Member Avatar for ericfromandys

I just checked on google for an updated link:domainname count, and mine changed. I checked some competitors, whose counts have also changed. Not sure if they're about to do any meaningful updates, but I always like seeing that Google is alive and updating. Does anyone know if the link: count update is a precursor to a pagerank update?

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Small swings in Google's link: output are usually sampling and index effects, not a faithful count of every inbound link. The link: operator has never returned a complete backlink list; it gives a partial, changing snapshot of what Google shows for that query. Index refreshes, deduplication, or changes in how Google surfaces sources can make the visible count jump even though the underlying link graph changed little. This explains the short-term fluctuations reported by without assuming a systemic site change.

Public PageRank and the internal link graph are related but separate signals. Relying on link: as a precursor for a PageRank/authority change is unreliable. Visible PageRank values (the toolbar metric) were eventually retired and are not a dependable operational signal for recovery or decline. Mentions here from , and reflect common confusion: visible metrics can move, but that does not necessarily imply a fresh, global reweighting of every site.

Practical checks that give reliable evidence:

  • Use Google Search Console’s Links report to see confirmed top linking domains and most-linked pages.
  • Cross-check with independent link-index tools (Majestic, Ahrefs, Moz) to establish trends rather than single snapshots.
  • Look for site-level issues that can remove or hide links: robots.txt, noindex/canonical changes, accidental 4xx/5xx responses, or CMS/plugin changes that add rel="nofollow".
  • Check Search Console for manual actions or security issues before assuming natural fluctuation.

If a genuine link loss is confirmed, audit the lost links, contact webmasters where reasonable, and focus on replacing value with new editorial links and content improvements. Avoid hasty use of disavow unless there is an active manual spam action or a clear, persistent spam problem. Long-term traffic and ranking trends matter far more than a single link: snapshot.

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Member Avatar for AussieWebmaster

I had heard there was one coming in february - pr update... but only rumor at this stage but link count will impact numbers in some cases.... the geometric nature of pr makes numbers high to see change

Member Avatar for JonathanD

Aussie, I think you're full of %!@%, PR will never be updated.. ;)

Member Avatar for Dani

One of my interior pages went from a PR6 to a PR7 last month. If this was two years ago, I would have been excited.

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