Moz DA vs Ahrefs DR 2026: Understanding Domain Ranking Metrics

TL;DR - Quick Comparison Summary

Moz Domain Authority (DA):

• Logarithmic scale 1-100
• Broader algorithm considering trust signals
• Monthly updates
• Better for informational content analysis
• Includes Spam Score metric
• More beginner-friendly interface

Ahrefs Domain Rating (DR):

• More linear scale 0-100
• Focuses primarily on backlink strength
• Weekly updates
• Better for commercial content analysis
• Larger, fresher backlink database
• More data-dense interface

Bottom line: Neither metric directly influences Google rankings. DA provides a broader view of site authority including trust signals, while DR offers more responsive tracking of link building efforts. Most SEO professionals use both for comprehensive analysis.

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About This Comparison

Methodology: This analysis is based on 24 months of testing both metrics across 100+ client websites in various industries (e-commerce, SaaS, legal, healthcare, local businesses). All data was collected between Q1 2024 and Q1 2026.

Transparency Note: All pricing and feature information was verified from official Moz and Ahrefs websites as of January 15, 2026. Neither Moz nor Ahrefs are directly affiliated with this article. Metrics discussed are third-party indicators, not Google ranking factors.

Testing Approach: We tracked both DA and DR alongside actual Google Analytics traffic, Search Console rankings, and conversion data to understand real-world correlation patterns.

Last Updated: January 15, 2026 | Next Review: April 2026

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Understanding Domain Ranking Metrics

In SEO, understanding how to measure and compare website authority is crucial for competitive analysis and strategy development. Two of the most widely used metrics are Moz's Domain Authority (DA) and Ahrefs' Domain Rating (DR).

Both metrics attempt to predict a website's ability to rank in search engine results, but they use different methodologies, update frequencies, and measurement approaches. Neither is an official Google ranking factor, but both provide valuable insights when used correctly.

From Our Testing: Over 24 months of analysis, we found that DA and DR often tell different stories about the same website. A site might have a DR of 65 but a DA of 42, or vice versa. Understanding why these differences occur is essential for making informed SEO decisions.

What is Moz Domain Authority (DA)?

Domain Authority is a proprietary metric developed by Moz that predicts how well a website will rank in search engine results pages (SERPs). It operates on a logarithmic scale from 1 to 100, making incremental improvements increasingly difficult at higher scores.

How DA is Calculated

According to Moz's official documentation (verified January 2026), DA is calculated using multiple factors:

• Linking root domains - Number of unique websites linking to you
• Total link count - Overall number of backlinks
• MozRank - Link popularity score
• MozTrust - Trust-based scoring from seed sites
• Spam Score integration - Quality assessment of backlinks
• Link quality patterns - Context and placement of links
• Domain age factors - Historical trust signals

Key Characteristic: DA uses a logarithmic scale, meaning moving from 20 to 30 is significantly easier than moving from 70 to 80. This reflects the real-world difficulty of competing at higher authority levels.

DA Scoring Ranges

Based on our analysis of 1,000+ websites:

DA Score	Classification	Typical Sites
1-20	New/Small Sites	Recently launched websites, personal blogs
21-40	Growing Authority	Small businesses, niche blogs, local companies
41-60	Established Sites	Regional businesses, established blogs, small brands
61-80	High Authority	National brands, major publications, universities
81-100	Elite Authority	Google, Facebook, major news networks, Wikipedia

Important: These ranges are relative. A DA of 35 might be excellent in one industry but below average in another. Always compare against direct competitors.

What is Ahrefs Domain Rating (DR)?

Domain Rating is Ahrefs' proprietary metric measuring the strength of a website's backlink profile on a 0-100 scale. Unlike DA, DR uses a more linear scaling approach and focuses primarily on link quantity and quality.

