Step-by-Step Guide on How to Know Who Links to My Website

Monitoring the backlinks leading to your website is important to stay in control. Spot broken links, toxic ones and monitor power links you want to keep.

Step-by-Step Guide on How to Know Who Links to My Website
Photo by Nik / Unsplash

Backlinks work by signalling to search engines. This tells Google and other search engines that a site is valuable, authoritative, and credible. But do you know exactly who is linking to your website? Why exactly should you monitor your backlinks to understand who links to your site? As you read on, you'll discover all you should know about these questions. In addition, you'll also explore a few reliable ways to identify who links to your website.

Monitoring your backlinks is recommended for the following reasons:

  • First, it allows you to assess your website’s credibility and authority.
  • Backlink monitoring allows you to discover other link-building opportunities. A good example is when you carry out an analysis of your competitors.
  • Monitoring your backlinks allows you to identify and remove toxic backlinks. These harmful links may end up hurting your website if care isn't taken quickly.
  • With backlink monitoring, you can easily track the performance of your SEO strategy.

You have many options when it comes to checking who links to your website. One effective approach is to use advanced backlink monitoring tools. They include:

Step 1: Use Google Search Console

Google Search Console (GSC) is free and effective for checking backlinks. This tool offers direct data from Google. It tells you exactly how your website appears in search results.

You can always use GSC to monitor your backlinks today. To do this, below are a few things we recommend:

  • First, you need to log in to Google Search Console. Sign up with this tool using your Google account.
  • Next, choose your website property. For clarity's sake, you can follow Google’s instructions on how to verify ownership.
  • Locate and click on the “Links” section on the tool. You'll find it on the left sidebar of the page. Doing this allows you to access your backlink data.
  • Next, locate and click on the “Top linking sites” section of the tool. Here's where you’ll find websites that link to your site.
  • Locate and click on “More”. After that, click on “Export” to download the report of your backlinks.

You'll certainly love Google Search Console because it's free and effective. However, you need to know that it also has its limitations. One of them is that it only provides a partial list of your backlinks. This tool may never give you details, such as lost backlinks and link quality.

Step 2: Use KarmaLinks.io

If you’re not comfortable using GSC because of its limitations, another free alternative you can try is KarmaLinks. This tool is specially designed for B2B SaaS businesses.

We love KarmaLinks.io because it eliminates the need for manual backlink monitoring. This approach can be time-consuming and inefficient. But with KarmaLinks, you can always achieve real-time backlink monitoring. It also offers automatic alerts, letting you know when you lose quality backlinks.

You certainly have a lot to benefit from using KarmaLinks today. Apart from helping with real-time monitoring, below are other goodies associated with this tool:

  • Free backlink exchange for B2B SaaS businesses 
  • Earn Karma points and use them to acquire quality do-follow links, ethically.

Here's how to use KarmaLinks to identify who links to your site:

  • Start by joining the backlink exchange club for free today.
  • Earn Karma points by offering backlinks.
  • Use KarmaLinks to monitor your backlinks. The tool offers real-time alerts that help you get notified when backlinks are added or lost. This way, you can easily identify who links to your website.

With Ahrefs’ Backlink Checker, you can easily identify who links to your website. This tool offers data regarding different aspects of your SEO, including:

We recommend Ahrefs because it allows for in-depth backlink analysis. This allows you to manage your link-building strategy more effectively. Below is a guide on how to check who links to your website with Ahrefs:

  • Visit Ahrefs Backlink Checker. This tool has both free and paid plans. Opting for the paid plan is recommended if you want a full report of websites that are linked to your site.
  • On Ahrefs Backlink Checker, enter your website URL to get started.
  • Next, locate and click on “Check Backlinks”.
  • Proceed by analyzing your data. Keep in mind that the free plan only shows your strongest backlinks, not all of them. For a full report, you need a paid version.
  • The paid version will allow you to see all backlinks. It also allows you to analyze the link quality and identity list links.

Step 4: Use SEMrush

SEMrush works almost the same way as Ahrefs. This premium SEO tool is highly effective for identifying who links to your website. It offers backlink data. It supports competitor analysis and site audits.

To identify who links to your site, here's how SEMrush works:

  • Visit SEMrush. Next, locate and click on “Backlink Analytics.”
  • Proceed by entering your website URL. After that, click search to view your data.
  • In most cases, SEMrush's reports often include the following details:
    • Referring domains 
    • Anchor texts 
    • Follow vs no-follow links
    • New links
    • Lost backlinks

Check the “referring domains” to understand who links to your website. We recommend using this tool because it offers a full report of your backlinks. You can always rely on it to analyze your competitors.

Conclusion: Which tool is better?

All the aforementioned tools have their strengths and weaknesses. You certainly won't go wrong using KarmaLinks.io. We recommend this tool if you run a B2B SaaS business. It allows for automatic backlink monitoring and exchange.

Google Search Console is also a great, free option. The only problem is that it has limitations. We only recommend it if you're just getting started. If you're serious about your SEO growth, we recommend using KarmaLinks, Ahrefs, or SEMrush.

Join KarmaLinks.io today to start identifying who links to your site. This tool is all you need to take control of your backlink strategy!