22 Types of Backlinks You Need to Know for Link Building!
Backlinks are important for SEO, but not every link will help your website grow. In fact, some types of backlinks can actually lower your rankings if you’re not careful.
The key is knowing which links to go after and which ones to avoid.
In this guide, we’ll cover the most valuable types of backlinks that can improve your SEO and the ones you should avoid to keep your site safe and growing.
Ready? Let’s get started!
What Are Backlinks?
Backlinks, also known as inbound links or incoming links, are links from one website that point to another website. When another site links to yours, it’s considered a backlink.
Backlinks are an important factor in search engine optimization (SEO) because they signal to search engines like Google that your content is valuable, trustworthy, and relevant.
Why do Backlinks Matter for Better SEO?
Backlinks are important for SEO because they show search engines that your content is useful and trusted.
The more good backlinks you have from related websites, the more your site can improve in search rankings.
As this graph shows, top-ranking pages typically have a greater number of backlinks compared to lower-ranking pages.
The 4 Main Types of Backlinks
To boost your SEO, it is essential to learn the main types of backlinks. Each type helps boost your site’s authority and search rankings in different ways.
Below are the four primary types of backlinks, along with examples of how they appear in code.
1. Dofollow Backlinks
Dofollow backlinks pass authority (also called “link juice”) from the linking site to yours and are highly valuable for SEO, as they directly impact your search rankings. The search engine views these backlinks as signals of credibility, thus increasing authority.
Dofollow links are links without a rel attribute in the HTML. They appear like this:
<a href=”https://yourwebsite.com”>Check out this amazing resource!</a>
2. Nofollow Backlinks
Nofollow backlinks tell search engines not to pass any link juice. While they don’t directly contribute to SEO rankings, they can still drive traffic and increase brand awareness.
Nofollow backlinks use the rel=”nofollow” attribute in the HTML:
<a href=”https://yourwebsite.com” rel=”nofollow”>This is a nofollow link.</a>
3. Sponsored Backlinks
Sponsored backlinks((also known as paid links)) come from paid promotions, such as collaborations or sponsored posts. It’s important to tag these links as “sponsored” to comply with search engine guidelines, or you risk penalties.
These links use the rel=”sponsored” attribute:
<a href=”https://yourwebsite.com” rel=”sponsored”>Sponsored Link to Great Product</a>
4. UGC (User-Generated Content) Backlinks
UGC backlinks are links created by users, such as comments on blogs or forum posts. They should be labeled as “UGC” to differentiate them from editorial content.
These links include the rel=”ugc” attribute:
<a href=”https://yourwebsite.com” rel=”ugc”>This is a link in a user comment.</a>
Including the right mix of these backlink types in your strategy can improve your SEO performance and strengthen your backlink profile.
🔒 Noreferrer & Noopener Links
Noreferrer and Noopener links are HTML attributes used to enhance security when linking to external websites.
- Noreferrer prevents the passing of referral information to the linked site, which keeps the origin of the traffic hidden.
- Noopener ensures that the linked site cannot run scripts that could potentially take control of your original page.
Using these attributes in external links helps protect your site from potential security vulnerabilities.
<a href=”https://example.com” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Secure External Link</a>
Backlinks That Help Your Site Rank Higher
Here are some types of backlinks that can positively influence your SEO, often contributing directly to higher rankings.
5) Guest Post Backlinks
Guest post backlinks are gained by adding useful content to another person’s website or blog. Guest posting helps you reach more people, advertise your brand, and get good backlinks.
A good guest post link-building strategy can significantly help elevate your site’s SEO by bringing important and relevant backlinks from trusted websites in your niche.
For those just getting started, here’s a list of free guest posting sites you can use to start building your backlink profile without any cost. These sites offer great opportunities to expand your reach and build your authority.
6) Editorial Backlinks
Editorial backlinks are earned when a website naturally links to your content because they find it valuable and informative. These backlinks often come from authoritative sites, like news platforms and popular blogs.
Websites such as HubSpot, TechCrunch, Forbes, and Vogue (usually with a Domain Rating of 80+) are examples of where these powerful backlinks can come from.
