As a social marketing expert, I know firsthand the power of link building for driving SEO success. High-quality backlinks from authoritative websites are one of the top ranking factors Google uses to determine search results. According to a study by Backlinko, the number of domains linking to a page correlated with higher rankings more than any other factor.
But here‘s the thing – link building is hard. It‘s time-consuming, often tedious, and can even be downright discouraging when you spend hours reaching out only to get no response. In fact, a survey by Aira found that 41% of SEO professionals spend more than 5 hours per week on link building, with 15% spending more than 20 hours per week!
The good news is that there are powerful link building tools that can help streamline and automate parts of the process, so you can build more high-quality links in less time. I‘ve tested out dozens of these tools, and today I‘m excited to share my top 12 picks for the best link building software of 2024.
1. Ahrefs
Ahrefs is my go-to link building tool, and for good reason. It has the second most active web crawler after Google, with a massive index of over 29 trillion links. This gives you the most comprehensive backlink data available to inform your strategy.
Some of my favorite Ahrefs features for link building include:
- Site Explorer: Lets you analyze the backlink profile and organic keywords of any website or URL
- Content Explorer: Search over 5 billion pages of content to find the most popular and backlink-worthy topics and formats
- Link Intersect: Shows websites that link to your competitors but not you (yet)
- Alerts: Get notifications when you gain or lose backlinks so you can adjust your strategy
Ahrefs isn‘t the cheapest tool out there, with plans starting at $99/month. But in my experience, the depth of data and insights it provides makes it well worth the investment for serious link builders. Plus, you get access to powerful features for keyword research, rank tracking, and competitor analysis.
2. SEMrush
SEMrush is another popular all-in-one SEO and digital marketing toolkit that offers a suite of features for link building. With a database of over 21 billion domains, it provides ample opportunities for link prospecting.
Some standout SEMrush features for link building include:
- Backlink Analytics: Analyze backlink profiles and identify link building opportunities
- Backlink Audit: Detect toxic backlinks that may be hurting your rankings
- Link Building Tool: Find quality websites to get backlinks using 7 unique search methods
- Bulk Analysis: Analyze up to 200 URLs at once to compare link metrics at scale
One thing I love about SEMrush is how it integrates link building with other key SEO functions like keyword research, on-page SEO, and rank tracking. This makes it a great option if you want to manage your entire SEO strategy in one place. Plans start at $119.95/month.
3. Moz Link Explorer
Moz is one of the most trusted names in SEO, and its Link Explorer tool is a solid choice for link building campaigns. While it may not have the largest link database compared to some competitors, I‘ve found the data to be extremely reliable and the platform very user-friendly.
Some of the most useful Link Explorer features include:
- Inbound Links: See all the pages and domains linking to your site or a competitor‘s
- Link Opportunities: Find sites that link to your competitors but not you
- Anchor Text Analysis: Analyze the distribution of anchor text used in backlinks
- Link Tracking Lists: Monitor and track your link building progress over time
One of my favorite things about Link Explorer is MozTrust, a proprietary metric that measures the trustworthiness of a linking site. This is extremely valuable for prioritizing link opportunities and avoiding spammy sites. Moz also offers helpful resources like their Beginner‘s Guide to Link Building.
4. Majestic
Majestic is a powerful link intelligence tool that has been collecting link data since 2004. Its Fresh Index, which is updated daily, contains over 450 billion unique URLs. This makes it an excellent source for finding new link prospects.
Some key features of Majestic for link builders include:
- Site Explorer: Analyze the backlink profile of any domain or URL
- Trust Flow & Citation Flow: Unique metrics to gauge the quality and quantity of backlinks
- Topical Trust Flow: See the topical relevance of links based on categories
- Link Context: View the text surrounding each backlink for better analysis
In my experience, Majestic excels at providing granular data on backlinks that you can slice and dice in various ways. Its advanced reports and visualizations are great for uncovering insights to inform your link building tactics. The main downside is that it doesn‘t have some of the keyword research and content analysis features of other tools. Plans start at $49.99/month.
5. BuzzStream
Effective link building is as much about relationship building as it is about tactics. That‘s where BuzzStream comes in. It‘s a link building and digital PR platform that helps you find link prospects, manage outreach, and nurture relationships at scale.
