What Influences the Cost of a Backlink?

Backlinks from the same website can cost anywhere from $5 to $500 and beyond.

Depending on the vendor selling them.

Here’s an average example with the range “only” from $18 to $241.

That’s super confusing, right? I was confused.

So, I asked fellow marketers on LinkedIn to help me understand how it works.

The post received 100+ comments and tens of direct messages, leading to interesting conversations.

Then, I interviewed two CEOs of large link-building companies to dive even deeper.

And to validate my findings, I’ve asked my assistant to contact the vendors to check their real prices.

In this post, I’m sharing my findings with you.

Here is what we found:

That’s the gist. Here is how each of these factors influences the link pricing.

Disclaimer. This text is not a recommendation for buying any backlinks from any vendor. I mention companies in this research solely for illustration and source-referring purposes to show examples of price fluctuations. I don’t know them personally.

1. Price Markup, aka Seller Appetite

First and foremost, the link-building market is … market. Many agencies quote higher prices just because they can sell their services at higher markups.

That’s what it boils down to. The agency can get a link for $10, but they will sell it for $100. 

As simple as that.

It is worth noting that exclusions exist when the agency buys links in bulk and can provide a price lower than the source will charge directly.

2. Number of vendors between the source and the seller

Typically, if you buy links directly from the source, you will pay less. On the other hand, if you are buying through a link-building agency, you will pay more.

The first reason is, of course, the price markup – as discussed earlier.

The second reason is that the link-building agency often does not buy the link from the source either.

They offer links from 30,000 websites but have direct relationships with only 1,000.

To buy links from the other 29,000 sites, they use services from another link builder, who buys the link from the source—or maybe from another link builder again!

You get the point. The more layers between the source and the seller, the more the link will cost. Because each layer adds markup according to their appetite.

This is how a $49 link becomes a $766 link in just 3 steps of 150% markup:

The more layers, the costlier the link gets.

3. Do-follow or no-follow 

Do-follow links are priced higher than no-follow links.

A no-follow link is a link with an HTML tag rel=”nofollow” added.

If the no-follow tag is absent, then it’s a do-follow link.

The nofollow tag tells the search engine not to pass any “authority” to the link destination. 

So, you ideally want a do-follow link. But a no-follow link is not completely worthless, either. 

While no one knows how much weight a no-follow link has in Google’s algorithm, a no-follow link from a high-authority website is still desirable. People are willing to pay for it.

But back to the point. For the same link, a do-follow link costs you more than a no-follow link.

4. Link insertion type

The link pricing also depends on where the link will be inserted in the source.

The link can be inserted in an existing blog post, a new post, or even blog comments.

Typically, a link from a new post with new content costs more. And link insertion to an existing post should be cheaper.

The reason is that a new post also involves content costs. The agency charges you to create the new content and insert the link. Needless to say, there will be a price markup for both the content and links.

Similarly, inserting a link on the site’s homepage will cost more than inserting a link in one of the blog posts. 

5. Bulk purchase

Some agencies bundle links in their offerings, lowering the per-link cost, but you must spend more to get this price.

Say if you buy one link, you are charged $100. If you buy 10, you are charged $800. If you buy 100, you are charged $7000.

Here is one example of such pricing:

6. Link lifespan 

The duration of the link placement also affects the pricing. 

You need to ask whether you are purchasing a permanent link placement or for a specific period. 

A permanent link costs more than a link that stays shorter, say one year.

7. Niche and client

Prices can differ based on the niche and the client’s business type.

General business links have a baseline price. However, forex, crypto, or casino niche links are more expensive. Easily 2-3 times higher.

Because buyers are very limited in marketing options and insanely profitable – they pay the price.

Agencies specializing in these “hot” niches often reflect these higher rates on their posted prices.

8. Commission excluded 

Some marketplaces publish “net” prices, yet they can hide their markup in the platform balance top-up process. You’ll discover it when you try to actually buy the link.

Here’s what it typically looks like:

The price for a link insertion here reads £99.95. But when you check out the link for an order, you notice the difference between “net” and “gross.”

The £99.95 price for the link is actually £ 122.94, a 23% markup was included on checkout.

9. Outdated pricing

Some pricing you see from vendors might be outdated.

The source could have changed its pricing depending on its website performance.

And the vendor has not updated the pricing on their website or the marketplace for a long time.

It’s technically hard to follow the prices from hundreds of thousands of websites.

So, they update them only when a client is asking. Leading to an increasing gap between the prices posted and the real ones.

10. Scams.

Some vendors offering low-price links can be scams.

A soft example is the bait lead collection. The vendor wanted you to see the low price to ignite the conversation, then try to sell something else and spam you afterward.

Hard options include collecting your pre-payment or credit card details to disappear.

So beware of link-builders selling at a price that’s too good to be true.

Wrapping Up

Anytime you choose to buy a link, do your due diligence.

Check the link donor’s true authority first, then shop around to find the best offers and clarify the placement details.

Is there anything missing in this article? Feel free to join the discussion on LinkedIn.