Domain Authority Explained
Domain Authority is Moz's score from 1 to 100 that estimates how likely a domain is to rank, built from its backlink profile. Google does not use the score. Judge it only against the sites already ranking for your query, never against a fixed round number, and compare every domain in the same tool.
For Indian site owners and in-house marketers who keep being sold a Domain Authority target and want to know what the number actually is.
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- Read time
- 6 min
- Sections
- 10
- Updated
- 14 Nov 2026
- Written by
- WebJi® team
Last editorial update: 15 November 2026.
What is Domain Authority — and what is it not?
Domain Authority (DA) is a score Moz gives a whole domain or subdomain, from 1 to 100, estimating how likely that domain is to rank in search results based on its backlink profile. It is not a Google ranking input, it is not a setting inside any hosting or search panel, and it is not proof that a site is the expert in its subject.
The phrase also gets used loosely for subject credibility — a site people treat as the reference in its field. That idea is not the number in an SEO tool; the number belongs to Moz. Ahrefs' Domain Rating and Semrush's Authority Score are other companies' models of a similar idea, and their integers will not agree with Moz's.
- Owner: Moz created and publishes DA; it is a third-party metric.
- Scale: 1 to 100, logarithmic — 20 to 30 is a smaller step than 70 to 80.
- Inputs: Moz's own link index, dominated by linking root domains and their strength.
- Not Google: the score does not move Google results by itself.
How does Moz calculate Domain Authority?
Moz runs a machine-learning model over its link index that asks how often domains with a similar backlink profile appear in Google's results, then maps that prediction onto a 1-to-100 logarithmic scale. A brand-new domain starts at 1.
What weighs most is how many separate domains link to you — linking root domains — and how strong those domains themselves look in the same model. Ten links from one website do not count like ten linking domains. Because the scale is logarithmic and comparative, a very large site gaining a vast number of new links can push other domains' scores down even though their own links never changed.
Moz rebuilt the model in 2019 and called the result Domain Authority 2.0. A score saved before that rebuild sits on a different ruler from one you read today, so old screenshots prove nothing about current standing.
How do DA, Page Authority and Brand Authority differ?
Domain Authority scores the whole domain or subdomain; Page Authority (PA) scores one URL; Brand Authority measures how widely a brand name is discussed. All three are Moz predictions, and none is a knob Google offers anyone.
- DA — use it when comparing whole sites that might compete for the same queries.
- PA — use it when comparing individual pages that could rank for one query; a strong domain can still hold a weak page.
- Brand Authority — Moz's newest score, about brand mentions and discussion; it does not forecast whether a URL ranks.
How does Moz DA compare with Ahrefs DR and Semrush Authority Score?
Every major SEO tool publishes its own authority number from its own index — they describe overlapping ideas but never match, so pick one tool and compare everyone in it. Research cited on this topic shows the scores tend to move together while disagreeing in detail.
| Score | Publisher | What the number describes |
|---|---|---|
| Domain Authority | Moz | Predicted ranking strength from the link index, logarithmic 1–100 |
| Page Authority | Moz | The same style of prediction for a single URL |
| Domain Rating | Ahrefs | Strength of the site's backlink profile |
| Authority Score | Semrush | Backlinks mixed with organic search data |
| Trust Flow | Majestic | Majestic's own link-quality score; not Domain Authority |
Do not average a Moz DA of 40 with an Ahrefs DR of 55 into one figure — that is two indices, two scales, one meaningless mean.
Does Google use Domain Authority for ranking?
No — Moz itself states that Domain Authority is not a Google ranking factor, and Google has repeatedly rejected the idea of a single site-authority score deciding results. DA compresses the citation side of search into one vendor's index; it records nothing about whether a specific page answers a specific query.
The test you can run yourself is direct: pick a narrow query where two pages both fit, and check the ranking page's DA in a tool. The clearer, better-matched page routinely ranks above a higher-DA page about a different topic. That gap is the difference between the metric and the ranking.
What is a good Domain Authority score?
