DR vs DA: Ahrefs Domain Rating vs Moz Domain Authority (2026)

DR vs DA (Domain Rating vs Domain Authority) is a comparison of two third-party scores from two different SEO companies. Domain Rating (DR) is Ahrefs' measure of how strong a website's backlink profile is compared to the other sites in the Ahrefs database, on a 0 to 100 scale. Domain Authority (DA) is Moz's 1 to 100 score that predicts how likely a website is to rank compared to its competitors, calculated by a machine learning model mostly from Moz's own link data. Because they use different crawls and different formulas, the same site often gets two different numbers, and neither is wrong. Google uses neither. Pick one, track it over time, and never compare a DA directly with a DR.

Disclosure: LaunchIt runs a free Domain Rating checker powered by Ahrefs data, and we are a launch platform that gives every listing a dofollow link. We use and display Ahrefs DR across our site, so we lean that way. Weigh what follows accordingly.

Why founders keep getting quoted two different numbers

If you are building links for a new product, you will hear both numbers within a week. A directory owner says their site has a DR score of 60. A guest post seller quotes a "DA rating" of 50. An agency report shows both. Then you check the same site yourself and the two scores do not match.

It looks like somebody is lying. Usually nobody is. DR and DA come from different companies, different link data and different questions. Once you understand the difference between Domain Rating and Domain Authority, the mismatch becomes useful rather than confusing.

What is Domain Authority (DA)?

Domain Authority is a search engine ranking score developed by Moz. It predicts how likely a website is to rank on search results pages compared to its competitors. It runs from 1 to 100, and a higher score means a greater ability to rank. New websites start at DA 1.

How Moz calculates DA

Moz uses a machine learning algorithm, fed primarily by backlink data from the web index behind Moz Link Explorer. The model uses dozens of factors, including the number of linking root domains and the quality of those links.

DA is relative and not static. Your score can change because:

• Moz updates its index. A fresh crawl changes what Moz sees.
• You gain or lose links. The obvious one.
• Other sites' scores shift. When big sites gain links, others get pushed down.
• Moz updates the model. It rolled out Domain Authority 2.0 in 2019, for example.

Moz also offers Page Authority (PA) at page level, plus Brand Authority. If Moz is your main tool, our Moz SEO checklist for 2026 covers how to get the most from it.

What is Domain Rating (DR)?

Domain Rating shows the strength of a website's backlink profile compared to the others in the Ahrefs database, on a 100-point scale. Ahrefs describes it as a less granular version of Ahrefs Rank. Our full guide to what Domain Rating is and how it works goes deeper.

How Ahrefs calculates DR

A link from a higher-DR domain passes more. But each source domain splits its rating equally among all the domains it links to. So a DR 10 site linking to three domains can influence your DR more than a DR 80 site linking to a million domains. The computed value is then scaled into the 0 to 100 range.

Like DA, DR is relative. It can drop when you lose no links at all, because other sites gained links. A DR 100 site cannot become DR 101, so everyone else gets pushed down.

Ahrefs says DR correlates with Google rankings, but not as well as its URL Rating (UR). It recommends DR as a metric for choosing sites to get links from, while warning against judging a site on DR alone.

DR vs DA side by side

Here is the Domain Authority vs Domain Rating comparison in one place. Our Domain Rating explained guide has the same breakdown with more context.

• Made by: DA is made by Moz. DR is made by Ahrefs.
• Scale: Both run up to 100 and both are logarithmic, so each step up is harder than the last. DA starts at 1 for new sites.
• What it measures: DA measures predicted ranking ability. DR measures backlink profile strength.
• How it is calculated: DA comes from a machine learning model built mainly on Moz's link data. DR splits each linking domain's rating equally across the domains it links to, then scales the result to 0 to 100.
• Free way to check: DA through Moz Link Explorer, MozBar or Moz's free Domain Authority checker. DR through a free checker that uses Ahrefs data, such as ours.
• Used by Google: Neither. Moz says DA is not a Google ranking factor, Google does not use DR, and there is no internal Google score called domain authority.

How does Ahrefs DR compare to DA on the same site?

Often, not closely. There are three reasons:

• Different crawls. Moz builds DA from its own crawl of the web, and Ahrefs builds DR from its own. Each starts from a different picture of who links to you.
• Different formulas. DA is a model that predicts ranking ability. DR measures link strength, and a link from a site that links out to everyone counts for little. The same backlink can matter more in one system than in the other.
• Different reference points and timing. Each score is relative to its own database, and each vendor updates its index and model on its own schedule.

So a site with DA 40 might be DR 32, or it might be DR 48. Neither number is wrong. The shared "out of 100" label just makes them look more alike than they are.

Which one should you use?

In practice, DA vs DR in SEO is not a contest you need to settle. Use one of them, consistently, and match it to the job.

Tracking your own site

Pick one metric and stay with it. Switching makes your tracking incoherent, because a change might come from the metric rather than your site. Check monthly and treat the number as relative: how do you compare to the sites you compete with, and to where you were three months ago?

Vetting a site before you get a link from it

DR has an edge here, because Ahrefs explicitly recommends it for choosing sites to get links from. Its split logic is also practical: a site that links out to thousands of domains passes less to each of them than its headline DR suggests. Still, never decide on the number alone. Ahrefs itself says to look at link quality, outbound links, traffic, content and relevance too, which is what the workflow below covers.

Comparing yourself to competitors

Use the same metric for every site in the comparison. There is no universal good DA and no absolute good DR. Good means higher than or comparable to the sites you are up against. Our website comparison tool puts them side by side.

