Ahrefs’ Domain Authority Explained: What SEO Pros on Reddit Say

Introduction — based on Reddit discussions

This article synthesizes a long Reddit thread where SEO practitioners debated what ahrefs' domain authority means, how it behaves, and what actually moves the needle. Below you’ll find the consensus views, points of disagreement, practical tips shared by experienced SEOs, plus two expert-level insights that go beyond the original discussion.

What people agreed on

Across the thread there was broad agreement on several core points about Ahrefs’ metric (commonly referred to in conversation as “domain authority” even though Ahrefs calls it Domain Rating (DR)):

It’s a proxy, not a direct ranking signal. Most commenters emphasized that DR is a proprietary strength metric based on Ahrefs’ backlink index. It helps estimate a site’s backlink profile strength but isn’t a Google ranking factor in itself.
Referring domains matter most. The number of unique referring root domains is the primary driver. Multiple links from the same domain are less valuable than links from different domains.
Quality > quantity. Links from sites with strong backlink profiles and fewer outbound links yield more value than many low-quality or spammy referring domains.
The metric is on a 0–100 log scale. Small numerical gains are much harder once you’re at the higher end of the scale; moving from 20 to 30 is easier than moving from 60 to 70.
Ahrefs and Moz metrics are different beasts. Don’t treat DR as a drop-in replacement for Moz’s Domain Authority (DA). Both are comparative measures but use different indexes and formulas.

Key disagreements from the thread

Even with consensus on basics, Redditors debated several points:

Nofollow links and their impact: Some argued Ahrefs ignores nofollow links in DR calculations; others reported seeing nofollowed links show up in their index and thought some weight may still be applied. The reality: Ahrefs indexes nofollow links but their role in DR is limited or treated differently from dofollow links.
Effect of disavows: A portion of commenters mistakenly thought Google disavows would reduce DR. In practice, disavowing affects Google’s perception, not Ahrefs’s index. Removing or disavowing links won’t remove them from Ahrefs’ data, so DR doesn’t reliably reflect a disavow.
Internal linking and technical signals: Some believed aggressive internal linking could raise DR; others pushed back, pointing out DR is a domain-level backlink metric and internal links alone won’t move it meaningfully.
Redirects and subdomains: There were mixed reports about whether links to subdomains or redirected links contribute the same as root domain links; the consensus: links to subdomains count separately unless canonicalized or redirected to the root, and redirects can consolidate equity but take time and depend on implementation.

Specific, practical tips that Reddit SEOs shared

Thread contributors shared many tactical approaches. Here are the ones most often recommended:

Prioritize new referring domains: Outreach should target sites that will give you a new root domain linking in. One quality link from a relevant site beats several links from the same source.
Focus on linkable assets: Create content that naturally attracts links: original research, data roundups, long-form guides, interactive tools, or industry reports.
Use classic outreach tactics: Guest posts, broken-link building, resource page placements, and HARO were repeatedly recommended.
Watch the quality signals: Check the linking site’s organic traffic, their own backlink profile, topical relevance, and likelihood of editorial placement rather than user-generated links.
Don’t waste time on disavowing solely to improve DR: Disavows are a Google remediation tool, not a way to tidy up Ahrefs data.
Be patient and consistent: DR moves slowly for established domains; sudden spikes often come from big link campaigns or index updates rather than gradual improvements.

How Ahrefs likely calculates its metric (explained simply)

Reddit users with technical backgrounds summarized Ahrefs’ public hints and well-accepted SEO theory into a simplified model:

Ahrefs indexes links and counts unique referring root domains.
Each linking page contributes some “link equity” based on the linking page’s own backlinks, and that equity is distributed across outbound links (a PageRank-like model).
Domain-level figures aggregate link equity for a domain, normalize it within Ahrefs’ index, and convert it to a 0–100 log scale.
Because the metric is relative to Ahrefs’ index, a global refresh or index expansion can cause many sites to move even when their raw link counts haven’t changed.

How to use Ahrefs DR sensibly

From the Reddit discussion and common industry practice, here’s how pros recommend using the metric:

Competitive research: Compare DR across competitors to gauge who has a stronger backlink footprint.
Prospecting for links: Use DR as a filter to find potentially valuable targets, but always follow up with manual checks (relevance, traffic, link placements).
Not a single KPI: Don’t optimize only for DR. Track organic traffic, keyword visibility, and conversions along with referring domain growth.

Expert Insight #1 — Prioritizing link opportunities

Many Reddit comments recommended chasing high-DR sites. As an expert addition: prioritize link opportunities using a weighted scoring model. Consider at least five factors per prospect: DR, organic traffic, topical relevance, link placement (editorial > footer), and likelihood of follow. Score each 1–5 and prioritize prospects with the highest composite. This prevents wasting outreach on high-DR sites that send no traffic or are irrelevant to your niche.

Expert Insight #2 — Technical consolidation to reflect true strength

If your site has multiple subdomains or scattered canonical signals, your backlink profile may be fragmented across variants, limiting DR growth. Audit canonical tags, 301 redirects, Hreflang (if international), and sitemap entries to ensure links consolidate to your preferred root or www/non-www version. After consolidation, expect Ahrefs to eventually reflect the combined link equity — and that can help your perceived domain strength.

Practical checklist to improve the metric (and real SEO outcomes)

Create at least one high-value linkable asset per quarter (data study, tool, long-form guide).
Run an outreach cadence: identify, personalize, and follow up with 50 prospects per month using the weighted scoring model.
Fix technical fragmentations: canonicalize, redirect, and consolidate domain versions.
Monitor growth in referring domains weekly; correlate spikes or drops with specific campaigns or index updates.
Track conversions and organic traffic, not DR alone; prioritize links that bring referral or organic visitors.

Common myths busted

Myth: DR is a Google ranking signal. Fact: It is an Ahrefs metric that correlates with ranking ability but isn’t used by Google.
Myth: Disavowing or removing links will immediately change DR. Fact: Ahrefs’ index is independent; removing links from Google’s view won’t reliably remove them from Ahrefs’ data.
Myth: You can easily buy your way to a high DR. Fact: Large-scale spammy links can temporarily inflate metrics but long-term DR is sustained by diverse high-quality referring domains and can be penalized by Google for manipulative patterns.

Final Takeaway

Ahrefs’ domain authority (commonly referenced as DR) is a useful comparative metric for backlink strength and prospecting, but it is a proxy — not a ranking magic switch. Reddit SEOs largely agreed on fundamentals: unique referring domains and link quality drive the metric, patience is required, and technical consolidation helps. Use DR as a screening tool, not your only KPI. Prioritize building diverse, relevant links that also drive real traffic and conversions, and validate every target with manual checks beyond the metric.

Read the full Reddit discussion here.