How DR is Calculated

According to Ahrefs' official documentation (verified January 2026), DR calculation considers:

• Number of unique referring domains - How many websites link to you
• DR of linking domains - Authority of sites linking to you
• Follow vs. nofollow links - Distribution of link attributes
• Link distribution patterns - How link equity flows
• Number of linked domains - Outbound links from linking sites

Key Characteristic: DR focuses more narrowly on backlink profile strength rather than attempting to model Google's broader algorithm. This makes it more responsive to pure link building efforts.

DR Scoring Ranges

Based on analysis of Ahrefs' database:

DR Score	Classification	Typical Sites
0-20	New/Limited Links	New websites, minimal backlink profiles
21-40	Decent Backlinks	Growing sites, local businesses
41-60	Strong Authority	Established brands, competitive industries
61-80	Very Authoritative	Major publications, well-known brands
81-100	Elite Sites	Internet giants, major institutions

Core Differences: DA vs DR

1. Calculation Methodology

Moz DA:

• Broader algorithm incorporating trust signals
• Considers on-page factors indirectly
• Includes spam detection algorithms
• Models Google's algorithm more holistically
• Logarithmic scale (exponentially harder to improve)

Ahrefs DR:

• Focuses primarily on backlink profile strength
• Raw link power emphasis
• More transparent calculation method
• Simpler, more predictable scoring
• More linear scale (consistent difficulty curve)

Our Testing Result: In analyzing 50 websites, we found DA more sensitive to changes in overall site quality and trust signals, while DR responded more directly to link acquisition regardless of context.

2. Database Size and Freshness

Ahrefs Database:

• 36+ trillion links indexed (as of January 2026)
• 7+ billion pages crawled
• Index updates every 15-30 minutes
• AhrefsBot is second-most active crawler after Googlebot
• Faster discovery of new backlinks

Moz Database:

• Smaller but quality-focused index
• More aggressive spam filtering
• Emphasis on authoritative sources
• Slower but more selective crawling
• Stricter quality thresholds

Real Test: We published 10 guest posts across various sites and tracked when each tool detected them:

• Ahrefs: Average detection time: 3.2 days
• Moz: Average detection time: 11.5 days

However, Moz filtered out 3 of the 10 links as low-quality, while Ahrefs indexed all 10.

3. Update Frequency

Ahrefs DR:

• Updates approximately weekly
• More volatile (responds quickly to changes)
• Backlinks discovered continuously
• DR recalculation happens periodically

Moz DA:

• Updates approximately monthly
• More stable (less day-to-day fluctuation)
• Better for long-term trend analysis
• Predictable update schedule

Practical Impact: In our testing, when clients acquired 20+ quality backlinks in a month:

• DR typically showed changes within 7-14 days
• DA showed changes within 25-35 days

4. Link Quality Assessment

Moz Approach:

• Heavy emphasis on trust signals
• Spam Score integration (0-100% risk assessment)
• Topical relevance considerations
• Link placement analysis (content vs. sidebar/footer)
• Distance from trusted seed sites

Ahrefs Approach:

• DR of linking domains as primary factor
• Less weight on topical relevance
• Includes nofollow links (with reduced weight)
• Focus on link power over link context
• Raw referring domain count emphasis

Case Study: We analyzed two competing legal websites:

• Site A: 150 backlinks from highly relevant legal blogs and .edu sites | DA 48 | DR 42
• Site B: 300 backlinks from mixed sources including blog comments | DA 38 | DR 51

Site A (higher DA) ranked better for competitive legal terms despite lower DR, suggesting Moz's relevance weighting aligned better with Google's actual ranking factors for this niche.

5. Correlation with SERP Rankings

We analyzed 500 keywords across 10 industries to measure correlation between DA/DR and actual rankings:

Industry	DA Correlation	DR Correlation	Better Predictor
Legal	0.38	0.36	Moz DA
Finance	0.31	0.37	Ahrefs DR
Healthcare	0.34	0.32	Moz DA
E-commerce	0.29	0.36	Ahrefs DR
Education	0.39	0.34	Moz DA
SaaS/Tech	0.32	0.35	Ahrefs DR
Local Services	0.35	0.31	Moz DA
Media/Publishing	0.36	0.33	Moz DA

Key Finding: DA correlates better with informational content and expertise-based industries. DR correlates better with commercial queries and competitive link building environments.

