All termsGROWTH & ACQUISITION

Backlinks

DEFINITION

External links from other websites pointing to yours — the single strongest ranking signal outside of content quality.

In depth

Backlinks are a trust signal: every link from a reputable site tells Google the target is worth linking to. One link from a domain like Forbes is worth thousands from no-name blogs.

Earned backlinks come from things worth linking to: free tools, original research, datasets, strong opinions. Spam tactics don't work — Google penalises them.

Related terms

SEO
The discipline of earning free organic traffic from search engines by matching user intent with high-quality, well-structured content.

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Last reviewed 14 April 2026 by Abhi Verma.