Domain Authority vs Domain Rating: What Actually Matters in 2026

DA, DR, AS, TF, CF — third-party metrics multiply every year while Google quietly ignores all of them. Here's how to use them anyway.

What each metric actually is

• DA (Moz): predicts ranking potential, 0–100 logarithmic
• DR (Ahrefs): measures backlink profile strength, 0–100
• AS (Semrush): blends backlinks, traffic, organic search
• TF/CF (Majestic): trust flow vs citation flow

Which correlates best with real rankings?

None perfectly. Semrush's Authority Score and Ahrefs DR with verified organic traffic are the most useful proxies in practice.

How to use these scores when buying links

Always cross-check DR against organic traffic. A DR 70 site with 200 monthly visits is a red flag. A DR 45 site with 50,000 visits is usually gold.

FAQ

Does Google use DA or DR?

No. Google has its own internal site-quality signals. Third-party metrics are just useful estimates.