Backlinks boost your site, but low-quality and spammy ones can pull it down by risking penalties and damaging your reputation in search results.

When harmful links pile up, it’s time to disavow them and take control of your site’s SEO health.

In this guide, we’ll show you when and how to disavow bad links to protect the ranking, reputation, and long-term visibility of your site.

Learn how to identify toxic links and keep your backlink profile clean in order to have a robust online presence.

What Is a Backlink Disavow?

A backlink disavow is a way to tell Google to ignore certain links pointing to your website. This helps protect your site from the negative impact of low-quality or spammy links on your SEO rankings.

Source: searchengineland

This tweet exchange shows Rowan Collins asking Google’s John Mueller if the disavow tool in Search Console might be removed. Mueller hints that it could be phased out eventually but avoids commenting further. This suggests Google may consider removing the tool in the future.

When and Why You Should Disavow Backlinks

Disavowing backlinks is a strategic move that can protect your site’s rankings, but it’s essential to know when it’s truly necessary. Here’s how to determine when to take action.

1. Identifying the Need

There are specific situations where disavowing backlinks becomes essential:

• Google Manual Penalty: If you’ve received a manual penalty from Google, disavowing harmful backlinks can help restore your site’s standing.
• Negative SEO: If competitors or malicious actors are linking low-quality sites to your page to damage your rankings, a disavowal can counteract these efforts.
• Influx of Spammy Links: An unusual rise in spammy or low-quality links pointing to your site is a clear sign that disavowing might be necessary.

2. Risks of Ignoring Harmful Links

Leaving harmful backlinks unchecked can have long-term consequences:

• Ranking Drops: Toxic links from spammy sites may signal low authority to Google, causing rankings to suffer.
• Site Reputation: Over time, links from low-quality sources can tarnish your site’s reputation, making it harder to recover SEO standing.

3. Use as a Last Resort

Disavowing backlinks should not be your go-to solution; instead, it’s a last resort for situations where:

• Direct Harm is Evident: Only disavow links that clearly hurt your SEO or after a Google penalty.
• Minor Spam is Tolerated: Google often ignores low-impact, spammy links on its own, so only use the disavow tool for genuinely damaging links.

Google even shares a warning on their Google Disavow Tool page.

Disavowing backlinks in a targeted, careful manner ensures your SEO efforts remain effective while protecting your site’s authority.

Disavowing vs. Removing Backlinks

Aspect	Disavowing Backlinks	Removing Backlinks
Purpose	Tells Google to ignore certain links pointing to your site	Physically deletes the link from the linking website
Control Over Links	You can disavow without webmaster permission	Requires contacting the webmaster to request link removal
Recommended Usage	Best for handling harmful links en masse or links you can’t remove	Ideal when you have a good relationship with the linking site
Effect on SEO	Helps avoid penalties from spammy or toxic links	Eliminates direct association with unwanted links, strengthening SEO

 

Types of Bad Backlinks to Disavow

A healthy backlink profile refers to the identification of toxic links. Here are some types of backlinks that you might want to consider disavowing to save the SEO performance of your site.

1. Spammy or Irrelevant Sites

Links from low-quality or unrelated sites can harm your SEO by signaling to search engines that your site is associated with spam or irrelevant content. These links often come from random or suspicious websites that offer little value and can negatively impact your authority.

2. Paid Links from Unreliable Sources (e.g., Fiverr or unvetted Link Agencies)

Paid links from platforms like Fiverr or other unverified link building agencies lack quality, and hence a penalty is triggered by Google. Such links are considered manipulative as they are often bought just for the sake of increasing rankings artificially instead of adding some value.

 

3. Negative SEO Links

Negative SEO links are maliciously created by competitors or spammers to pull down your site’s reputation. Most of these types of links originate on spammy or irrelevant sites with the intention of decreasing the credibility and rankings of your website. Disavowing such links can help prevent any potential impact on your SEO.

How to Identify Harmful Backlinks

Identify and address low-quality backlinks that could harm your SEO.