There is no universal good DA: Moz's own guidance says a 30 can be excellent in one field and ordinary in another, so the only honest benchmark is the domains already on page one for your query. Read your domain and theirs in the same tool, on the same day.
Industry writers offer rough bands — about 20–30 for many small sites, 40–60 for growing brands, 60+ for the strongest domains — as orientation only. Those are labels, not Google cutoffs.
Worked example: page-one domains for your target query sit between 18 and 32 in Moz, and your domain reads 22. You are inside the competing set. Chasing 60 because a national news site reads 60 tells you nothing about whether your page answers this query better than theirs.
How do you check your Domain Authority?
Read DA inside Moz's own tools: Link Explorer, Moz's free Domain Authority checker, the MozBar browser extension, or Moz Pro's Domain Overview. Enter the bare domain for DA, and keep the host consistent — with or without www — between readings.
An Ahrefs or Semrush screen will show a different number by design. Note which tool produced a figure before you record it, and re-read all competitors in the same tool when you compare again.
What actually improves DA — and what moves rankings?
DA rises only when Moz's next index finds more diverse, relevant linking domains pointing at your site — so the work is earning citations, not adjusting a setting. Legitimate movement is slow because the scale steepens as the score climbs.
- Record DA for your domain and for the page-one domains, in Moz, on the same day.
- Publish pages a relevant site can cite: original data, a working procedure, a sourced comparison.
- Earn links from sites in your field — a few relevant domains beat a long list of unrelated ones, and bought links can damage trust.
- Link internally to the URLs you want found, with anchors that name the destination.
- Disavow only obvious spam; leave unfamiliar links alone until you know what they are.
- Keep the site on HTTPS and its important URLs indexable — this adds no DA points, but it lets those URLs earn links.
- Re-read DA after a Moz index update and judge the gap versus page one, not the wiggle versus last month.
Rankings themselves follow query match, relevant citations and crawlability together. WebJi®'s SEO services name the pages, cities and reports in the monthly scope — they do not sell a DA target or a guaranteed position. If the real question is budget split, read Google Ads versus SEO before shifting spend because a score looked low.
Why does Domain Authority fluctuate or drop?
A DA drop is usually the index, not a punishment: Moz's crawl gains or loses linking domains between updates, and a comparative scale recalibrates when big sites gain links. Check whether the page-one competitors moved too before treating your drop as a penalty.
- Index updates: lost or newly discounted links move the model.
- Model changes: the 2019 DA 2.0 rebuild reset everyone at once.
- Your own link losses: a site that linked to you goes offline or removes the page.
- Domain expiry: if the name itself lapses the site goes dark — renew it first; the score is not the thing to fix. See the domain renewal guide.
If you want citation work under a written scope rather than a promised score, see link building services. Hosting changes and free migrations do not raise Domain Authority, and WebJi® does not promise a number.
Frequently asked questions
What is Domain Authority in SEO?
Domain Authority is Moz's 1-to-100 score for how likely a domain is to rank, based mainly on its backlink profile. It is a third-party estimate, not a Google measurement, and Google does not use it as a ranking factor.
How is Domain Authority calculated?
Moz trains a machine-learning model on its own link index. Linking root domains and their quality do most of the work, and the result is mapped onto a logarithmic 1-to-100 scale. New domains start at 1, and the DA 2.0 rebuild of 2019 replaced the earlier model.
Is a Domain Authority of 30 good?
Only context decides. Moz says 30 can be strong in one niche and weak in another. If the domains on page one for your query read between 18 and 32, your 30 is competitive; if they read 70, the same 30 is a long way back.
Does Google rank websites by Domain Authority?
No. Moz states plainly that DA is not a Google ranking factor, and Google has rejected a single site-authority score deciding results. Lower-DA pages outrank higher-DA ones every day when they match the query better.
How do I increase Domain Authority without buying links?
Publish pages worth citing, earn links from relevant sites, keep important URLs indexable, then wait for Moz's index to recrawl. Buying links risks the trust that both Google and Moz's model measure. No hosting change or panel setting moves the number.
Last editorial update: 15 November 2026.
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