Some standout features of BuzzStream include:
- Prospecting: Find link opportunities from a database of over 11M websites and influencers
- Research & Qualify Prospects: Get SEO metrics, social profiles, and contact info
- Email Outreach: Send personalized emails and follow-ups right from the platform
- Relationship Management: Keep notes, set reminders, and track relationship history
I‘ve found BuzzStream to be an excellent tool for organizing and streamlining link building campaigns, especially when working with a team. It lets you assign tasks, share notes, and see outreach activity all in one dashboard. It‘s also great for building long-term relationships with link partners.
6. BuzzSumo
If you want to build links through content marketing, BuzzSumo is an excellent tool to have in your arsenal. It‘s a content research and influencer outreach platform that lets you find the most popular content and key opinion leaders in any niche.
Here are some ways to use BuzzSumo for link building:
- Find Popular Topics: See the most shared content for any keyword or domain
- Identify Content Gaps: Find topics your competitors are covering but you aren‘t
- Analyze Top Content: Get insights into content types, lengths, and formats that attract links
- Influencer Outreach: Find influencers to partner with for content co-creation or promotion
By using BuzzSumo to inform your content strategy, you can create link-worthy assets that are more likely to earn editorial links naturally. I also love using it to find journalists and bloggers who may be interested in covering my content. Plans start at $99/month.
7. Hunter
One of the most tedious parts of link building is finding contact information for your prospects. Hunter is a powerful email finding tool that makes this process much easier. Just enter a domain name and it will find all the associated email addresses.
Some key features of Hunter include:
- Domain Search: Find email addresses for any company or website
- Email Verification: Verify the deliverability of any email address
- Bulk Tasks: Find and verify emails for a list of domains
- Chrome Extension: Find emails for a site while browsing the web
I‘ve found Hunter to be extremely accurate and helpful for finding contact info quickly. It‘s also affordable, with 25 free searches per month and paid plans starting at just $49/month. It integrates with BuzzStream too, making outreach even more efficient.
8. LinkMiner
LinkMiner is a free Chrome extension from Mangools that lets you quickly analyze links while browsing any webpage. Just click the extension to see key SEO metrics like Link Strength, Domain Authority, Page Authority, Alexa Rank, IP Address, and more.
Here are some ways LinkMiner can help with link building:
- Evaluate Prospects: Get instant insights into the authority of link opportunities
- Analyze Competitors: See the SEO metrics of sites linking to your competitors
- Find Broken Links: Identify broken outbound links on any page
- Export Data: Download link data to a CSV file for further analysis
I love LinkMiner because it provides quick, easy access to link data without even leaving the page I‘m on. It‘s great for getting a high-level overview of link opportunities during the prospecting phase. And you can‘t beat the price – it‘s 100% free!
9. Pitchbox
Pitchbox is a comprehensive influencer outreach and link building platform. It combines prospecting, outreach, and SEO automation features into one streamlined interface. This makes it a great option for larger agencies and in-house teams.
Some of the top features of Pitchbox include:
- Prospecting: Find opportunities from a database of over 1M+ publishers and influencers
- Automated Outreach: Send drip email campaigns with follow-ups and replies
- Link Monitoring: Track new and lost links with daily updates
- SEO Metrics: Get link strength, domain authority, spam score, and more
- Team Collaboration: Manage campaigns and delegate tasks across your team
While Pitchbox is one of the pricier tools on this list, it does offer an impressive array of features for running efficient, large-scale link building campaigns. If you need to build a lot of links and work with a team, it‘s worth considering. Plans start at $195/month.
10. GroupHigh
GroupHigh is an all-in-one influencer marketing and PR platform that is great for link building. It has a massive database of over 13 million blogs and publishers covering over 7,000 searchable topics. This makes it easy to find link prospects in any niche.
Some key GroupHigh features for link builders include:
- Blogger Outreach: Find relevant bloggers and Publishers to pitch content or guest posts
- Content Research: Get insights into the types of content publishers are linking to
- Relationship Management: Organize conversations, share notes, and track partnerships
- Campaign Tracking: Measure the ROI of outreach campaigns and content partnerships
One thing I love about GroupHigh is its Insights reports, which provide a ton of data to inform link building strategy. You can see things like publisher SEO metrics, social sharing data, audience demographics, and more. This helps you find the right partners and craft more effective outreach. Plans start at $179/month.