1. Using SEO Tools

Quickly spot and evaluate bad links using tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, and Google Search Console. These tools help identify harmful backlinks that could impact your SEO.

1. Using Ahrefs

Use Ahrefs to identify low-quality links impacting your SEO.

1. Open Ahrefs and Go to “Site Explorer”: Enter your website’s URL and click “Explore” to get an overview of your backlink profile.
2. Go to “Backlink Profile” > “Referring Domains”: Here, you’ll see a list of domains linking to your site. Focus on domains with a low DR (Domain Rating) or ones that don’t seem related to your niche.
3. Identify toxic links:  such as those from sites with a low Domain Rating, irrelevant or spammy websites, and unnatural anchor text patterns.
4. Use the “Spam Score” Filter (If Available): Ahrefs may highlight spammy or potentially harmful domains, making it easier to sort through the list.

 

 

This screenshot from Ahrefs shows how to select and disavow harmful backlinks by URL or domain to protect your site’s SEO.

2. Using SEMrush

SEMrush’s Backlink Audit Tool flags potentially harmful backlinks.

1. Log in to SEMrush and Open “Backlink Audit”: Enter your domain and access the “Backlink Audit” section, which provides a toxicity score for each backlink.
2. Set Up Your Audit Parameters: Configure the audit settings to receive regular updates. This will help you keep track of any new toxic links.
3. Review the “Toxic Score”: SEMrush assigns a toxicity score based on factors such as Domain Authority (DA), relevance, and anchor text patterns. A high toxicity score (60+ or marked as “Toxic”) suggests a link may be damaging.
4. Analyze Potentially Harmful Links: Look for links with very high toxicity scores, anchor text with overused keywords, or domains flagged as suspicious or unrelated.
5. Export Harmful Links: Export the toxic links list if you plan to disavow them. SEMrush makes it easy to download a file ready for disavowing.

 

 

To disavow harmful backlinks, use the disavow option under “Actions” to select specific domains or URLs. Choose which elements (IP, mirror pages, subpath) to include, then click “Move to Disavow” to finalize.

3. Using Google Search Console

Google Search Console helps spot suspicious links at no cost.

1. Access “Links” in Google Search Console: Navigate to Links > Top Linking Sites for an overview of domains linking to you.
2. Identify Suspicious Links: While Google doesn’t provide a toxicity score, you can manually check for red flags like frequent links from unrelated or low-quality sites, foreign domains, or unusual, spammy anchor text.
3. Download the Links Report: Click “Export External Links” to download a comprehensive list of your backlinks. From there, you can review them in a spreadsheet and highlight any that seem suspicious or potentially harmful.

 

2. Assessing Link Quality

Check for essential metrics to evaluate link quality:

• Domain Authority (DA) and Domain Rating (DR): Links from high DA or DR sites are typically more reputable and can positively impact your SEO. In contrast, links from low DA or DR sites may signal lower quality and could harm your rankings.
• Relevance: Ensure that linking sites are related to your industry. Irrelevant links can harm your backlink profile.
• Link Source Quality: Links from recognized, authoritative sites are valuable, while links from spammy directories or forums are not.

3. Spotting Patterns

Watch for these warning signs:

• Unrelated Industries: Links from sites that have nothing to do with your niche.
• Foreign-Language Sites: Links from sites in unrelated languages can appear spammy.
• Keyword-Stuffed Anchors: An overuse of exact-match keywords in anchor text can lead to penalties.

Example

Let’s say you’re analyzing links and spot several backlinks from low-quality directories unrelated to your niche. These links have low DA, irrelevant anchor text, and are from spammy sites. This is a clear case of backlinks that could harm your site, so it’s wise to add them to your disavow list.

The Step-by-Step Guide to Disavowing Backlinks

Here’s a simple, step-by-step process to disavow harmful backlinks and protect your site’s SEO.

Step 1: Create a List of Toxic Links

First, gather a list of suspicious links from reliable SEO tools.