Outreach Monks has successfully secured editorial backlinks from HubSpot.
One easy way to get editorial backlinks is by using platforms like HARO, which connect experts with journalists.
By offering a unique perspective backed by data, you increase your chances of being mentioned in reputable publications.
7) Business Profile Backlinks
Business profile backlinks are links generated through profile creation on directories or business listing websites including Google My Business, Yelp, and industry-specific directories. Such links enhance your online presence, improve local SEO, and drive traffic to your website.
By filling out a complete and optimized business profile, you gain credibility in search engines and get a backlink from a trusted, relevant source. These links are especially valuable for local businesses trying to increase their visibility.
To get the best results, concentrate on getting backlinks from good, relevant directories as part of your link building plan.
Creating a complete Google My Business profile not only gives you a backlink but also helps your business appear in local searches.
Pro Tip: Regularly update and maintain your business profiles to improve your website’s domain authority and organic traffic.
8) Press Release backlinks
Press release backlinks are acquired when your press release appears on news websites or PR platforms, and they have a link back to your website. Such backlinks will increase the visibility of your brand as well as boost the SEO of your website from links acquired from reputable media sources.
Outreach Monks successfully helped NOLABELS secure high-quality PR backlinks from reputable Indian media outlets like Tribune India and Mid-day, significantly improving their brand authority and SEO performance.
💡 Pro Tip: Focus on distributing press releases to trusted platforms and news outlets for the best SEO benefits. Avoid low-quality PR sites, as they may hurt your link building plan.
9) Acknowledgment Backlinks
Acknowledgment backlinks are received when other websites mention your site as a sponsor, contributor, or supporter. This often happens on event pages or recognition sections. These backlinks increase credibility and authority because they usually come from trusted and well-known sources.
For example, when businesses sponsor events or give to charity, they are usually recognized on the event’s or organization’s website. This gives them a chance to get a useful backlink.
🌍 Pro Tip: Partner with relevant organizations, participate in events, or make donations to earn acknowledgment backlinks, which can be a great addition to your link building strategy.
10) Forum Backlinks
Forum backlinks are earned by participating in online forums and discussion boards, where you can include links to your website in posts or signatures. These links should be included naturally when sharing useful ideas in the discussion, not just for advertising.
Forum backlinks may not be as strong for SEO as other kinds, but they can certainly attract focused visitors to your site and boost your online presence if used properly.
💬 Pro Tip: Focus on niche-relevant forums and add links only when they genuinely contribute to the conversation. Avoid spamming, as this can lead to penalties and damage your reputation.
11) Webinar Backlinks
Webinar backlinks are earned when you host or participate in webinars, and other websites link back to your site as a resource or reference for the event. These backlinks often come from industry-related websites, boosting your credibility and authority within your niche.
For example, if you host a webinar on SEO strategies, other websites or blogs might link to your site as a source of valuable information from the webinar.
🎤 Pro Tip: Hosting or partnering in webinars can help you build strong backlinks while sharing your expertise. Make sure to promote the event on social media and reach out to relevant websites for additional exposure and backlink opportunities.
12) Directory backlinks
Directory backlinks are the links from online directories that list your business. Examples include Yelp, Yellow Pages, or industry-specific directories. They allow you to create a profile featuring a link to your website. Directory backlinks greatly support local SEO; they make your business appear in relevant search results for you.
However, not all directory backlinks are created equal. It’s essential to focus on reputable, niche-related directories to avoid low-quality links that may harm your SEO.
📂 Pro Tip: Submit your website to high-authority, relevant directories to build credible backlinks. Avoid irrelevant or low-quality directories that can negatively impact your rankings.
13) Infographic Links
Infographic links are earned through creating high-quality, attractive infographics that other websites reference by linking to them. Blogs, news sites, and educational websites often employ infographics because they are easy to share and understand, which earns quality backlinks.
By including your website link in the infographic’s embed code, you ensure that anyone sharing the graphic will also provide a backlink to your site.
📊 Pro Tip: Share your infographic on platforms like Pinterest and outreach to relevant websites in your niche to increase its chances of being linked to and featured.
