As an SEO writer, the number of backlinks you should aim to acquire per day depends on several factors. The main considerations are your website’s current authority and ranking, your link building strategy, and your site’s topical relevance. While there is no universal “ideal” number, most experts recommend focusing on quality over quantity when building links.
What is a Backlink?
A backlink is any link from an external website that points back to a page on your own site. Backlinks are a signal to search engines that your content is valuable and worth ranking higher in results pages. The more relevant, authoritative backlinks your site has, the more trustworthy it appears to Google and other search engines.
Why are Backlinks Important for SEO?
Backlinks serve several key functions for SEO and search ranking:
- They help search bots crawl your site more efficiently.
- They pass ranking signals and authority from the external site to your own site.
- They show search engines your content is relevant and worth surfacing for related queries.
Because backlinks are so crucial for SEO, most experts recommend a deliberate link building strategy over passive link acquisition. Finding relevant, high-quality sites to earn backlinks from can directly improve your own site’s search visibility and ranking potential.
Ideal Daily Backlink Target for an Established Site
For a well-established site that already has decent authority and rankings, 5-10 relevant backlinks per day from a mix of sites is ideal. This helps consolidate your position without appearing overly aggressive or “spammy” to search engines:
- 2-3 links from strong, authoritative sites related to your niche
- 3-5 links from mid-tier industry publications, blogs, and directories
- A handful of links from diverse sources like local citations, forums, social shares etc.
The exact split can vary, but aiming for a thoughtful blend of strong and moderate domains keeps your anchor profile looking natural and avoids over-optimization penalties.
Ideal Daily Backlink Target for a New Site
When starting a new website, it takes time to build authority and start ranking for valuable keywords. During the initial growth phase, anywhere from 10-25+ backlinks per day is reasonable depending on your industry competitiveness and link velocity goals. Just ensure your links come from diverse, relevant sources.
Here is a sample new site daily link target:
- 5-10 links from directories, niche blogs, forums etc.
- 5-10 links from local citations, social shares, Q&A profiles
- 5-10 opportunistic outreach links from contacting webmasters
Casting a wide net early on helps new sites index important pages faster, establish initial domain authority signals, and start competing with incumbents. Just be sure to keep building additional links from reputable sources as you grow.
Beware of Diminishing Returns at Scale
While aims like “100 backlinks a day” sound impressive, more links does not always equal better results past a certain point. Each additional link provides less and less relative benefit as your site grows and matures. At large scale, poor quality links can even dilute your profile and trigger spam flags.
Keep your strategy focused on securing backlinks that provide maximum incremental ranking power and authority benefit. A few ultra authoritative editorial links often impact rankings more than 100s of weak directory submissions, for example. Always monitor link quality and relevance as you build volume.
Typical Backlink Acquisition Channels
Here are some of the most common website sections and assets you can earn backlinks from:
| Link Source | Example |
|---|---|
| Editorial content | Articles, blog posts, lists |
| Product pages | Recommended/related products |
| Service pages | Agency lists, best of guides |
| Tools/calculators | Estimators, savings tools |
| News sections | Latest news mentions |
| Profile pages | Team, author, bio pages |
| Industry directories | Relevant category listings |
Prioritize earning contextual editorial links from topically relevant websites over generic directory submissions, as they confer more ranking power. But use a mix of both editorial and directory links in your outreach.
Most Impactful Link Building Tactics
Certain link building tactics tend to deliver the mostvaluable backlinks:
Outreach for Guest Posts
Reaching out to site owners in your space to contribute guest posts with backlinks allows you to land quality, topically relevant links consistently. Pitch sites you genuinely want to publish on.
Roundup Pitches
Roundup posts linking out to top products/companies in an industry are common. Reach out to be included in relevant roundups for your niche.
Giveaways and Contests
Sponsoring contests and giveawings in exchange for links and exposure can generate buzz and backlinks from niche sites.
Infographic Promotion
Creating unique infographics and promoting them leading to placement on other sites works well to earn theme-relevant links at scale.
Niche Community Discussion
Start discussions and share expertise on active forums and communities in your industry. Include links where relevant.
Influencer Marketing
Work with influencers and thought leaders in your space to share your content leading to authoritative backlinks.
Link Insertion and Repurposing
Adapt existing successful content and submit/promote it leading to new backlinks from synergy sites.
Original Research and Data
Conduct surveys, studies, or compile datasets in your niche. Promote them to build buzz and links.
News-Based Link Building
Insert your site into trending stories via commentary, data contributions, or thought leadership to earn news links.
While not fully exhaustive, mastering a subset of these tactics can deliver consistent results at scale.
Avoiding Link Over-Optimization
When rapidly increasing links, avoid these common link-building pitfalls:
- Over-use of exact match anchor text links
- Excess reciprocal linking between sites
- Too many links from low-authority junk sites
- Automated link software, bots, or services
- Same anchor text links from multiple domains
Natural link profiles use varied anchor text, mixed link types, and come from many domains. Keep your efforts looking organic.
Using a Blended Link Building Approach
The most effective link building strategy combines:
- Proactive outreach and promotion to earn new quality links
- Monitoring competitors to find new opportunities
- Technology like rank trackers to identify new link prospects
- Automation to streamline outreach where practical
Blending manual outreach with savvy technology use makes scaling link acquisition easier long-term.
Conclusion
Determining the ideal daily links target depends on your site’s current state and goals. While 10 or more is reasonable for new sites, established sites can stick to 5-10 quality links daily from diverse sources. Focus on building links naturally from sites with topical relevance vs. spammy patterns. Monitor progress and adjust link velocity as needs and conditions dictate.
