How to do a backlink analysis - Quick, Simple and Effective

How to do a backlink analysis

Updated: March 30, 2026
Published: March 30, 2026

Lukas Rasmussen SEO Lead @ Morningscore.io

Key Takeaways

Chances are you have just read about what a backlink analysis is, and now want to know how to do it. Maybe you already know what a backlink analysis is and are looking for an example to get some inspiration.

Either way you have come to the right place, as I will guide you through a backlink analysis.

Why Backlinks Still Matter in 2026

Before we dive into the how-to, it’s important to understand why backlink analysis remains critical. According to Search Engine Land’s 2025 research, backlinks remain an important contextual ranking signal even as Google’s algorithms evolve.

A 2024 systematic review on SEO effectiveness found backlinks to be a significant ranking factor alongside content quality and keyword optimization. Industry analysis shows that backlinks deliver measurable benefits: referral traffic, faster indexing, and credibility signals that AI-driven search systems rely on.

As Moz’s 2026 expert predictions emphasize, the shift is from link volume to link quality – topical relevance and brand trust now matter more than raw link counts. That means your analysis must focus on editorial quality, not just metrics.

How do I find links for a backlink analysis?

To find who links to your site, you will need to use an SEO tool. An SEO tool will make this process efficient and fast.

There are plenty of SEO tools to choose from. Ahrefs, SEMrush, Moz, and our own Morningscore, which are mentioned as one of the best link building software in 2026, all have features that will help you start a backlink analysis and continue tracking just the important factors from there on.

The price range can vary greatly between them and which one is best for you depends on the amount of time you plan to use on SEO, and which features you are interested in.

Most of these tools have their own way of measuring a website’s link profile. Ahrefs uses DR, Moz uses DA and Morningscore has Linkscore. Picking one comes down to preference. What is important here is to avoid comparing links using different metrics. Pick one and stick to it when determining link authority.

Moz’s foundational link-building guides explain the role of proprietary metrics (Domain Authority, Page Authority) in assessing backlink quality – these help you prioritize which links to pursue in your audits.

We will be using Morningscore for the following example.

In Morningscore’s link tool, scroll down to “All links”. Here you will be able to see all of your inbound links and their metrics. Among these metrics are:

You are able to search for a specific domain, sort by the metrics or export all the data.

Understanding the Morningscore link metrics

Morningscore uses its own unique metrics to compare websites and link value in its link tool.
These are Linkscore (which is a similar metric to Ahrefs’ DR and Moz’s DA) and link popularity.

What is linkscore and how does it work?

The first thing you will notice in a link report is your Linkscore. Linkscore is your number one indicator of link building efficiency. This is the global position of your website compared to every other website on the internet. It is determined by the number and value of your backlinks.

Keeping an eye on your Linkscore history is an easy way of checking up on your link building progress.

What is link popularity?

Right below your Linkscore, you can see your link popularity. Link popularity is just a fancy word for all the links contributing to your Linkscore. By scrolling down to “All links” you get an overview of all the domains that link to you and their value (or domain authority).

The higher their value, the higher the amount of link equity they will pass on to you. Keep an eye on the value of your links to figure out which links give you the most equity, so you know which type of links to spend your time on in your future link building activities.

Populating the all links list with as many high-value domains is your number one goal. Your next two are keeping the good links and removing the bad ones.

How to get an overview of my backlink analysis activity?

Using Morningscore’s link tool you can get a clear overview of all the new backlinks and all the lost ones for a given period of time.

Keeping an eye on this section will help you identify new links from non-desirable sites (bad links) fast. You will also be notified as soon as one of your link building activities is successful or when you lost a link.

Losing links is normal, but it is important to check each lost link in case it was removed by mistake and start the reclamation process during your backlink analysis.

How to do a backlink analysis (quick, simple & effective)?

To analyze your backlink profile, you will need an SEO tool. Feel free to use whatever you prefer, but we will continue using Morningscore in our examples.

In Morningscore, click on the “Links” tab at the top of the page.

What we will focus mostly on here is checking how natural your link profile is and what you should focus on in the future. A systematic backlink analysis in 2026 should prioritize link quality, topical relevance, and risk identification over raw link counts.

Check your linkscore

Linkscore is used to compare your website to all the other websites in the whole world. It is calculated based on the number of strong links pointing to your website. The higher it is, the easier it will be for you to rank.