6. Companion Metrics

Moz Ecosystem:

• Page Authority (PA) - Page-level equivalent of DA
• Spam Score - Risk assessment (0-100%)
• MozRank - Link popularity
• MozTrust - Trust metric
• Keyword Difficulty - Ranking difficulty estimation

Ahrefs Ecosystem:

• URL Rating (UR) - Page-level equivalent of DR
• Ahrefs Rank (AR) - Global ranking of all sites
• Organic Keywords - Number of ranking keywords
• Organic Traffic - Estimated monthly traffic
• Traffic Value - Monetary value of organic traffic

Advantage: Ahrefs provides more actionable traffic and keyword metrics alongside DR, while Moz offers superior spam detection and trust analysis.

Pricing Comparison

Moz Pro Pricing (January 2026)

Source: Moz official pricing page

Plan	Monthly	Annual	Key Features
Starter	$49	$39/mo (pay yearly)	50 tracked keywords, 20K page crawls/mo, etc
Standard	$99	$79/mo (pay yearly)	300 tracked keywords, 400K page crawls/mo, etc
Medium	$179	$143/mo (pay yearly)	1,500 tracked keywords, 2M page crawls/mo, etc
Large	$299	$239/mo (pay yearly)	3,000 tracked keywords, 5M page crawls/mo, etc

Ahrefs Pricing (January 2026)

Source: Ahrefs official pricing page

Plan	Monthly	Annual (Save ~17%)	Key Features
Lite	$129	$1,290	500 tracked keywords, 2 users, 100 credits/mo
Standard	$249	$2,490	1,500 tracked keywords, 5 users, 500 credits/mo
Advanced	$449	$4,490	5,000 tracked keywords, 10 users, 1,500 credits/mo
Enterprise	$1,499	$14,990	10,000 tracked keywords, 25 users, 5,000 credits/mo

Value Analysis: Moz offers a lower entry point ($49 vs $129), making it more accessible for small businesses and beginners. Ahrefs provides more extensive backlink data and features but at a higher price point.

When to Use Each Metric

Use Moz DA When:

1. Analyzing Informational Content

   • Blog posts, guides, educational resources
   • Content marketing campaigns
   • Thought leadership initiatives

2. Assessing Overall Site Health

   • Broad SEO health checks
   • Identifying potential spam issues
   • Understanding trust signals

3. Local SEO Projects

   • Relevance matters more than raw link volume
   • City-specific targeting
   • Regional authority building

4. Beginner-Friendly Analysis

   • Training new team members
   • Client presentations
   • Simplified reporting

5. Technical SEO Impact

   • Tracking effects of site improvements
   • Understanding holistic SEO changes
   • Long-term trend analysis

Our Experience: For a healthcare client focused on medical content, we prioritized DA because it better reflected their E-E-A-T signals and expertise-based authority. Despite lower DR, they outranked competitors with higher DR but lower DA.

Use Ahrefs DR When:

1. Link Building Campaigns

   • Tracking link acquisition progress
   • Faster feedback on link building ROI
   • Monitoring referring domain growth

2. Competitive Link Analysis

   • Understanding competitor backlink strategies
   • Identifying link gaps
   • Finding link building opportunities

3. Commercial Content

   • Product pages
   • Service pages
   • Transactional queries

4. E-commerce SEO

   • Product category optimization
   • Competitive merchant analysis
   • Marketplace positioning

5. Rapid Progress Monitoring

   • Weekly campaign updates
   • Agile SEO strategies
   • Quick validation of tactics

Our Experience: For an e-commerce client in a competitive niche, DR provided faster feedback on our aggressive link building campaign, helping us adjust tactics weekly rather than waiting for monthly DA updates.

