How to audit your backlinks and decide what to do next
By the Auditmatic team · Updated 3 November 2026 · 6 min read
Start with the totals
Look at the number of referring domains, which is how many different sites link to you, and the trend over time. A steady climb is healthy. A sudden drop usually means a site you were on has changed or removed a page.
Total link count can mislead, because one site with a sitewide link can add thousands.
Check new and lost links
Review the links gained and lost each month. New links show what content earns attention. Lost links tell you which to win back, often by contacting the site if a page moved.
Find your best-linked pages
A few pages usually earn most of the links. Look at what they have in common: original data, tools, strong guides. Make more of that kind of page.
Handle low-quality links calmly
Most odd-looking links are harmless. Google has said it generally ignores spammy links, and the disavow tool is for rare cases such as a manual action. Spend your time earning good links instead.
Plan outreach from a link gap
Compare your links with a competitor's. Sites that link to them and not to you are your best prospects, especially if they linked to content similar to yours.
- List domains that link to two or three competitors but not to you.
- Remove spam, directories you would not want to be listed on, and sites with no real audience.
- For the rest, note why they linked to the competitor.
- Write a short, specific message that offers something useful, not a request for a favour.
Run it with your AI agent
Connect your agent to Auditmatic, then paste this prompt. Replace the parts in angle brackets. It reads real data and asks before it spends anything.
Use my Auditmatic project for <your-domain>. Run get_backlinks_overview and get_backlinks_profile. Report: referring domains and the trend, links gained and lost in the last 30 days, my five best-linked pages, and anchors that look unnatural. Then compare with <competitor-1.com> and list 15 domains that link to them but not to me, with a one-line reason each.
Without a tool
You can do this by hand with free tools:
- Use Google Search Console, Links report, for your top linking sites and pages.
- Export the list and count referring domains in a spreadsheet.
- Search a competitor's content titles in quotes to find who mentions them.
Questions
Should I disavow bad backlinks?
Usually not. Google generally ignores low-quality links. Disavow only if you have a manual action or a clear pattern of paid links you cannot remove.
How much does a backlink check cost on Auditmatic?
About 8 cents per domain overview with a year of history.
Keep going
Start with a free audit
See what your site needs first. No signup, and it takes about a minute.