# Domain Rating vs Domain Authority: What's the Difference? > Domain Rating (Ahrefs) and Domain Authority (Moz) are both backlink strength metrics — but they measure different things and should not be conflated. This… Source: https://elitedigitalagency.io/blog/what-is-domain-rating-vs-domain-authority/ Format: Markdown mirror of the HTML page (text/markdown). Content is identical; the canonical, citable version is the HTML source URL above. --- SEO & AEO # Domain Rating vs Domain Authority: What's the Difference? Domain Rating (Ahrefs) and Domain Authority (Moz) are both backlink strength metrics — but they measure different things and should not be conflated. This guide explains what each measures and how to use them. By Kaiser Khan · 28 August 2026 · 7 min read Last verified: 28 August 2026 domain rating vs domain authoritywhat is domain ratingwhat is domain authorityDA vs DR SEO Direct Answer Domain Rating (DR) is Ahrefs' proprietary metric measuring the strength of a website's backlink profile on a logarithmic scale of 0–100. Domain Authority (DA) is Moz's equivalent metric, also 0–100. Neither is a Google metric — Google does not publish a 'domain authority' score. Both predict ranking potential based on backlink profile strength, but they use different algorithms and index different data, so the same website can have notably different scores on each platform. DR and DA are useful for benchmarking and comparing websites' link strength, but they should not be treated as Google's view of your site's authority. The proliferation of DA and DR as proxy metrics for SEO strength has led to a common misconception: that improving your DA or DR score is an SEO goal. It is not — it is an indicator. The actual goal is ranking higher for commercially relevant keywords and generating more organic traffic. DA and DR are useful because websites with higher scores tend to rank more easily, but chasing a DA or DR number without connecting it to actual ranking and traffic outcomes is a common mistake in SEO reporting. ## Domain Rating vs Domain Authority: key differences - Creator — DR is Ahrefs; DA is Moz; neither is Google - Calculation — both are based primarily on the quantity and quality of backlinks, but their specific algorithms differ significantly - Index size — Ahrefs has the largest live backlink index; Moz's index is smaller; DR and DA can differ significantly for the same domain because they are seeing different link data - Scale — both use 0–100 logarithmic scales; a jump from DR 20 to DR 30 is easier than from DR 60 to DR 70; the scale is not linear - Volatility — Ahrefs' DR can move quickly as their crawl updates; Moz's DA updates less frequently - Industry standard — DR is more widely referenced by UK SEO professionals in 2026; DA remains more visible in general marketing contexts ## When to use DR and DA - Link prospecting — evaluating the quality of potential link targets; a DR 40+ site is typically worth pursuing for link outreach - Competitor analysis — benchmarking your backlink strength against competitors; DR gap analysis shows how much link building is needed to close the gap - Link quality evaluation — assessing whether a site linking to you (or that you are considering linking from) has meaningful backlink authority - Client reporting — providing a simple, comparable metric for backlink profile strength over time; show DR trend month-over-month as one indicator of link building progress Talk to us about link building and SEO strategy What is a good DR or DA score for a UK website? Context matters enormously. A local service business (plumber, solicitor, restaurant) can rank highly in local search with DR 20–35 if its Google Business Profile and local SEO are strong. A national eCommerce retailer competing with established brands needs DR 40–60+ to compete for high-volume head terms. An enterprise business competing against BBC, NHS, or major financial brands needs DR 65+ to compete in the same search space. Rather than targeting a specific DR number, compare your DR to the DR of websites currently ranking for your target keywords — the gap tells you how much link building is needed to compete. Does Google use Domain Rating or Domain Authority? No. Google does not use DR, DA, or any external metric in its ranking algorithm. Google has its own PageRank algorithm (which measures link equity flow through its index) but does not publish site-level PageRank scores to the public. DR and DA are third-party predictions of ranking potential based on backlink analysis — they correlate meaningfully with Google rankings but are not causal and not used by Google directly. This is important to remember when evaluating SEO agency reports that focus heavily on DA/DR improvement — these metrics should move as a result of effective link building, but they are indicators, not goals. ### Ready to improve your SEO? Get a free consultation from our expert team. Talk to us ### What to do next ### Tags domain rating vs domain authoritywhat is domain ratingwhat is domain authorityDA vs DR SEO KK Kaiser Khan Founder & Director · Elite Digital Agency Kaiser Khan is the founder of Elite Digital Agency (Elite Digital AI Solutions Ltd). He specialises in SEO, Answer Engine Optimisation, and AI search strategy for UK businesses and charities. 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