• As we discussed in the previous section on identifying harmful backlinks, start by using tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Google Search Console<span style=”font-weight: 400;”> to export a list of suspicious links.
• Focus on toxic backlinks<span style=”font-weight: 400;”>, spammy sites, and irrelevant domains that could harm your SEO. If needed, use a backlink disavow tool to help with this process.

Step 2: Prepare a Disavow File

Next, set up a clear and organized disavow file in .txt format.

• Format the Disavow File: Open a plain text file (use .txt format). Add URLs and domains you wish to disavow.
  For entire domains, type: domain:example.com
  For specific URLs, type:  https://example.com/bad-link
• Keep the File Simple: Only include harmful links and avoid disavowing beneficial backlinks. Label each entry with domain or URL appropriately.

Step 3: Submit to Google’s Disavow Tool

Finally, submit your disavow file to Google through Search Console.

• Log into Google Search Console: Go to the Disavow Tool section.
• Upload Your Disavow File: Select your website, click on the disavow links option, and upload the prepared file.
• Confirm Submission: Google will review and process your file, which may take several weeks. Track changes in rankings and the effects on your backlink profile after disavowing.

 

Once you submit your disavow file, Google typically takes a few weeks to process it. However, seeing any impact on your rankings may take longer, as Google needs time to recrawl and reevaluate the links pointing to your site. Be patient; changes won’t happen overnight!

Things to Know Before Using the Disavow Tool

Google’s disavow tool can actually help your SEO efforts only if used carefully. Not all the bad-looking links prove to be bad; some may actually benefit your ranking sometimes. Disavowing some links does more harm than good.

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

🟢 Risk of Losing Good Links: Some low-quality links may still boost your rankings, so removing them could hurt your site’s SEO.

🟢 Closer Google Scrutiny: When you submit a disavow file, Google may look more closely at your backlink profile, which could impact how it views your site if there’s been past questionable link-building.

🟢 Difficult to Measure Impact: It’s hard to know if improvements are due to disavowing or other factors, like Google updates, competitor changes, or new content.

Can You Undo Disavowed Links?

Yes, you can reverse a disavow in Google Search Console by updating your file and removing links from it. But be cautious—Google may keep a record of previously disavowed links, even if you delete them.

Disavowing links isn’t a quick fix; it’s a careful action. Be certain before proceeding to avoid accidentally harming your site’s SEO.

Our White Hat Link Building Services at Outreach Monks

At Outreach Monks, we specialize in ethical white hat services designed to boost authority and organic growth on your site. Our team’s prime focus is to build authority and high-quality backlinks from trusted sources for lasting SEO results without fear of penalties.

Here’s what sets our services apart:

• High-Quality Backlinks: We secure links from relevant, authoritative sites that align with your industry.
• Custom Strategies: Each campaign is tailored to your unique needs and goals, ensuring impactful results.
• Content-Driven Approach: We create valuable, engaging content that naturally attracts links, boosting your site’s credibility.

With Outreach Monks, you can build a strong, sustainable backlink profile that drives lasting SEO success.

Conclusion: Disavowed Backlinks 

Disavowing backlinks is useful but should be used carefully. With the disavow tool possibly going away, focus on ethical and white-hat link-building. Regularly check your backlinks and follow Google’s rules to keep your site safe. 

Stay proactive with your SEO. Need link-building support? 

Reach out to Outreach Monks.

FAQs On Disavow Backlinks

Can disavowing links affect my site's local search rankings?

Disavowing links can impact both local and general search rankings if done incorrectly.

How can I identify if a link-building agency used manipulative tactics?

Check for sudden increases in low-quality backlinks or links from unrelated sites.

Will the removal of the disavow tool affect existing disavow files?

Existing disavow files should remain effective until Google changes its guidelines.

Is there a limit to how many links I can disavow at once?

Yes, Google allows a maximum file size of 2MB and up to 100,000 lines for disavow lists.

Can disavowing links help recover from an algorithm update penalty?

Disavowing links might help, but it's more effective to improve overall site quality and content.