When you shop for guest post sites, you will see two scores everywhere: DA and DR. They look similar, but they come from different tools. Here is what each one means and how to use them without being fooled.
What DA and DR mean
- DA (Domain Authority) is a score from 0 to 100 made by Moz. It estimates how well a website might rank in search results.
- DR (Domain Rating) is a score from 0 to 100 made by Ahrefs. It measures the strength of a website’s backlink profile.
Both are third-party scores. Google does not use them. They are useful for comparing sites, but they are not a promise of rankings.
Which one matters more?
Neither is “better”. Use both, and compare sites with the same score type. A DR 60 site is not directly comparable to a DA 60 site. If you are checking many sites, pick one score as your main filter and use the other to double-check.
Do not stop at the score
A high score alone can hide a weak site. Before you buy, also check:
- Organic traffic. Real visitors suggest a real audience.
- Relevance. A link from a site in your niche is worth more than a random one.
- Google indexing. If the site is not indexed, your link will not help.
- Quality of existing articles. Look at the example post. Does the site look like a real publication?
How to use this on Markwood
On our All Sites page, every listing shows DA, DR, traffic, link type, delivery time and one final price. Set a minimum DA or DR, add a minimum traffic, and tick “Only sites indexed in Google”. Then open the “View example” link to see a real article on that site before you order.
Scores change over time, so we show when we last checked them. Want help choosing? Contact us.