How to Check the DA of a Website (Domain Authority Explained)
Domain Authority (DA) is one of those metrics that shows up constantly in SEO conversations, but plenty of people aren't entirely sure what it measures, where it comes from, or how to actually pull the number for any given site. Here's a clear breakdown of what DA is, how to check it, and what the number actually tells you — and doesn't.
What Is Domain Authority?
Domain Authority is a predictive score developed by Moz that estimates how likely a website is to rank in search engine results pages (SERPs). The scale runs from 1 to 100 — higher scores suggest stronger ranking potential, lower scores suggest less.
A few important clarifications upfront:
- DA is not a Google metric. Google does not use it, acknowledge it, or factor it into rankings.
- It's a third-party estimate, calculated by Moz using their own link index and algorithm.
- It's most useful as a comparative tool — comparing your site against competitors, or evaluating a potential backlink source.
Similar scores exist from other platforms: Ahrefs calls theirs Domain Rating (DR), and Semrush uses Authority Score. These are related concepts but calculated differently, so the numbers won't always match across tools.
How to Check the DA of Any Website 🔍
Method 1: Moz Link Explorer (the original source)
Since DA is a Moz metric, their own tool is the most direct way to check it.
- Go to Moz Link Explorer (moz.com/link-explorer)
- Enter the full URL of the website you want to check
- The DA score appears prominently in the results dashboard
Free Moz accounts get a limited number of monthly queries. Paid plans unlock bulk checks and deeper data.
Method 2: MozBar (Browser Extension)
Moz offers a free Chrome extension called MozBar that overlays DA scores directly onto search results and web pages as you browse. This is useful for quick, on-the-fly checks without opening a separate tool. Once installed and logged into your Moz account, the DA displays automatically on any page you visit.
Method 3: Bulk DA Checkers
Several third-party websites offer free bulk DA lookups — useful when you need to check multiple domains at once, such as when vetting a list of link-building prospects. These tools typically pull from Moz's API, so the data should align closely with direct Moz results. Common examples include tools marketed specifically as "bulk DA checkers" or "SEO analysis tools."
Method 4: All-in-One SEO Platforms
If you're already using a platform like Semrush, Ahrefs, or Majestic, those tools display their own domain-level authority metrics alongside DA equivalents. While not technically "DA," these scores serve the same comparative purpose and are often viewed alongside each other in professional SEO workflows.
What the Score Actually Means
| DA Range | General Interpretation |
|---|---|
| 1–20 | New or low-authority site |
| 21–40 | Developing authority, niche presence |
| 41–60 | Moderate authority, established presence |
| 61–80 | Strong authority, competitive in most niches |
| 81–100 | Top-tier authority (major publications, platforms) |
These ranges are general benchmarks, not guarantees. A DA of 45 doesn't promise page-one rankings. A DA of 15 doesn't mean a site is low-quality — it might simply be new.
What Factors Influence DA?
Moz calculates DA based primarily on link data — specifically:
- Total number of linking root domains (unique sites linking to your domain)
- Quality and authority of those linking domains
- MozRank and MozTrust signals from their proprietary link index
It's a logarithmic scale, which means moving from DA 20 to DA 30 is significantly easier than moving from DA 70 to DA 80.
DA does not directly account for on-page content quality, technical SEO health, page speed, or user engagement. Those factors matter enormously for actual rankings — but they're not what this particular score measures.
Why DA Fluctuates
Many site owners notice their DA drops even when they haven't done anything negative. This is usually because:
- Moz periodically recalculates its entire index, which can shift scores across the board
- Competitors in your niche gained more links, shifting the relative scale
- Some previously counted backlinks were lost or devalued
A sudden drop in DA isn't automatically a red flag — but a sudden drop combined with a drop in organic traffic is worth investigating more carefully.
Variables That Change How Useful DA Is for You 📊
How much weight you should give the DA metric depends heavily on context:
- Your niche: In highly competitive industries (finance, health, tech), a DA of 50 might be unremarkable. In a narrow local or topical niche, the same score could represent a dominant site.
- Your goal: Using DA to evaluate a potential backlink source is different from using it to benchmark your own growth.
- Which tool you're using: Moz DA, Ahrefs DR, and Semrush Authority Score won't always agree — knowing which metric a client or colleague is referencing matters.
- How recently the data was refreshed: Moz updates its index regularly, but there's always some lag between real-world link changes and score updates.
A brand-new blog and an enterprise media company are both starting their DA journey at different points — and what counts as meaningful progress looks entirely different depending on where a site currently sits and what it's competing against.