Whether your Linkscore is good or bad depends on the size of your company and your industry.
A good rule of thumb is that a small to medium sized company usually ranks from 500 – 5000, where 5000+ would be a really good Linkscore.

Also, check if there is a positive or a negative change since you started with your link building activities.

Check your anchor texts

Using only anchor texts that are an exact match to your keyword can create a whole load of problems.

Imagine if you didn’t put any effort into link building and just sat and waited for links to come in naturally (this is what Google expects of you anyway).

Now, how many do you imagine would have the same anchor text, with just one keyword or keyword phrases, linking to the same webpage? Not many, I can tell you.

So, we need to focus a bit on the anchor text ratio.

Most of your links should use an anchor text that is either the brand name, the URL it links to or a generic word like “here”, “Read more”, or “this link”. I am talking about at least 80% (some say up to 95%).

The rest should be distributed between anchor texts that are an exact match (just the keyword) and broad match phrases (a phrase that includes the keyword). With these last two types, always remember – less is more.

“Prioritize editorial relevance over volume. In 2026, search algorithms favor links that demonstrate genuine expertise and topical authority.” – Rand Fishkin, as cited in Moz’s 2026 SEO expert predictions

There are two scenarios when it comes to the anchor text ratio:

  1. You are just starting off with link building and don’t have many backlinks
    If you only have a couple of backlinks, it will be easy to quickly check their anchor text in Morningscore while performing your backlink analysis.

Just scroll down to “All links” in the link tool and click through all the links. Only the keyword anchor texts are important here. Write down any exact or broad match keyword you find and the page on your domain it is linking to.

This should give you a general idea of how high of a percentage matches your keywords when compared to the total number of your backlinks.

  1. Your website already has many backlinks and you don’t have in-depth data for them
    In this case, you will need an in-depth tool for your backlink analysis to help you out.

I would recommend Ahrefs in this case. Ahrefs offers a 7-day trial for $7, which will give you limited access to test the tool and decide if it’s something you need regularly. They also have a Starter plan at $29/month if you want ongoing access at an affordable price.

Consider earning your Ahrefs Certification to validate your proficiency with their backlink audit features – recognized industry training signals expertise to clients and stakeholders.

After setting up your account, look up your domain and choose “Anchors” from the left side menu.

What you are looking for here are exact and broad match keywords that you are trying to rank for.

In this example it’s “website design”, “web design london”, “web design” and “website design london”. And what we can see here is that together they make up almost 38%, which is way too high.

In this case I would focus on building backlinks that use generic keywords and phrases (like “click here”), brand name and URL as anchor text. Ethical link-building best practices recommend diversifying anchor text through natural outreach and digital PR, not bulk directory submissions.

Be mindful that the anchor text ratio is page specific, so check each individual page you are building backlinks for.

Distribution of backlinks in your backlink analysis strategy

Every time you optimize a page you should also build a couple of backlinks for it, and a couple of internal links from the new page to the old ones (and vice versa) to spread the link equity.

Having backlinks only to your homepage is not a sign of a natural link profile. It is also a good way to create a link equity bottleneck as you will not be able to give your other webpages a proper boost in ranking.

Industry workflow guides recommend exporting your “Top Pages by Referring Domains” report to identify which pages receive the most links, then audit whether your priority pages (money pages, pillar content) are underlinked.

Advanced Backlink Analysis: What Experts Track in 2026

Beyond basic metrics, experienced SEO practitioners monitor additional signals to catch risks early and identify opportunities. Here’s what to layer into your regular audits:

1. Link velocity and sudden spikes

A sudden influx of backlinks (especially from low-authority sites) can trigger algorithmic scrutiny. Export your “New Links” report monthly and flag any week with >20% growth that you didn’t initiate through outreach or PR campaigns.

2. Indexation status of linking pages

If a page linking to you is de-indexed or returns a 404, that link passes zero equity. Use a bulk URL checker (Ahrefs Site Explorer > Backlinks > filter by HTTP status) to identify broken or non-indexed linking pages quarterly.

3. Topical relevance and editorial context

Moz’s 2026 industry analysis highlights that AI-driven search prioritizes topical authority – a link from a relevant, editorially curated article outperforms ten links from unrelated blogs. Manually review your top 20 referring domains to confirm topical alignment.