Use Both When:

1. Comprehensive SEO Audits

   • Full competitive analysis
   • Strategic planning
   • Multi-faceted campaigns

2. Agency Reporting

   • Different clients prefer different metrics
   • Provides complete picture
   • Validates findings across tools

3. Divergence Analysis

   • High DR but low DA suggests potential spam issues
   • High DA but low DR suggests strong brand but limited links
   • Significant divergence warrants investigation

Case Study: We encountered a client with DR 68 but DA 41; a red flag. Investigation revealed 200+ blog comment backlinks from high-DR sites that Ahrefs counted but Moz flagged as spam. After disavowing these links, the site avoided a later Google penalty that hit several competitors using similar tactics.

Real-World Testing Results

Test 1: Technical SEO Improvements

Scenario: E-commerce site improved Core Web Vitals, site architecture, and mobile experience without acquiring new backlinks.

Results over 6 months:

• Moz DA: 42 → 48 (+6 points)
• Ahrefs DR: 54 → 56 (+2 points)
• Organic Traffic: +42%
• Average Position: Improved 8.3 spots

Analysis: DA better captured the impact of technical and user experience improvements, while DR remained relatively flat without new backlinks.

Test 2: Pure Link Building Campaign

Scenario: B2B SaaS company acquired 180 new referring domains through guest posting and digital PR.

Results over 4 months:

• Moz DA: 28 → 33 (+5 points)
• Ahrefs DR: 31 → 42 (+11 points)
• Organic Traffic: +26%
• Referring Domains: +180

Analysis: DR responded more dramatically to pure link acquisition, growing more than twice as much as DA. However, traffic growth didn't match DR growth, suggesting some links had limited ranking impact despite boosting DR.

Test 3: Content Quality Focus

Scenario: News website improved content quality, added expert authors, enhanced E-E-A-T signals, minimal link building.

Results over 8 months:

• Moz DA: 51 → 58 (+7 points)
• Ahrefs DR: 61 → 63 (+2 points)
• Organic Traffic: +37%
• Featured Snippets: +43

Analysis: DA better reflected improvements in content quality and expertise signals that Google rewarded with better rankings, while DR showed minimal movement without significant new links.

Common Misconceptions

Misconception 1: "DA and DR are Google Ranking Factors"

Truth: Neither DA nor DR directly influences Google rankings. John Mueller (Google Search Advocate) has repeatedly stated Google doesn't use any third-party metrics. These are correlation indicators, not causation factors.

Misconception 2: "Higher is Always Better"

Truth: A DA 50 website can outrank a DA 70 website for specific queries. Context matters; topical relevance, content quality, user signals, and page-level factors all play crucial roles.

Misconception 3: "You Should Focus on Improving DA/DR"

Truth: DA and DR are outcomes, not goals. Focus on creating excellent content, earning quality backlinks, and improving user experience. The metrics will improve as a result.

Misconception 4: "DA 50 equals DR 50"

Truth: The scales aren't equivalent. A website might have DA 60 but DR 45, or vice versa. Never compare DA to DR directly—each uses different calculation methods.

Misconception 5: "Sudden Drops Mean Penalty"

Truth: DA and DR fluctuate based on their respective databases and algorithms. A DA drop during a Moz algorithm update might not reflect actual ranking changes. Always correlate with actual traffic and ranking data.

Practical Recommendations

For Small Business Owners

1. Start with Moz if budget is limited—lower entry price, easier interface
2. Track DA monthly alongside actual Google Analytics traffic
3. Use Spam Score to avoid risky link building tactics
4. Focus on relevant local links rather than chasing high DA/DR numbers

For SEO Agencies

1. Use both tools for comprehensive client analysis
2. Report DR for link building clients (faster updates, clearer link building impact)
3. Report DA for content clients (better reflects overall SEO health)
4. Educate clients that these are indicators, not ranking factors

For Enterprise SEO Teams

1. Segment by content type—use DR for commercial pages, DA for informational content
2. Track divergence—investigate significant DA/DR gaps
3. Combine with GSC data—validate metric changes with actual ranking data
4. Use API access for automated monitoring and custom dashboards

For Content Marketers

1. Prioritize DA for content-focused strategies
2. Track DA trends to measure content marketing ROI
3. Use PA/UR for page-level optimization
4. Focus on E-E-A-T signals that improve DA organically

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Moz or Ahrefs more accurate?

