What Is a Backlink, in Google's Words?
Google defines the term in the Search Console Links report help page: “What's a backlink? A backlink is a link on a page from another site that links to a page on your site. It links back to your site.” The same page uses “backlinks” for the external links the report lists, and it contrasts them with internal links, which connect pages within your own site. Two details in the report help are worth knowing: data is grouped by root domain, so www.example.com and m.example.com are counted as example.com, and duplicate links from the same source URL to the same target are combined (Google).
In HTML, a backlink is an <a href> element on someone else's page that points to your URL. The visible words inside it are the anchor text. For example, if a page at news.example.org contains the code below, that page gives example.com one backlink, and a reader who clicks it lands on the linked page:
<a href="https://www.example.com/report">Example Corp annual report</a>Industry sources also say “inbound link” or “incoming link”; the meaning is the same, but Google's help page uses “backlink.”
Backlinks at a Glance
| Question | Answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Who defines it | Google Search Console Help (the Links report) | |
| Direction | From another site to yours (internal links stay within your site) | |
| Why Google cares | Link discovery, and as one signal of whether others reference the content | Google; Google |
| Weight in ranking | Not published; the original 1998 Google paper said links from all pages are not counted equally | Brin and Page |
| Paid links | Allowed when qualified with rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow"; otherwise they can be link spam | |
| Where to see yours | Search Console > Links report > External links | |
| Related terms | Anchor text, nofollow, internal link, outbound link, referring domain | See comparison table below |
Where the Backlink Idea Comes From
Counting backlinks is how Google's first ranking method was explained. In the 1998 paper “The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine,” Sergey Brin and Lawrence Page wrote: “Academic citation literature has been applied to the web, largely by counting citations or backlinks to a given page. This gives some approximation of a page's importance or quality. PageRank extends this idea by not counting links from all pages equally” (Stanford, section 2.1.1).
That paper is history. Google's ranking systems have changed greatly since 1998, and the paper does not describe how Google ranks pages today. What it explains is why links became a currency, and why manipulation followed. Today's Google guidance addresses both the signal and the abuse.
How Google Uses Backlinks
Google documents two uses and publishes no formula. The first is discovery: Google's overview of Search says that “Other pages are discovered when Google extracts a link from a known page to a new page,” with an example of a category page linking to a new post (Google). A page with no links pointing to it can still be found through a sitemap, but links remain a main route.
The second is quality assessment. Google's ranking-results page says its systems look for signals of expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness, and gives one example: “one of the factors used to determine quality is understanding if other prominent websites link or refer to the content. This is generally a good sign that the information is trustworthy.” Google adds that aggregated feedback from its Search quality evaluation process helps refine how its systems discern the quality of information (Google). That is a statement about prominent websites that link or refer to content, which is narrower than “more backlinks is better.”
Types of Backlinks by Qualification
Google lets site owners describe a link's relationship with rel values. The values change how the link is treated, not whether it exists as a backlink.
| Link kind | What Google says | What it means for a backlink |
|---|---|---|
Regular (no rel) | “For regular links that you expect Google to fetch and parse without any qualifications, you don't need to add a rel attribute” | An ordinary editorial link |
rel="sponsored" | “Mark links that are advertisements or paid placements (commonly called paid links) with the sponsored value” | A paid placement link; qualified, so not a violation |
rel="ugc" | Recommended for user-generated content links, such as comments and forum posts | A link a user placed, not the site owner |
rel="nofollow" | Use it when other values do not apply and you would rather Google not associate your site with the linked page; “previously recommended” for paid links and still acceptable | A qualified link: you would rather Google not associate your site with the linked page; see what is a nofollow link |
Source for all four rows: Google's outbound link guide (last updated December 10, 2025).
When a Backlink Becomes Link Spam
A backlink is link spam when it is created primarily to manipulate rankings. Google's spam policies define link spam as “creating links to or from a site primarily for the purpose of manipulating search rankings” and list examples including “Buying or selling links for ranking purposes,” “Excessive link exchanges,” “Using automated programs or services to create links to your site,” and “Advertorials or native advertising where payment is received for articles that include links that pass ranking credit, or links with optimized anchor text in articles, guest posts, or press releases distributed on other sites” (Google, last updated August 28, 2026).
Google also says buying and selling links is a normal part of the web's economy for advertising and sponsorship, and is not a violation when the links are qualified. Our check of 70 PR Newswire releases found all 19 external links in release bodies carried rel=nofollow (do wire service links pass SEO value?). The practical rule for PR: an unpaid, editorial mention is the clean case; a paid or distributed one should be qualified. See does a paid placement pass SEO value?
Number of external links inside release bodies, by rel value; 70 releases checked September 24, 2026
Source: Media Morpheus Research, Do Wire Service Links Pass SEO Value? We Checked 70 Releases, original measurement.
Only 8 of the 70 releases contained any external link in the body; 62 had none. One wire, one listing, one date; other wires could not be measured.