11. Disavow.it
Not all links are good links. In fact, low-quality or spammy backlinks from sketchy sites can actually hurt your search rankings. That‘s why it‘s important to regularly audit your backlink profile and disavow any toxic links.
This is where Disavow.it comes in. It‘s a free tool that generates ready-to-upload disavow files you can submit to Google to clean up your link profile.
Here‘s how it works:
- Export your backlink data from Google Search Console, Ahrefs, Moz, or Majestic
- Upload the file to Disavow.it
- Select the links or domains you want to disavow
- Generate your disavow file and submit to Google
It‘s a simple but effective tool for maintaining a healthy link profile. I recommend auditing your links at least quarterly and using Disavow.it to prune any low-quality or irrelevant links that may have slipped through.
12. SEO SpyGlass
Last but not least is SEO SpyGlass, a powerful backlink checker that lets you track and analyze links at scale. With a database of over 8 trillion backlinks from 80 million domains, it provides comprehensive data for any link building campaign.
Some of my favorite SEO SpyGlass features include:
- Backlink Analytics: Get an in-depth look at yours or a competitor‘s backlink profile
- Link Outreach: Find contact info for link prospects and send personalized emails
- Link Quality Insights: See Spam Score, InLink Rank, Page/Domain Authority for each link
- Link Intersection: Find websites that link to multiple competitors but not you
One unique feature is its ad hoc backlink search engine, which lets you search for specific links using advanced operators like keyword, domain age, backlink type, and more. It‘s great for zeroing in on the most relevant, high-impact link opportunities. The tool costs $124.75 per year.
How to Choose the Right Link Building Tool
With so many great link building tools available, how do you decide which one(s) to invest in? Here are a few key factors to consider:
- Database Size & Quality: Look for tools with extensive, reliable link databases that are regularly updated
- Relevant Features: Prioritize features that align with your key link building tactics and KPIs
- Ease of Use: Make sure the interface and functionality won‘t cause a steep learning curve for your team
- Integration: Consider how each tool fits into your existing tech stack and workflows
- Pricing: Evaluate the cost vs. value and ROI you expect to generate from better, more efficient link building
In my experience, a combination of tools usually works best, as each one has its own unique strengths and data. For example, you might use Ahrefs for in-depth backlink research, BuzzStream for outreach and relationship management, and LinkMiner for quick link checks on the fly.
Bonus Link Building Tips & Tactics
To get the most out of these link building tools, it‘s important to use them in conjunction with proven, white-hat link acquisition strategies. Here are a few of my top tips:
- Create Link-Worthy Content: Invest in original research, data-driven content, and unique resources that naturally attract links
- Contribute Guest Posts: Reach new audiences and earn high-quality links by guest posting on relevant, authoritative sites in your industry
- Leverage Broken Links: Find pages with broken outbound links, recreate the missing resource, and request a link
- Engage in Community Discussions: Build relationships with influencers and site owners by participating in online forums, Q&A sites, and social media groups
- Give Testimonials & Reviews: Offer to provide testimonials or reviews for products and services you use in exchange for a link back to your site
- Monitor Brand Mentions: Use Google Alerts or mention monitoring tools to find unlinked mentions of your brand and request a link
The key is to focus on providing value and building real relationships rather than just asking for links. By combining these proven tactics with the right tools, you can take your link building results to new heights.
Conclusion
Building high-quality links is one of the most impactful things you can do to improve your search rankings, drive more organic traffic, and grow your online presence. But it‘s also one of the most challenging and time-consuming parts of SEO.
That‘s why investing in the right link building tools is so important. By leveraging software to automate and streamline key parts of the process, you can build links more efficiently and effectively.
While there is no single "best" tool for every situation, the 12 tools covered in this guide are some of the most powerful and popular options available. Whether you‘re just getting started with link building or looking to take your efforts to the next level, you‘re sure to find a tool (or two) that can help.
The key is to choose tools that align with your unique needs, budget, and link building strategy. And remember, tools are just that – tools. To succeed with link building in the long run, you need to focus on creating great content, building real relationships, and providing value to your audience and industry.
By combining the right tools and tactics, you can skyrocket your search rankings, drive more qualified traffic to your site, and achieve your most important marketing goals. So what are you waiting for? Go forth and start building those links!
