Intrigue DigitalHow to Improve Domain Authority: An Honest Guide for Australian Businesses
Quick answer
To improve domain authority, earn links from more unique, relevant and trusted websites, reclaim links you have lost, strengthen your internal linking and stop any spammy link building. Domain authority is a score created by Moz to predict ranking strength. Google does not use it, so treat it as a progress gauge, not a goal.There is no legitimate way to jump your score quickly. Anyone selling a guaranteed domain authority increase is usually selling the links that get small sites into trouble. Below: what the score really measures, what counts as good, why yours might be low or dropping, and a step-by-step plan.
What is domain authority, really?
Domain Authority (DA) is a 1 to 100 score from Moz that estimates how likely a whole website is to rank, based mainly on the number and quality of sites linking to it. The scale is logarithmic, so moving from 10 to 20 is much easier than moving from 60 to 70.
Other SEO tools have their own version of the same idea. They are calculated differently, so never compare one tool's score with another's.
| Metric | Tool | Scale | Mainly based on |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domain Authority (DA) | Moz | 1 to 100 | Linking root domains and their quality, modelled against rankings |
| Domain Rating (DR) | Ahrefs | 0 to 100 | The strength of a site's backlink profile |
| Authority Score | SEMrush | 0 to 100 | Links, organic traffic and spam signals combined |
| Domain Authority | Ubersuggest | 0 to 100 | Backlink profile, Ubersuggest's own model |
Does Google use domain authority?
No. Google has said publicly that it does not use Moz's Domain Authority or any similar third-party score. Google uses its own signals, including links, but evaluates them page by page and in far more detail.
So why care at all? Because the inputs overlap. A site that earns links from many trusted, relevant sites tends to see its DA rise and its rankings improve at the same time. DA is a handy, rough way to compare yourself with competitors. It is not a ranking factor, and it is not something to optimise for its own sake.
What is a good domain authority score?
A good score is one that is competitive for the searches you want to win. A local plumber does not need the authority of a national news site. Compare yourself with the businesses that rank on page one for your main service and area, not with an abstract number.
| Type of site | Rough DA range you will often see | What it usually means |
|---|---|---|
| New business website | 1 to 10 | Few or no sites linking yet; normal for year one |
| Established local service business | 10 to 30 | Often enough to compete locally with good relevance |
| Regional or multi-location brand | 25 to 45 | Steady links from associations, media and partners |
| National brand or publisher | 50+ | Large numbers of links from trusted sites |
These ranges are rough patterns, not targets. Plenty of businesses with a DA in the teens outrank competitors in the forties, because their pages are more relevant and their local signals are stronger.
Why is my domain authority so low, or dropping?
A low score on a new site is normal. Authority comes from other sites linking to you, and that takes time. If your score has dropped, the usual causes are:
| Cause | What is happening | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Lost links | Pages that linked to you were removed or changed | Check lost links in a free tool; ask for them back |
| Tool index updates | The tool recalculated scores across the web | Compare competitors; if everyone moved, ignore it |
| Low-quality links discounted | Spammy or paid links no longer count | Stop buying links; earn real ones |
| Competitors growing faster | The scale is relative, so others' growth can lower yours | Focus on the rankings that matter, not the score |
| Site migration problems | Redirects lost during a rebuild or domain change | Fix redirects so old links point to live pages |
A drop in DA does not always mean a drop in Google rankings. Check your actual positions and traffic in Google Search Console before you worry.
How to improve domain authority, step by step
1. Benchmark your competitors. Check the referring domains of the top three results for your main search. That tells you the gap you are trying to close. 2. Earn links from new, relevant websites. This is the biggest lever. Suppliers, associations, chambers, journalists, podcasts and editorial features are all covered in our guide on how to get backlinks for a small business. 3. Reclaim what you have lost. Find links pointing to pages that no longer exist and redirect those URLs to the closest live page. Ask sites that mention you without a link to add one. 4. Strengthen your internal linking. Link your most important service pages from your homepage, guides and blog posts. It spreads the authority you already have to the pages that need to rank. 5. Build something worth linking to. A calculator, a checklist, original local data or the clearest explanation of a confusing topic in your industry. 6. Consolidate thin content. Several weak pages on the same topic split your strength. Merge them into one strong page and redirect the rest. 7. Stop risky link building. Cancel any service selling links, guest post packages or private blog network placements. 8. Use the disavow tool only when needed. Google says most sites never need it. It is meant for sites with a manual action or a clear pattern of paid or spammy links they cannot remove.Can you increase domain authority quickly?
