Best Free Backlink Checker Tools in 2026: 7 Options Compared
Discover who links to your website, research competitor backlinks, find referring domains and uncover new link-building opportunities without immediately paying for an expensive SEO subscription.
Updated: September 2026What Is a Backlink Checker?
A backlink checker is an SEO tool that identifies links pointing from other websites to a domain or web page.
For example, if another website links to:
https://yourwebsite.com/guide/
that link is normally called a backlink.
Backlink checker tools may show information such as:
- Total backlinks
- Referring domains
- Source URLs
- Target pages
- Anchor text
- Follow and nofollow links
- New backlinks
- Lost backlinks
- Website authority metrics
This information can help you understand your website’s link profile and discover sites that may be worth approaching for future links.
Best Free Backlink Checker Tools: Quick Comparison
| Tool | Competitor Links | Your Own Site | Free Access | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahrefs Backlink Checker | Yes | Yes | Limited sample | Quick backlink research |
| Semrush | Yes | Yes | Limited | Competitor backlink research |
| Ubersuggest | Yes | Yes | Limited | Beginner-friendly analysis |
| Google Search Console | No | Yes | Free | Your Google-discovered links |
| Bing Webmaster Tools | Limited comparison | Yes | Free | Referring domains & anchors |
| Ahrefs Free | Limited | Yes | Free after verification | Deep analysis of owned sites |
| Moz Link Explorer | Yes | Yes | Limited free access | Authority & link research |
7 Best Free Backlink Checker Tools in 2026
Ahrefs Backlink Checker
Backlinks Referring Domains Competitors Free ToolAhrefs operates one of the best-known backlink databases in the SEO industry and provides a standalone free Backlink Checker.
You can enter a domain or specific URL and receive a limited view of its backlink profile without subscribing to a full Ahrefs plan.
Ahrefs currently states that its standalone free tools include a Backlink Checker showing the top 20 backlinks for a domain.
It is useful for quick competitor checks and discovering examples of websites already linking to a page.
✓ Analyze almost any domain
✓ Strong backlink database
✓ Easy to use
✓ Authority metrics available
✓ Excellent quick research
✕ Free backlink sample is small
✕ Full reports require paid access
✕ Different tools may show different totals
Semrush Backlink Checker
Competitors Authority Link OpportunitiesSemrush offers a free Backlink Checker powered by its Backlink Analytics database.
You can enter a domain or URL and review backlink information and important link-profile metrics.
Semrush is particularly useful when comparing your site with competitors because its broader backlink tools can identify websites linking to competing domains.
Free access provides a useful preview, while more detailed reports and large-scale analysis require a Semrush subscription.
✓ Check competitor links
✓ Referring-domain insights
✓ Backlink metrics
✓ Useful competitive research
✓ Free checker available
✕ Free data is limited
✕ Full analysis requires paid plan
✕ Metrics are proprietary estimates
Ubersuggest Backlink Checker
Competitors Anchor Text New & Lost LinksUbersuggest provides a free backlink checker that gives users a snapshot of a domain’s link profile.
Its backlink overview can include:
- Domain Authority
- Total backlinks
- Referring domains
- NoFollow backlinks
- Anchor text
- New and lost link trends
The service can also be used for competitor research to identify sites that already link to competing content.
Free access is limited, while an Ubersuggest account provides additional reports and filtering options.
✓ Beginner friendly
✓ Competitor analysis
✓ New and lost links
✓ Authority information
✓ Anchor-text insights
✕ Free searches are limited
✕ Full reports require account/plan
✕ Data remains third-party crawl data
Google Search Console Links Report
Google Own Website Top Linked PagesGoogle Search Console provides a free Links report for websites you own and verify.
The report can show:
- Top externally linked pages
- Top linking websites
- Top linking text
- Internal links
Google explains that the report is a sample rather than a complete list of every backlink it knows about.
Search Console currently limits individual Links report tables to 1,000 rows.
✓ Completely free
✓ Google data
✓ Top linking sites
✓ Anchor-text information
✓ No third-party subscription
✕ Only websites you control
✕ Not a complete backlink database
✕ Maximum table rows apply
Bing Webmaster Tools Backlinks
Bing Referring Domains Anchor TextBing Webmaster Tools contains a surprisingly capable free Backlinks report.
For a verified website, Bing can show referring domains, referring pages, target pages and anchor text.
Its documentation currently states that the report can show detailed data for up to 1,500 referring domains.
Within an individual domain, Bing can provide details for up to 10,000 backlinks.
The tool also offers a similar-sites comparison feature that can help identify domains linking to competitors but not to your site.
✓ Completely free
✓ Referring-domain data
✓ Anchor-text reports
✓ Competitor comparison feature
✓ CSV export available
✕ Requires verified website
✕ Report is representative, not complete
✕ Bing’s crawler differs from Google’s
Ahrefs Free for Verified Websites
Own Website Site Explorer 1,000 Visible LinksIf you own the website you are analyzing, Ahrefs Free provides more useful access than the standalone Backlink Checker.
After verifying ownership, Site Explorer can show sites and pages linking to your website.
The current Ahrefs Free account allows up to 1,000 backlinks and keywords visible at once.
Ahrefs says this is the same account previously known as Ahrefs Webmaster Tools.
✓ Free forever account
✓ 1,000 backlinks/keywords visible
✓ Site Explorer access
✓ Excellent for your own sites
✓ No credit card required
✕ Site ownership verification required
✕ Competitor access is limited
✕ Paid plan required for deeper research
Moz Link Explorer
Link Research Domain Authority CompetitorsMoz Link Explorer is another established backlink research tool.