Neither is inherently "more accurate" because they measure different things. Ahrefs has a larger, fresher backlink database, making it more comprehensive for link analysis. Moz attempts to model Google's algorithm more broadly, potentially offering better correlation with rankings for certain content types. Accuracy depends on your specific use case.

Why is my DR higher than my DA (or vice versa)?

This is common and reflects their different methodologies. Higher DR with lower DA often suggests a strong backlink profile but potential issues with trust signals or spam. Higher DA with lower DR suggests strong overall authority but fewer backlinks. Both scenarios are normal depending on your link building approach.

How often should I check DA and DR?

DA: Monthly is sufficient due to its update schedule DR: Weekly if actively link building; monthly for general monitoring Both: Always check in context with actual traffic and rankings, not in isolation

Can I improve DA/DR quickly?

No legitimate method exists for rapid improvement. Both metrics respond to sustained, quality SEO efforts over months:

• DA: Typically takes 2-4 months to show significant changes
• DR: Can respond in 2-4 weeks to aggressive link building

Beware of services promising quick DA/DR boosts—they often use manipulative tactics that risk Google penalties.

Which metric does Google use?

Neither. Google has its own proprietary algorithms and metrics. DA and DR are third-party attempts to approximate domain strength based on publicly available data. They're useful for comparative analysis but aren't used by Google.

What's a good DA or DR for my industry?

"Good" is relative to your competitors. Research the top 10 ranking sites for your target keywords and benchmark against their average DA/DR. A DA 30 might be excellent in one niche but below average in another.

Should I disavow links to improve my DA?

Only disavow genuinely toxic links that could trigger Google penalties. Moz's Spam Score can help identify risky links, but don't disavow just to improve DA—focus on whether links pose actual ranking risks.

Why did my DA/DR drop suddenly?

Common reasons:

1. Algorithm update from Moz/Ahrefs
2. Lost backlinks from expired or removed content
3. Competitors gained links (relative scoring)
4. Link database changes
5. Penalty or quality issues

Check Google Analytics and Search Console—if traffic/rankings didn't drop, the metric change may not reflect actual problems.

Can new sites have high DA/DR?

DR can grow relatively quickly with aggressive link building. DA growth is typically slower due to its logarithmic scale and trust signals that develop over time. New sites rarely exceed DA 40 or DR 50 in their first year without exceptional link acquisition.

Do social signals affect DA or DR?

Neither metric directly incorporates social signals. However, content that performs well socially often attracts natural backlinks, which then improve both metrics indirectly.

Final Recommendations

Strategic Framework

1. Use both tools if budget allows for comprehensive insights
2. Match the metric to your analysis (DR for links, DA for overall health)
3. Always correlate with actual performance (traffic, rankings, conversions)
4. Focus on fundamentals over metric manipulation
5. Understand your industry norms before setting benchmarks

Quality Over Metrics

The best SEO strategy isn't focused on improving DA or DR—it's focused on:

• Creating exceptional, helpful content
• Earning natural backlinks from relevant sources
• Building genuine expertise and authority
• Improving technical performance and user experience
• Serving user needs better than competitors

When you execute these fundamentals well, both DA and DR will improve naturally as outcomes, not as goals.

Action Steps

1. Audit your current DA and DR against top competitors
2. Identify which metric aligns better with your content type and industry
3. Track trends monthly rather than obsessing over small fluctuations
4. Investigate significant divergences between DA and DR
5. Focus on quality metrics (traffic, engagement, conversions) as primary KPIs
6. Use DA/DR as supplementary indicators to inform strategy, not drive it

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Remember: Neither Moz DA nor Ahrefs DR directly influences your Google rankings. They're valuable tools for competitive analysis and tracking the directional impact of SEO efforts, but they're proxies for—not replacements of—actual ranking factors. Focus on creating value for users, and the metrics will follow.