14) Image Backlinks
Image backlinks occur when other sites share your original images, such as infographics or photos or charts, and link back to your website. These backlinks will then drive more visitors to your site and improve your SEO through linking your website to important visual content.
For example, when someone embeds your image in their blog, they usually include a backlink to your website as a reference.
🖼️ Pro Tip: Create high-quality, shareable images and use reverse image search tools like Google Images to find websites using your images without a backlink. Reach out to request credit and gain additional SEO backlinks.
15) Badge Backlinks
Badge backlinks are a type of backlink you earn when another site or organization gives you a digital badge or icon that links back to your site. In most cases, these badges aim to portray success, completions, partnerships, or some sort of special distinction.
When a website proudly displays your badge, they link back to your site, boosting your SEO and authority with high-quality, relevant backlinks. This strategy helps build credibility while enhancing your backlink profile with valuable links.
16) Free Tool Backlinks
Free tool backlinks are earned when you create and offer a useful free tool, like a calculator, template, or resource, on your website. Other websites or blogs link to your tool as a helpful resource, which drives traffic and strengthens your backlink profile.
By providing something of value, you’re encouraging natural backlinking from websites that find your tool beneficial, helping improve your SEO with high-quality, relevant backlinks.
Backlinks That Can Harm Your Link Building
Not all backlinks are beneficial. Some can actually harm your link-building efforts and SEO performance. Below are types of backlinks that could negatively affect your site’s rankings:
17) PBN (Private Blog Network) Backlinks
PBN backlinks are links from a group of low-quality websites made just to link to a target site. Such link-building techniques fall under black hat SEO techniques and are penalized by search engines like Google. Even though PBNs may give you a short-term boost, they will be destructive to the long-term growth and ranking of your website.
PBN backlinks are not natural and do not come from trustworthy sources, violating Google’s rules. Search engines prefer quality backlinks over many backlinks, so using natural link building methods will work better for long-term SEO success.
18) Paid Backlinks from Unreliable Sources
Paid backlinks, especially from low-quality or unreliable sources, can severely damage your SEO. When you purchase links from platforms offering cheap, quick backlinks, these often come from spammy or irrelevant websites.
Such backlinks not only fail to improve your SEO but can also trigger penalties from search engines, making it harder for your site to rank.
Instead of boosting your authority, these links harm your credibility and can even lead to long-term ranking drops.
19) Irrelevant Directory Links
Unrelated directory links come from low-quality directories that do not match your website’s topic or field. Such links are often considered spam and do not add any real value to your link building efforts.
Search engines like Google can identify when directory backlinks come from irrelevant or low-authority sites, and this can harm your site’s rankings rather than improve them.
Directory backlinks can be useful if they come from good and relevant directories. However, backlinks coming from unrelated or low-quality directories will always result in penalties or make your site rank lower in the search results.
📑 Tip: Focus on submitting your website to reputable, niche-specific directories that provide genuine value and contribute to your link-building strategy in a positive way.
Backlinks That Are Less Likely to Help Your Link Building
While some backlinks can still drive traffic and brand awareness, they may not significantly impact your SEO. Here are a few types of backlinks that are less likely to boost your link building strategy:
20) Comment Backlinks
Comment backlinks are links placed in the comment sections of blogs, forums, or articles. These links are typically added by users to direct traffic to their website. While comment backlinks can still generate some referral traffic, they have little SEO value as most of them are marked as nofollow, which means they don’t pass on link authority.
Though they can be part of a diverse backlink profile, search engines may see excessive use of comment backlinks as spammy, especially if they’re not relevant to the content of the page.
21) Social Media Backlinks
Social media backlinks are links shared on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. These links are typically nofollow, meaning they don’t directly pass SEO value or authority.
However, they can help drive traffic, increase brand visibility, and potentially lead to more organic backlinks from other websites.
🚀 Tip: Use social media backlinks to boost engagement and attract attention, which can result in more valuable, organic backlinks from high-authority sites.
22) Footer Links
Footer links are backlinks placed in the footer of a website. While useful for internal linking, they often hold less SEO value than contextual links within the content. Overusing footer links, especially from unrelated or low-quality sites, can harm your link building strategy.
