Domain Authority (DA)
Score predicting how well a website will rank in search results
Definition
Domain Authority (DA) is a search engine ranking score developed by Moz that predicts how likely a domain is to rank in search results. It ranges from 1 to 100, with higher scores indicating greater ranking potential. DA is calculated using multiple factors including number of quality backlinks, linking root domains, and overall link profile quality. It's a comparative metric—a score of 40 isn't 'good' or 'bad' in isolation; it's relative to competitors. DA should be used to compare competing websites or track your own site's 'ranking strength' over time, not as an absolute Google ranking factor (Google doesn't use DA in their algorithm, but the signals DA measures do influence rankings).
Real-World Example
A new AI marketing blog launches with DA 1. After 6 months of publishing high-quality content and earning backlinks from 15 industry websites, DA increases to 23. A competitor blog with DA 45 (built over 5 years with 200+ backlinks from high-authority sources) still outranks them for competitive keywords, demonstrating DA's predictive value for relative ranking potential.
Related Terms
Backlink
Technical & SEOIncoming hyperlink from one website to another
Page Authority (PA)
Technical & SEOScore predicting how well a specific page will rank in search results
SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
Technical & SEOPractice of optimizing websites to rank higher in search engine results
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