organic traffic and niche relevance for the final cut…

💣 Pro Tip: DR is generally better for gauging raw link power, DA for estimating SERP potential, use both as starting filters, not final decisions – You can still find gold at the lower levels!

2. Diagnosing Link Profile Strength (Yours or Competitors’)

Let’s say your site is stuck on page 2, and your top 3 competitors are sitting pretty with DR 60+ and 500+ referring domains.

Meanwhile, your site’s sitting at DR18 and 40 RD?

You’ve just diagnosed your biggest issue in under 2 minutes…

DR and DA aren’t the reason you’re not ranking, but they’re often the canary in the coal mine that tells you you’re behind in link equity, topical trust, or brand strength.

3. Reporting & Explaining SEO to Non-SEOs

Clients love simple numbers. And let’s be honest: “Your Domain Rank went from 32 to 41 this quarter” sounds way sexier than “We improved your anchor text diversity and built 14 clean, niche authority links to deep commercial money pages.”

When used carefully, DR/DA can:

• Show progress in outreach campaigns

• Track domain level authority growth

• Simplify monthly reporting

• Be used for averages or base criteria

Just don’t let clients obsess over them though.

4. Benchmarking SERPs Before Entering a Niche

You plug the top 10 ranking sites for your money keyword, here’s an example:

Here’s the average metrics for this SERP:

• Average DR: 85.13
• Average Referring Domains: 1,398
• Average Page Traffic: 27,666

That tells you straight away, this niche is heavily link driven and competitive as hell! Unless you’ve got serious authority or a big budget, it’s time to pivot or prep a tiered link plan with a solid as hell game plan.

How Link Vendors Weaponize DR and DA (And How to Spot The B.S.)

If you’ve ever browsed a link marketplace or bought links from an outreach vendor, you’ve already seen it:

“🔥 DR 70+ Guest Post With 1,000+ Traffic – Only $45!”

Or the even worse:

“⚡ DA 60+ Homepage Link – Permanent Placement!”

Let’s be clear: 99% of these listings exist because DR and DA are so misunderstood.

And the vendors know it.

They’ll stack metrics to sell the illusion of value:

• “High DR” from links propped up by PBNs or 301 chains

• “High DA” from expired domains with zero traffic or relevance

• Links on non-indexed pages with zero topical alignment

• Sites that pass spam checks but are still deindexed or burned

• Fake traffic from error codes, login pages and manipulating ahrefs/semrush etc

So How Do You Avoid Wasting Your Link Budget?

Simple. You stop judging link quality on DR/DA alone…

Here’s what you should be checking before buying or deploying any link:

• Is the domain even indexed?
  If it doesn’t show up with a site:domain.com search, walk away.

• Does the site and it’s page have real organic traffic?
  Use Ahrefs or Semrush to verify. If traffic = 0, the link is likely dead weight.

• Does the site rank for relevant keywords in your niche?
  You want relevance, not random metrics.

• Is the content updated and coherent?
  AI slop guest posts on abandoned travel blogs or random niche posts? No thank you.

• Is the link placed contextually in fresh content?
  Sidebar, footer, and author bios are weaker (and obvious paid signals).

If it ticks all the boxes, it’s likely going to be a good enough link and money well spent.

How to Check Domain Rating/Authority

Now that you know what DR and DA are, and why most vendors use them to mask garbage, let’s talk about how to check them properly, and more importantly, what else to check while you’re at it.

There are dozens of free tools and browser extensions claiming to give you DR/DA scores. But most of them either:

• Pull outdated API data from Moz or Ahrefs (often cached for weeks)

• Show only the metric, without the crucial context (traffic, indexation, keyword rankings, etc.)