Moz is particularly well known for its proprietary Domain Authority metric, which many marketers use as one rough way to compare the relative strength of websites.
Link Explorer can help identify inbound links, linking domains and other link-profile information.
Free access is limited, making it best as an additional data source rather than the only backlink checker in your workflow.
✓ Established SEO platform
✓ Domain Authority metric
✓ Competitor research
✓ Link-profile analysis
✕ Limited free access
✕ Full data requires subscription
✕ Authority metrics are not Google metrics
Important Backlink Metrics Explained
Backlinks
The total number of links from other web pages pointing to your website.
Referring domains
The number of unique websites linking to you.
This metric can often be more useful than total backlink count because one website may link to your domain hundreds of times.
Anchor text
Anchor text is the visible clickable text used in a link.
For example:
Best Free SEO Tools
could be the anchor text pointing to an SEO-tools article.
Follow vs NoFollow
Links can contain attributes that provide information to search engines about how the link should be treated.
You should not evaluate a link only because it is marked Follow or NoFollow. A relevant link can still send valuable visitors and increase brand exposure.
Authority metrics
Ahrefs, Moz, Semrush and Ubersuggest all use their own authority-style metrics.
These are third-party metrics and should never be confused with a Google ranking score.
Which Free Backlink Checker Should You Use?
Why Do Backlinks Matter for SEO?
A backlink can act as a signal that another site found a page useful enough to reference.
However, not every backlink has equal value.
A relevant editorial link from a respected website in your niche is usually more meaningful than dozens of random links from unrelated low-quality pages.
Search engines also evaluate many other factors, so backlinks should not be treated as the only ranking factor.
How to Find Competitor Backlinks for Free
Step 1: Choose a competitor
Find a website ranking for the same topics as your own site.
Step 2: Check it with Ahrefs
Use the free Ahrefs Backlink Checker to inspect some of its strongest visible links.
Step 3: Compare with Semrush or Ubersuggest
A second backlink database may reveal sources that the first tool does not show in its free sample.
Step 4: Look for relevant opportunities
Focus on sites that naturally link to resources similar to yours.
Step 5: Create something worth referencing
Before contacting another website, make sure your page genuinely gives them a reason to link to it.
What Makes a Good Backlink?
A useful backlink often has several of these characteristics:
- Comes from a relevant website
- Appears naturally within useful content
- Points to a page that matches the surrounding topic
- Can send real referral visitors
- Comes from a genuine, maintained website
- Was earned rather than created solely to manipulate rankings
Quality is generally more important than simply collecting the largest possible number of links.
Should You Buy Backlinks?
Buying links specifically to manipulate search rankings can create significant SEO risk.
Instead, focus your link-building effort on methods such as:
- Original research
- Useful free tools
- Detailed tutorials
- Statistics pages
- Unique comparisons
- Digital PR
- Relevant outreach
- Helpful resources worth citing
Bing’s current webmaster guidance also recommends building links organically and warns against link farms and link-sharing schemes designed to manipulate rankings.
Why Do Different Backlink Tools Show Different Numbers?
Each service crawls the internet independently.
That means:
- One crawler may discover a page earlier
- Another may crawl certain websites more frequently
- Tools may treat duplicate links differently
- Historical links may be stored differently
- Free reports may show only samples
Even Google Search Console explicitly says its Links report is not a comprehensive list of every link to your site.
For this reason, compare backlink trends rather than expecting all services to report exactly the same number.
Our Recommended Free Backlink Checking Stack
For competitor research:
- Ahrefs Backlink Checker – quick sample
- Semrush – competitor analysis
- Ubersuggest – additional link data and opportunities
For websites you own:
- Google Search Console – Google’s Links report
- Bing Webmaster Tools – referring domains and anchor text
- Ahrefs Free – deeper third-party backlink analysis
Using several free sources gives you a broader picture without requiring an expensive SEO subscription.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best free backlink checker in 2026?
Ahrefs Backlink Checker is one of the easiest tools for quickly checking the backlinks of almost any website. For websites you own, Google Search Console, Bing Webmaster Tools and Ahrefs Free provide more detailed free data.
Is Ahrefs Backlink Checker free?
Yes. Ahrefs provides a standalone free Backlink Checker with limited results. Its current free-tool documentation says the standalone checker can show the top 20 backlinks for a domain.
Can Semrush check backlinks for free?
Yes. Semrush currently provides a free Backlink Checker powered by its Backlink Analytics database, although more extensive reporting requires paid access.
Does Google Search Console show backlinks?
Yes. Search Console’s Links report can show top linking sites, top linked pages and linking text for a verified website. Google states that the report is a sample rather than every backlink it knows about.
Does Bing Webmaster Tools show backlinks?
Yes. Bing’s Backlinks report provides information about referring domains, referring pages, target pages and anchor texts for verified websites.
How many backlinks can Ahrefs Free show?
Ahrefs currently lists up to 1,000 backlinks and keywords visible at once in Site Explorer for verified websites using the free account.
Are backlinks still important for SEO?
Links can remain useful signals of authority, relevance and discovery, but they are only one part of SEO. Content quality, technical health, search intent, usability and many other factors also matter.
Is it better to have more backlinks or more referring domains?
Both metrics can be useful, but receiving links from a diverse set of relevant and reputable domains can provide a healthier profile than simply accumulating many repeated links from one website.