How many monthly links you need to raise DR1 to 30 - Step By Step
Definition of DR (Domain Rating)
Domain Rating (DR) is an SEO metric developed by Ahrefs that measures the overall strength and authority of a website’s backlink profile on a scale from 0 to 100. The higher the DR, the stronger and more trustworthy the website is considered by search engines. It’s primarily used to evaluate how well a site might perform in search rankings compared to competitors.
Key Features of DR
Backlink Strength:
DR increases when a website earns backlinks from other high-authority domains. Quality outweighs quantity.Domain Authority Scale:
DR uses a logarithmic scale, meaning it’s much harder to move from DR 70 to 80 than from DR 10 to 20.Link Quality Over Quantity:
A single high-quality backlink from a strong site can improve DR more than dozens of low-quality links.DoFollow Links Impact More:
DoFollow links pass “link juice” and directly influence DR, while NoFollow links add diversity but less power.Unique Domain Links:
Multiple links from the same website have diminishing returns — DR favors links from unique domains.Relevance Matters:
Links from thematically related sites contribute more positively to DR than links from unrelated niches.Traffic and Indexing:
Backlinks from websites with genuine organic Google traffic are more valuable than from spammy or inactive sites.Natural Growth:
A gradual increase in DR looks more natural to Google and reduces the risk of algorithmic penalties.
Bring in 20 relevant backlinks per month until you hit DR 30. Each backlink should be from domains with DR ≧ 40 Of those 20 links, make 16 dofollow and 4 nofollow. Don’t buy links from spammy sites — they can hurt your Google presence, not help it.
How TO Increase DR1 to 30 Quick Time
Why this plan works
Quantity + baseline quality: 20 links monthly gives momentum without looking unnatural if you spread outreach and publish steadily. Requiring source sites to be at least DR 40 prevents tiny disposable pages from diluting your efforts.
Dofollow vs nofollow mix: 16 dofollow + 4 nofollow looks organic and helps link-juice flow while keeping a natural profile.
Relevance matters most: Links should be thematically related to your site. A relevant link from a modest DR site is worth more than an irrelevant link from a high DR directory.
What counts as a spammy site (avoid these)
Sites with no organic Google traffic or pages that never rank for anything.
Sites that only exist to sell links, that have dozens of low-quality ads, or show autogenerated content.
Sites whose only “traffic” is shown by SEMrush/Ahrefs but no real Google Analytics data (these tools estimate; they aren’t the final judge).
Low-quality directories, scraped-content farms, or sites with thin, duplicate, or machine-generated pages.
Rule of thumb: If a site doesn’t show any organic presence in Google (real SERP placements) or its content looks auto-generated, don’t use it.
Metrics to trust
Google Analytics & Google Search Console = reality. Use these to track real traffic, impressions and ranking improvements.
Ahrefs / SEMrush = useful estimates for research and filtering opportunities, but don’t treat their traffic numbers as gospel.
For link sources, prefer sites that show signs of real engagement (rankings, indexed pages, social shares, consistent content).
Anchor text & link placement guidelines
Use natural, diverse anchors (brand, URL, long-tail phrase, partial match). Avoid the same exact keyword anchor across many links.
Priority placement: in-content contextual links > author bio > footer > sidebar.
Prefer links inside relevant, well-written articles rather than link lists or footers.
Example monthly distribution (20 links)
8 contextual guest-post links (dofollow)
4 niche-relevant link insertions / curated edits (dofollow)
4 resource-page or roundup links (mix dofollow/nofollow)
4 smaller placements (comments/author bios/resource pages) — keep these as the 4 nofollow.
Outreach quality control checklist
✅ Is the site topically relevant?
✅ Is the site indexed in Google?
✅ Does it show organic traffic or rank for any keywords?
✅ Is its DR ≥ 4 (or at least not toxic)?
✅ Is the content on the page natural, not scraped?
✅ Does the site have clear contact info and honest editing?
✅ Will the link be in-content (preferred)?
If any answer is “no,” skip that site.
Final tips
Prioritize relevance and editorial placement over raw DR number.
Avoid bulk purchasing from marketplaces that sell low-quality links.
Keep records: link URL, anchor, DA/DR at time of placement, date posted, screenshot.
Rotate anchor text and vary placement to appear natural.