How to Check Your Backlinks in Search Console
Search Console's Links report is the free first-party source. Open the Links report, then look under External links. Google describes three tables there, and each answers a different question (Search Console Help).
| Table | What it shows | Use it to |
|---|---|---|
| Top linked pages | Which of your pages have the most backlinks from other sites | See “if you're getting the recognition that you think you deserve” |
| Top linking sites | Which sites contain the most backlinks to yours, grouped by root domain | Confirm you recognize the sites; check that important sites point to you |
| Top linking text | The link text used in backlinks; only links from outside your property | Confirm the text is what you expect and not spammy |
Google advises that if you see unknown and possibly spammy sites, you might need to ask to be removed or, “if all else fails, disavow them to avoid having your ranking harmed by known spammy sites.” Treat that as a last step after you have checked the links are genuinely harmful. The step-by-step version is in our Search Console links guide.
Three limits to keep in mind. The report is a sample, tables are capped at 1,000 rows, and data is grouped by root domain, so a link on a subdomain shows under the main domain. For a new article, a link may take time to appear. Google does not state a delay in the help page, so we do not give one.
Backlinks in PR Work: What to Expect and What to Measure
Earned coverage often includes a link, but journalists decide. Editors set their own linking policies, and an article can mention your company without linking to it. Treat a backlink as a bonus, not a deliverable you can demand. Track what you get: Search Console's Links report is the free source, and Google notes it “isn't a comprehensive list of every link on your site.”
- Record the target URL. Link to a page that explains the topic, not only to the home page. A newsroom or resource page works well; see how to create an online newsroom.
- Tag outbound campaign links. Our guide to tracking press and podcast links with UTM shows how to separate visits from coverage.
- Read the anchor text. The Top linking text table shows what others call you; see what is anchor text.
- Do not count a mention as a link. A brand mention without a hyperlink is not a backlink.
The table sets out what Google's rules and our earlier reports imply for common PR outputs.
| PR output | Typical link treatment | Where we cover it |
|---|---|---|
| Wire press release | All 19 body links in the 70 PR Newswire releases we checked carried nofollow | Wire link report |
| Paid or sponsored article | Should be qualified with sponsored or nofollow | Paid placement and SEO |
| Unpaid podcast appearance | An ordinary editorial link in the show notes, if the host includes one | Podcast guests and search visibility |
| Earned news article | Up to the outlet; no guarantee | How to pitch a journalist |
For measurement beyond links, see how to measure whether a placement worked.
Backlink vs Related Terms
| Term | What it is | Relationship to a backlink |
|---|---|---|
| Internal link | A link between two pages on the same site | Stays inside your site; a backlink comes from another site |
| Outbound link | A link from your page to another site | The same link, seen from the other site's side |
| Anchor text | The visible words of the link | Part of a backlink; see what is anchor text |
| Nofollow / sponsored / ugc | Values that qualify a link | Attributes of the backlink, not a different kind of link |
| Mention | Your name in text without a link | Can support awareness; it is not a backlink |
Common Misconceptions About Backlinks
| Myth | What the source actually says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| All backlinks help rankings | Brin and Page: PageRank extends citation counting “by not counting links from all pages equally”; Google flags manipulative links as spam | Brin and Page; Google |
| Paid links are against Google policy | Allowed “as long as they are qualified” with nofollow or sponsored | |
| Search Console lists all my backlinks | The report “isn't a comprehensive list” and shows a sample | |
| A page needs backlinks to be indexed | Links are one way Google discovers pages; a sitemap is another | |
| Google publishes the number of links needed | Google gives no number or weight in the pages we read |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a backlink in simple terms?
It is a link on another website that points to a page on your site. Google defines it as “a link on a page from another site that links to a page on your site.”
Are backlinks a Google ranking factor?
Google says one factor in judging quality is whether other prominent websites link or refer to content. It does not publish how much weight links carry.
Is a backlink the same as an inbound link?
Yes in meaning. Google's help page uses “backlink”; many SEO tools say “inbound link” or “incoming link.”
Do nofollow backlinks count?
They are still links to your page. Google's guide says nofollow signals that you would rather Google not associate your site with the linked page; Google publishes no ranking effect for it.
Where can I see my backlinks for free?
In Google Search Console's Links report, under External links. It is a sample, so it will not list every backlink.
Does a press release create backlinks?
It can create links, but Google lists “links with optimized anchor text in articles, guest posts, or press releases distributed on other sites” as link spam. In our check of 70 PR Newswire releases, all 19 external links carried nofollow.
Sources and Methodology
This explainer is built from Google Search Central and Search Console documentation, read on October 9, 2026, plus Brin and Page's 1998 paper for history. Google's definitions are quoted verbatim. The wire-release figure comes from our own earlier study, linked above. We did not run any ranking test for this article, and we make no claim about how much backlinks weigh in Google's ranking today.
- official Links report, Search Console Help.
- official Spam policies for Google web search, Google Search Central (last updated August 28, 2026).
- official Qualify your outbound links to Google, Google Search Central (last updated December 10, 2025).
- official How Google Search works, Google Search Central (last updated December 18, 2025).
- official Ranking results, Google, How Search works.
- research Sergey Brin and Lawrence Page, The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine, Stanford University, 1998, section 2.1.1.
- own data Media Morpheus Research, Do Wire Service Links Pass SEO Value? We Checked 70 Releases.