4. Backlinks and AI-driven visibility

Backlinks now influence more than traditional SERPs. A 2025 T-RANKS case study documented that backlink profile improvements contributed to multi-million impression gains in Google AI Overviews and LLM citations over 12 months. Track impressions and clicks from AI-generated SERP features in Google Search Console to measure this emerging benefit.

Tools & Recommended Certifications

To build trust and demonstrate proficiency, consider earning industry-recognized certifications. These validate your technical knowledge and provide verifiable credentials:

Displaying these certifications in your author bio or agency site footer strengthens your E-E-A-T signals. Award disclosures and verified credentials also increase reader trust.

Step-by-Step Backlink Analysis Workflow (Reproducible)

Here’s the exact sequence I use across client audits, adapted from Promodo’s practical backlink analysis guide:

Step 1: Export your complete backlink inventory

Tools: Google Search Console (Links report) + your chosen SEO tool (Morningscore, Ahrefs, SEMrush)

Step 2: Apply quality filters

Flag for review if:

Step 3: Calculate anchor-text distribution

Export your anchor-text report and classify each into: Brand/URL (should be 80-95%), Generic (“click here,” “read more”), Exact-match keyword, Broad-match phrase, Other.

If exact + broad match exceeds 20%, prioritize acquiring brand and generic anchors in your next campaigns.

Step 4: Identify removal/disavow candidates

For links flagged in Step 2, attempt direct removal (contact webmaster via WHOIS or contact form). If removal fails after 2 follow-ups, add the domain to a disavow file.

Submit your disavow file via Google Search Console only after removal efforts are exhausted – Google advises caution with this tool.

Step 5: Track KPIs over time

Set up a simple monthly dashboard:

Modern backlink analysis guides recommend exporting these KPIs to a shared spreadsheet so your team can spot anomalies (sudden link loss, traffic drop) within days, not months.

Ethical Link Building & Risk Management

Not all backlinks are created equal, and some can actively harm your rankings. Search Engine Land’s analysis of backlink importance confirms that Google penalizes link schemes while rewarding editorial, contextually relevant placements.

Industry-published ethical link-building guides recommend focusing on digital PR, guest contributions to authoritative publications, and creating linkable assets (original research, tools, comprehensive guides) rather than purchasing links or using Private Blog Networks (PBNs).

Marie Haynes, a recognized authority on penalty recovery and backlink audits ( cited in industry expert roundups), emphasizes manual review of your riskiest links during audits – automated metrics alone won’t catch every toxic link pattern.

Final words

I hope this article gave you some of what you needed in terms of a backlink analysis. If you want to further expand your knowledge about backlinks, you should read this.

If you want to know the difference between a good and bad link, this might also be a good read.

For deeper technical understanding of link types, anchor text, and quality evaluation frameworks, explore Moz’s comprehensive links and link-building guide.

FAQ

How to effectively manage and prioritize backlinks for removal or disavowal?

Prioritize backlinks for removal or disavowal based on their spam score, relevance to your niche, and the quality of the linking domain. Use tools like Google’s Disavow Tool cautiously to disavow backlinks only when direct removal requests to the linking site’s webmasters fail.

A documented penalty-recovery case shows the exact workflow: full audit, prioritized outreach (starting with highest-risk links), disavow submission, then reconnection request. The site recovered 95% of traffic within 5 months by following this sequence methodically.

Can the effectiveness of a backlink from a specific domain change over time, and how should one monitor and adapt to these changes?

The value of a backlink can indeed change as domains gain or lose authority and relevance. Regularly monitoring your backlink profile with SEO tools helps identify and adapt to these changes, ensuring your backlink strategy remains effective.

Set calendar reminders to re-audit your top 50 referring domains quarterly. If a previously strong domain experiences a DR/DA drop of >10 points or gets de-indexed, its link equity to your site diminishes – you’ll need to compensate by acquiring new links from stable, authoritative sources.

What are the specific risks associated with over-optimizing anchor text, and how can one recover from penalties related to it?

Over-optimized anchor text can lead to penalties from search engines, as it may appear manipulative. If penalized, diversify your anchor text distribution and focus on more natural, relevant linking practices during your regular backlink analysis. Review and adjust your backlinks’ anchor text to be more in line with your content’s context and user expectations.

Moz’s link-building research suggests that exact-match anchor text above 15-20% of total links correlates with higher manual-action risk. Recovery requires new link acquisition with brand/generic anchors to dilute the ratio, plus disavowing the most egregious exact-match links if removal isn’t possible.