Not legitimately. The fastest honest gains come from things that are already half done: reclaiming lost links, fixing broken redirects after a site rebuild, converting unlinked mentions, and getting listed by suppliers and associations you already work with. Those can move a small site within a few months.
Anything promising a jump to DA 30 or 40 in weeks is selling links built to inflate the score. The score may rise briefly, then fall when the tool or Google discounts them, and you are left with a link profile that is harder to rank with than before.
Domain authority and AI search
AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity do not look up your domain authority. They read the web and recommend businesses that trusted sources mention and that answer questions clearly. The work that improves DA properly, earning genuine mentions from reputable sites, is the same work that gets you named in AI answers.
That is why we focus clients on citations and mentions rather than the score. See how it fits together in AEO is the new SEO.
Domain authority myths that cost small businesses money
Myth: a higher DA guarantees higher rankings. It does not. DA predicts ranking strength across a whole site, but Google ranks individual pages for individual searches. A highly relevant page on a DA 15 site can and often does beat a vague page on a DA 40 site. Myth: you need DA 30 before SEO will work. Plenty of local businesses rank well with scores in the low teens because their service pages are clear, their Google Business Profile is strong and their reviews are real. Authority helps most when the competition is national or the search is very competitive. Myth: every link raises your score. Links from unrelated, low-quality or link-selling sites are often ignored by the tools and by Google. Some tools also discount links they flag as spam, so a burst of cheap links can leave your score flat or lower. Myth: DA is permanent. Scores move every time a tool updates its index, and they fall when links disappear. That is one reason to track rankings, enquiries and AI mentions alongside the score, rather than the score alone. Myth: guest posting anywhere builds authority. Guest posts on relevant, editorially run sites can be valuable. Mass-produced guest posts on sites that publish anything for a fee are a link scheme in Google's eyes. If a site has a price list for posts, the link is worth very little.How Intrigue Digital helps
We do not sell domain authority. We build the links and mentions that make it rise naturally, and we measure what actually matters: rankings for the searches that bring you customers, and whether AI assistants name you. Explore our link building service, or book a free strategy call for a benchmark against your top three competitors.
What the research says
Independent studies on search and AI behaviour, last reviewed October 2026. We re-check these figures at least every six months.
| Study | Market | Zero-click share |
|---|---|---|
| SparkToro 2024 (Datos data) | United States | 58.5% |
| SparkToro 2024 (Datos data) | European Union | 59.7% |
| SparkToro early 2026 (Similarweb data) | United States | 68.0% |
Source: SparkToro via Search Engine Land, 2024 zero-click search study; SparkToro via Search Engine Land, Zero-click searches reach 68% in early 2026. Different data providers, so treat the trend as directional rather than exact.
| Pages in the Ahrefs index | Share |
|---|---|
| Get zero traffic from Google | 96.55% |
| Get 1 to 10 visits a month | 1.94% |
| Get more than 10 visits a month | 1.51% |
Source: Ahrefs, 96.55% of content gets no traffic from Google (2023). Around 14 billion pages analysed, December 2023.
Sources and further reading
Frequently asked questions
How do I improve my domain authority?
Earn links from more unique, relevant and trusted websites, reclaim links you have lost, fix redirects after any site rebuild, strengthen your internal linking and stop any paid or spammy link building. Domain authority is a Moz score that rises as your link profile genuinely improves.
Does Google use domain authority?
No. Domain Authority is a third-party score from Moz, and Google has said it does not use it. Google uses its own link and quality signals. DA is useful for comparing yourself with competitors, not as a ranking factor.
What is a good domain authority score?
One that is competitive with the sites ranking on page one for your target searches. New sites often sit between 1 and 10, established local businesses commonly between 10 and 30, and national brands above 50. Relevance and local signals often matter more than the number.
Why did my domain authority drop?
Common causes are lost links, a recalculation by the tool, low-quality links being discounted, competitors growing faster, or redirects lost during a site migration. Check your real Google rankings and traffic in Search Console before assuming anything is wrong.
How can I increase domain authority quickly?
There is no legitimate shortcut. The fastest honest gains are reclaiming lost links, fixing broken redirects, turning unlinked mentions into links and getting listed by suppliers and associations you already work with. Services promising a fast jump usually rely on links that get discounted later.
What is the difference between domain authority and domain rating?
Domain Authority is Moz's score and Domain Rating is Ahrefs' score. Both estimate a site's link strength on a 100-point scale, but they use different data and formulas, so the numbers are not comparable with each other.
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