Search engines may view excessive or irrelevant footer links as manipulative, leading to penalties. It’s best to focus on securing contextual links from relevant, authoritative websites for better SEO results.
At Outreach Monks, we’ve used key internal links in our footer to enhance navigation and support site structure, ensuring relevance without compromising SEO value.
📎 Tip: Use footer links carefully, and prioritize high-quality dofollow backlinks within your content for stronger SEO benefits.
What Makes a Backlink Valuable?
Here’s a quick look at what makes a backlink valuable:
- Relevance of Linking Site: Links from websites in your niche carry more weight and boost authority.
- The Authority of Domain (DA/DR): Links from high-authority domains transfer more SEO value to your site.
- Dofollow vs. Nofollow: Dofollow links pass SEO value, while nofollow links don’t directly impact rankings but can still drive traffic.
- Link Placement: Contextual links embedded within relevant content are more powerful than links placed randomly.
- Anchor Text: Using relevant keywords in anchor text improves SEO relevance and keyword rankings.
- Traffic of Linking Site: Backlinks from high-traffic websites can bring more referral traffic to your site.
- Age and Trustworthiness: Links from older, well-established websites are more trusted and carry more SEO weight.
- Diversity of Linking Domains: Having links from a wide range of domains increases your site’s credibility.
- Natural Link Acquisition: Organic, natural links are preferred by search engines over manipulated or forced ones.
- Niche Relevance: Links from websites within your industry are more valuable for boosting your authority in that niche.
How to Monitor Your Backlinks
Here are some key steps to effectively track your backlinks:
- Use Backlink Monitoring Tools: Tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, Moz, Google Search Console, and Majestic help track new, lost, and broken links, while analyzing their quality, authority, and relevance.
- Set Up Alerts for New or Lost Links: Set notifications in Ahrefs or SEMrush to quickly detect new backlinks or identify when you lose links.
- Identify Toxic Links: Use tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush to find harmful backlinks and disavow them using Google’s Disavow Tool.
- Evaluate the Quality of Backlinks: Regularly assess the relevance, authority, and spam score of your backlinks to ensure they benefit your SEO.
- Audit Your Backlinks Regularly: Perform a backlink audit every few months to check for broken or irrelevant links and ensure quality remains high.
- Report on Backlink Growth: Use tools to generate reports on backlink growth, domain authority, and ranking improvements over time.
Conclusion: Types of Backlinks
There are many kinds of backlinks, and understanding those is crucial for a strong SEO plan. While some links benefit your rankings and authority, others will undermine your site’s performance. You can enhance the visibility and long-term success of your website if you obtain good quality, relevant links, getting away from low-value ones.
Ready to take your backlink strategy to the next level? Contact Outreach Monks today and let us help you build the links that matter!
FAQs: Types of Backlinks
Are backlinks from low-traffic websites useful?
While backlinks from high-traffic websites are generally more valuable, links from low-traffic websites can still contribute to your backlink profile, especially if they come from niche-related or authoritative sources within your industry.
How many backlinks does a new website need?
There's no set number, but new websites should focus on building a variety of high-quality, relevant backlinks gradually. Quality matters more than quantity. Focus on securing editorial, guest post, and directory backlinks from relevant sites.
Do backlinks from the same website multiple times help SEO?
Yes, but there's a diminishing return. Multiple backlinks from the same website, especially if they link to different pages on your site, can help, but it's important to diversify your backlinks by acquiring links from various domains.
How can I avoid getting bad backlinks?
To avoid bad backlinks, stay away from spammy directories, PBNs, and cheap link-building services that offer paid backlinks. Focus on building relationships with reputable websites and creating high-quality content that attracts organic backlinks.
How do I disavow harmful backlinks?
To disavow harmful backlinks, you can use Google’s Disavow Tool. This tool tells Google not to consider certain backlinks in its ranking algorithm, helping you avoid penalties from spammy or low-quality links.
What are geo-specific backlinks, and do they help local SEO?
Geo-specific backlinks come from websites that focus on a particular region or country. These backlinks are particularly helpful for local SEO as they signal to search engines that your website is relevant to users in a specific geographical area.
Ekta Chauhan
