Ahrefs

What is Ahrefs?

Ahrefs is one of the leading SEO tools on the market and is used by over 1 million SEO experts worldwide. The tool offers comprehensive functions for Keyword Analysis, Backlink Audit, Content Management and competitive research.

Core Features of Ahrefs

Ahrefs is divided into several main areas:

  1. Keywords Explorer - For comprehensive keyword research
  2. Site Explorer - For analyzing websites and backlinks
  3. Content Explorer - For content marketing and idea generation
  4. Position Tracker - For monitoring keyword rankings
  5. Site Audit - For Website Technical analysis

Keywords Explorer - Keyword Research

The Keywords Explorer is the heart of Ahrefs for keyword research. Here you will find:

Search Volume and Difficulty

Metric
Description
Importance
Search Volume
Monthly search queries
High
Keyword Difficulty (KD)
Difficulty to reach top 10
Very High
CPC
Cost Per Click in Google Ads
Medium
Search Intent
Intent of the search query
High

Finding Keyword Ideas

Ahrefs offers various methods for keyword idea generation:

  1. Broad Match - Finds all keywords with the search term
  2. Phrase Match - Keywords with exact phrase
  3. Exact Match - Identical keywords
  4. Related Terms - Related terms
  5. Questions - Question keywords
  6. Also Rank For - Keywords the page already ranks for

Understanding Keyword Metrics

Keyword Difficulty (KD)

  • Scale from 0-100
  • 0-30: Easy to rank
  • 31-70: Medium difficulty
  • 71-100: Very hard to rank

Search Intent Categories

  • Informational: "How does..."
  • Navigational: "Facebook Login"
  • Commercial: "Best Laptops 2025"
  • Transactional: "Buy Laptop"

Site Explorer - Backlink Analysis

The Site Explorer enables comprehensive backlink analysis:

Backlink Metrics

Metric
Meaning
Calculation
Domain Rating (DR)
Authority of the domain
0-100 scale
URL Rating (UR)
Authority of the specific URL
0-100 scale
Backlinks
Number of incoming links
Absolute number
Referring Domains
Number of linking domains
Absolute number

Evaluating Backlink Quality

Important factors for backlink quality:

  1. Domain Rating - Higher DR = more valuable
  2. Relevance - Links from topic-related pages
  3. Anchor Text - Natural anchor text distribution
  4. Link Position - Links in content vs. footer
  5. Spam Score - Low spam probability

Content Explorer - Content Marketing

The Content Explorer helps with content strategy:

Finding Top-Performing Content

Using search filters:

  • Language - Content language
  • Published - Publication period
  • Word count - Minimum number of words
  • Domain Rating - Minimum DR of linking pages
  • Traffic - Minimum traffic of pages

Generating Content Ideas

  1. Top Pages - Most linked articles
  2. Top Content - Most shared content
  3. Questions - Frequently asked questions
  4. Trending - Currently popular topics

Rank Tracker - Ranking Monitoring

The Rank Tracker monitors keyword positions:

Setting up Tracking

Important settings:

  • Keywords - Terms to monitor
  • Search Engine - Google, Bing, etc.
  • Location - Geographic position
  • Device - Desktop, Mobile, Tablet
  • Language - Search language

Ranking Reports

Automatic reports:

  • Daily updates
  • Weekly summaries
  • Monthly trends
  • Alerts for ranking changes

Site Audit - Technical SEO

The Site Audit analyzes technical SEO problems:

Audit Categories

Category
Problems
Priority
Crawling
Robots.txt, Sitemaps
High
Indexing
Meta-Robots, Canonicals
High
Content
Duplicate Content, Thin Content
Medium
Performance
Page Speed, Core Web Vitals
Medium

Ahrefs vs. Competition

Comparison with Other Tools

Feature
Ahrefs
SEMrush
Moz
Backlink Database
Very Large
Large
Medium
Keyword Research
Excellent
Very Good
Good
Technical SEO
Good
Very Good
Medium
Price
High
Medium
Low

Best Practices for Ahrefs

Efficient Usage

Daily routines:

  1. Check rankings - Check new positions
  2. Monitor backlinks - Identify new links
  3. Competitor Analysis - Observe competition
  4. Content Ideas - Find new topics

Weekly tasks:

  1. Site Audit - Fix technical problems
  2. Keyword Research - Research new keywords
  3. Backlink Outreach - Conduct link building
  4. Content Planning - Fill content calendar

Avoiding Common Mistakes

Typical Ahrefs mistakes:

  1. Only looking at KD - Also consider other factors
  2. Too many keywords - Focus on relevant terms
  3. Outdated data - Perform regular updates
  4. Ignoring Long-Tail - Also use specific keywords

Ahrefs API and Automation

API Integration

Ahrefs offers a comprehensive API for:

  • Retrieving keyword data
  • Exporting backlink information
  • Synchronizing ranking data
  • Creating custom reports

Automation with Zapier

Popular automations:

  • New backlinks via email
  • Ranking alerts for changes
  • Generate weekly reports
  • Collect content ideas

Costs and Plans

Ahrefs Prices 2025

Plan
Price/Month
Keywords
Backlinks
Lite
$99
500
5,000
Standard
$199
1,500
15,000
Advanced
$399
5,000
50,000
Enterprise
$999
Unlimited
Unlimited

Checklist: Using Ahrefs Optimally

Setup and Configuration

  • [ ] Set up account with appropriate plan
  • [ ] Create projects for different websites
  • [ ] Add keywords to Rank Tracker
  • [ ] Define competitors for monitoring
  • [ ] Set up alerts for important changes

Keyword Research Workflow

  • [ ] Collect seed keywords
  • [ ] Find keyword ideas using various methods
  • [ ] Determine search intent for each keyword
  • [ ] Evaluate keyword difficulty
  • [ ] Create content plan based on keywords

Backlink Strategy

  • [ ] Analyze backlink profile of your own website
  • [ ] Identify competitor backlinks
  • [ ] Find link opportunities
  • [ ] Start outreach campaigns
  • [ ] Regularly check link quality

Related Topics