50 Link Building Statistics and Trends for 2024

Key Link Building Statistics

1. Five years from now, 94% of marketers expect links to remain a ranking criterion in Google algorithms. (Source: Aira)
2. 43.7% of the highest-ranking pages on Google feature at least some reciprocal links based on the study of 112,440 top ranking pages. (Source: Ahrefs)
3. 94% of link builders emphasize that the quality of links is more crucial than the quantity of links. (Source: Authority Hacker)
4. Indeed, a mere 2.2% of content garners links from numerous websites. (Source: Backlinko)
5. A significant 66.5% of links to websites within the last 9 years are no longer active. (Source: Ahrefs)
6. A notable 45.8% of SEOs report that link building now requires more time than before. (Source: Authority Hacker)
7. Roughly 95% of all web pages have zero backlinks. (Source: Backlinko)
8. A significant majority, 68%, of online interactions commence with the use of a search engine. (Source: On The Map)

Popular Link Building Strategies

9. The most widely favored link-building tactic is guest posting. (Source: Authority Hacker)
10. 73.6% of domains with good authority employ a reciprocal link strategy. (Source: Search Engine Journal)
11. 62% of SEOs believe that the topic where the backlink is placed is the most crucial factor in determining relevance. (Source: Aira)
12. HARO is used by 46.3% of link builders. (Source: Authority Hacker)
13. Long-form content, on average, receives 77.2% more links compared to shorter articles. (Source: Backlinko)
14. Agencies and in-house SEOs are over three times more likely to engage in digital PR. (Source: Authority Hacker)
15. Articles featuring infographics receive 178% more links compared to standard articles. (Source: Single Grain)

Social Media and Link Building Statistics

16. Link builders who leverage social media build 22% more links compared to those who don’t. (Source: Authority Hacker)
17. Highly shared content also receives 2-5 times more organic traffic and backlinks. (Source: Authority Hacker)
18. 59% of social shares and engagements are attributed to individuals who solely read the headline. (Source: Authority Hacker)

Link Building Outreach Statistics

19. On average, it takes 8 days for an outreach email to result in a backlink conversion. (Source: Authority Hacker)
20. 36% of marketers usually conduct outreach campaigns to build links to a new piece of content for up to four weeks after its launch. (Source: Aira)
21. Including follow-up emails in link-building outreach campaigns leads to a 40% increase in the acquisition of links. (Source: Authority Hacker)
22. “Feeler” emails, which involve outreach without explicitly requesting a backlink, resulted in a conversion increase of over 40%. (Source: Backlinko)
23. Over half of marketers, specifically 51%, partner with up to 10 influencers annually. (Source: purpleZ)

Link Building and Impact on Search Rankings

24. On average, it takes approximately 3.1 months for the impact of links on search rankings to become noticeable. (Source: Authority Hacker)
25. 69% of marketers stated that purchasing links from quality link-building services had a positive impact on their rankings for very difficult keywords. (Source: Search Logistics)
26. The overall link authority of a site, measured by Ahrefs Domain Rating, shows a strong correlation with higher rankings. (Source: Backlinko)
27. Pages with the highest total number of backlinks generally achieve the best rankings in Google. (Source: Backlinko)

Link Building Cost Statistics

28. Approximately 74.3% of link builders admit to paying for links. (Source: Authority Hacker)
29. Among in-house SEOs, 25% dedicate a monthly budget of $10,000 or higher to link building, while 19% allocate between $2,500 and $5,000. Additionally, 13% spend between $1,000 and $2,500, as well as between $5,000 and $10,000. Only 9% allocate $25,000 to $50,000 or more, and 6% spend up to $1,000.(Source: Aira)
30. The average cost of paid backlinks is $361.44. (Source: Ahrefs)
31. In certain cases, high-quality links can cost over $1500. (Source: Siege Media)
32. 40% of marketers report having no budget for link building, while an additional third spend less than $200 per month. (Source: Databox)

Backlinks in SEO Statistics

33. The typical expense for publishing a paid guest post stands at $77.80. (Source: Ahrefs)
34. 42% of SEO strategists assert that they allocate an equal amount of time to building external links and internal links. (Source: Databox)
35. Paying for links, on average, results in an additional two links per month. (Source: Authority Hacker)
36. Top-ranking pages typically accumulate “followed” backlinks from new websites at a monthly growth rate ranging from +5% to 14.5%. (Source: Ahrefs)
37. 36% of businesses enlist the assistance of external experts or freelancers to enhance their link-building efforts. (Source: Aira)
38. Keyword rankings are used by 43.9% of marketers as a metric to gauge SEO success. (Source: Adam Connell)
39. Nofollow backlinks account for 10.6% of all backlinks to the top 110,000 sites. (Source: Ahrefs)
40. Studies indicate that there existed a correlation between the number of domains linking to a page and its rankings. (Source: Backlinko)
41. Exact match anchor text backlinks are not more effective at boosting content rankings than non-exact match anchor text. (Source: Ahrefs)
42. Studies have shown that consistently publishing well-crafted, informative blogs over a three-month period can boost traffic to company websites by up to 60%. (Source: IndustrialSage)
43. The top result in Google typically has an average of 3.8 times more backlinks than positions 2-10. (Source: Backlinko)
44. As per a BrightEdge survey conducted in 2019, SEO yields a staggering 1000% increase in traffic compared to organic social media. (Source: Noble Desktop)
45. As per Optinmonster, 60% of blogs release 1-5 guest posts monthly, significantly boosting their website traffic. (Source: OptinMonster)

Link Building Trends 

46. In five years, two-thirds of respondents anticipate that links will continue to be important. (Source: Authority Hacker)
47. The primary objective for 86% of marketers when producing content is to build links. (Source: Aira)
48. Considering salaries, experienced link builders can create links at a cost that is 41% cheaper. (Source: Authority Hacker)
49. 72% of respondents prioritize links from sites specifically related to their niche, according to a survey on key link attributes. (Source: Aira)
50. Link building is a critical but complex aspect of SEO, with 52.3% of digital marketers acknowledging its challenges. (Source: SEO.ai)