• Or worse — they’re just scraping search results and faking metrics to sell “SEO tools”

So here’s how to actually check DR and DA, with three different options to choose from:

Option 1: Use PressWhizz’s Marketplace Tools

If you want fast, accurate, and contextual DR/DA data with everything that matters on one screen, including traffic, indexation, keyword profile, traffic history, and even live competitor overlap, then PressWhizz is the play…

We don’t just show DR or DA, you can filter by a whole host of metrics –

But the questions you should be asking yourself:

• Does the site rank for anything relevant? – Use our keyword search feature to find pages and sites that do.

• What’s the organic traffic trend over the past 12 months?

• How many keywords does it rank for?

• Which competitors are already using this domain?

• Is this inventory live for a niche edit, guest post, or both?

This is how you stop link roulette and start building with intent.

Option 2: Ahrefs Website Authority Checker (DR Only)

If you just want DR and don’t mind missing the full picture:

1. Go to Ahrefs Website Authority Checker

2. Plug in the domain

3. Run the captcha

4. See the DR, backlink count, referring domains, and dofollow ratio

Warning: You won’t get keyword data, indexation checks, or context around those links unless you’re a paid Ahrefs user.

Option 3: Moz Domain SEO Analysis Tool (DA Only)

1. Go to Moz’s Domain Analysis Tool

2. Type in a domain

3. Click “Analyze Domain”

It’ll show:

• DA

• Top linking domains

• Top pages by links

• Spam score

• Basic keyword and competitor info

If you are logged in, you’ll get more data though, even for free – Though it’s limited to 10 searches/day.

DR vs DA: Quick Recap

Let’s wrap up everything we’ve just torn apart and put back together with a straight-talking, no-BS summary:

DR is your “how much link power does this domain have” metric.
DA is your “how likely is this domain to rank” metric.

Both are based on third-party data.
Neither are Google metrics.
And both can mislead you — or give you unfair advantages — depending on how you use (or misuse) them.

When You Should Ignore DR and DA Completely

Sometimes, the smartest thing you can do is look away from the metrics entirely.

Here’s when to ditch DR and DA and focus on what actually matters:

1. When You’re Doing Local SEO For Maps

Local SERPs don’t always run on high authority. They run on proximity, relevance, and citations.
You’ll often see DA 10 or DR 0 sites outranking big brands because they’re hyper local, have more reviews, or sit inside a clean GMB listing with niche citations.

Ignore DR/DA unless most of your SERPs are organic and don’t have map packs at the top. Focus on:

• NAP consistency

• Map Pack presence

• Local relevance and category alignment

2. When You’re Building Tier 2s

If you’re running a parasite or powering up a landing page via tiered linking, who cares if the DR is 12 or 82?

You care about:

• Indexation

• Crawl frequency

• Placement relevance

• Anchor context

Don’t pay premium prices for high metrics on links 2 steps removed from your money page, just go for the most cost effective solution unless it’s a very valuable tier 1 link.

3. When the Site Has 0 Traffic

You’d be shocked how many DR 60+ and DA 50+ sites have 0 organic traffic. It usually happens because:

• They’ve been deindexed

• Their keywords were all brand or dead niches

• They lost link power years ago but still “look good” to surface-level audits

Just remember, DR and DA don’t measure current value. They measure past effort and potential. Traffic tells you what’s working right now!

Final Thoughts: Use DR/DA as Filters

Domain Rating and Domain Authority are not worthless. But they’re also nowhere near perfect.

They’re simply tools.

• Tools for quickly qualifying outreach prospects

• Tools for reporting client progress

• Tools for sizing up SERPs at a glance

But if you’re not pairing DR/DA with manual analysis, indexation checks, traffic data, anchor analysis, niche relevance, and actual ranking signals…

You’re not doing SEO, you’re playing spreadsheet bingo.

At PressWhizz, we don’t just show you the number. We show you the context behind it.

We make it easy to spot good links, great targets, and garbage-tier sites all in one place, with or without DR/DA.

So the next time someone tries to sell you a “high authority” guest post?

1. Make sure it ranks.
2. Make sure it’s indexed.
3. Make sure it’s worth the price tag, be it money or time…

And don’t let DR or DA make you look like a dumbass.