Where UR and Page Authority fit

DR and DA are domain-level. Ahrefs URL Rating (UR) and Moz Page Authority (PA) are the page-level equivalents. Your link sits on a specific page, and a strong domain can still host a weak page that nothing links to. We cover the page-level side in Ahrefs UR vs DR.

How to check DR and DA for free

You do not need a paid subscription to check either score.

• DR, one site: Our free Domain Rating checker shows any website's DR using live Ahrefs data. No signup, no email, no credit card. Results are cached for 24 hours per domain, which is fine: DR changes show up over weeks and months, not days.
• DR, many sites: The bulk Domain Rating checker is quicker when you are screening a list of directories or outreach targets.
• DA: Use Moz Link Explorer with a free Moz Community account, the MozBar browser toolbar or Moz's free Domain Authority checker. If you pay for Moz Pro, its Domain Overview shows DA too.

For more options, see our guide on how to check your domain ranking.

Common mistakes with DR and DA

• Comparing DA to DR directly. "My DR is 30 and their DA is 45, so they are ahead" tells you nothing. Compare DR to DR, or DA to DA.
• Paying for a high number. A score is not the value of a link. Buying links breaks search engine spam policies, and modern DR models are built to discount paid link networks.
• Treating either as a Google metric. Moz says DA has no effect on the SERPs, and Google does not use DR either. Both are third-party estimates.
• Panicking at a drop caused by a recalculation. If you lost no links, the likely cause is an index update, a model change or other sites gaining links. Check your referring domains before assuming anything broke.

A quick workflow for vetting a site before you pay for a link

Whether it is a sponsored post, a paid listing or a featured slot, run through this before any money changes hands.

1. Check the score yourself. Do not trust a screenshot. Look up the DR, and the DA if that was quoted.
2. Compare like with like. Check the same metric for three or four similar sites in your niche. Is this one higher or comparable?
3. Look at outbound links. A site that links out to huge numbers of domains passes less to each one.
4. Check the basics. Organic traffic, number of pages, content quality, longevity and topical relevance to what you build.
5. Check the page and the link. Look at UR or PA for the page your link will sit on, and confirm the link is dofollow. Our guide to dofollow vs nofollow links explains why that matters.
6. Ask what you are actually paying for. A listing, a launch or real exposure to an audience is one thing. A site that exists to sell links is another. If the link is the only product, walk away.

Hypothetical example: the "DA 55" guest post pitch

The numbers below are made up to show the process. They do not describe any real site.

A seller emails you: "DA 55 tech blog, guest posts available, dofollow link included." For a young startup domain, that sounds strong.

You run the domain through a DR checker. It comes back DR 14. Different crawls can explain some gap between the two scores, but not automatically one that wide. It is a prompt to look closer, not a verdict.

Next you check three niche blogs you would genuinely like a link from: DR 35, DR 41 and DR 38. The pitched site sits well below all of them.

Then you look past the numbers. The blog posts several times a day on unrelated topics, from crypto to garden furniture, and almost every post links to a different commercial site. Organic traffic is barely visible.

The DA may be perfectly real. It just tells you little about this link. The site fails every check that matters, so you decline and spend the budget on placements that pass.

Key takeaways

• DR and DA are different metrics from different companies. Different numbers for the same site are normal.
• Neither is a Google metric. Use them as relative benchmarks.
• Pick one and stick with it. We use Ahrefs DR. Moz DA is a perfectly good choice if you use it consistently.
• Never buy a number. Vet the site, the page and the link.

Frequently asked questions

Is DR the same as DA?

No. DR is Ahrefs' measure of backlink profile strength. DA is Moz's predicted ranking score. They come from different crawls and different formulas, so the numbers are not interchangeable.

Which is more accurate, DR or DA?

Neither, in an absolute sense, because they measure different things. Ahrefs says DR correlates with Google rankings, though less well than URL Rating. Using the same metric every time matters more than which one you pick.

Does Google use Domain Authority or Domain Rating?

No. Moz says DA is not a Google ranking factor, Google does not use DR, and there is no internal Google score called domain authority.

Why is my DA higher than my DR?

Moz and Ahrefs see different links and weigh them differently. One crawl may have found links the other missed, or your links may come from sites that link out heavily, which counts for less in DR. Another site could show the reverse.

What is a good DR or DA for a new startup?

There is no universal good score. New sites start at DA 1, so judge yourself against the sites you compete with. Moz notes it is easier to grow from 20 to 30 than from 70 to 80, so early progress tends to come faster.

Why did my DR or DA drop when I lost no links?

Both scores are relative. If other sites gain links, yours can fall. Index updates and model changes can shift scores too. Check your referring domains, and if nothing is missing, carry on.

Can I convert DA to DR?

No. There is no formula. A site with DA 40 might be DR 32 or DR 48. If someone quotes one metric, look up the other yourself.

Launch on LaunchIt and earn a real referring domain

If you want a link that passes the workflow above, launch your product on LaunchIt. Our pricing page shows LaunchIt's live Ahrefs Domain Rating as DR 71, and every listing is a permanent page with a dofollow link to your site.

• Basic Launch: free forever. The earliest free slot is currently about two months out.
• Premium Launch: $17.49 for Black Friday, down from $24.99. Launch as soon as tomorrow, with homepage placement on launch day and a verified badge.
• Boost bundle: $34.30 for Premium plus 30 days featured.

We run LaunchIt, so weigh this accordingly. One link will not transform your DR or DA. It is one referring domain among the many you need, so pair it with the approaches in our backlink guide for startups, like publishing something genuinely citable.

Check your starting point with our free DR checker, compare the plans on our pricing page, then submit your product. Check again in a few weeks, not a few days.