What Are the Different SEO Authority Scores DA, DR, TF & CF Explained

In the digital age, where search engines decide which websites rise and which disappear into the void, SEO authority scores have become essential indicators for measuring a site's trust and power. These metrics offer SEO professionals and marketers a way to estimate how well a website might rank on search engines like Google.

Authority scores matter because they reflect your site’s perceived credibility, trustworthiness, and ranking potential in the eyes of third-party SEO tools. Google doesn’t officially use these scores. The platforms like Moz, Ahrefs, and Majestic have developed independent systems. Each offering a unique perspective on a website’s strength based on backlinks and domain profile.

So, let’s break down the most commonly used authority metrics: Domain Authority (DA), Domain Rating (DR), Trust Flow (TF), and Citation Flow (CF).

Domain Authority (DA) – by Moz

Domain Authority (DA) is a predictive metric created by Moz that estimates how well a website will rank on search engines. Scored on a scale from 0 to 100, a higher DA suggests a greater ability to rank in SERPs.

Moz’s DA is calculated using over 40 different factors, including total backlinks, linking root domains, MozRank, and MozTrust. This AI-based metric updates periodically and adjusts based on broader changes to the index of websites Moz crawls.

Pros: Widely adopted, useful for benchmarking and reporting. Use it for competitor analysis, client reporting, and link-building outreach.

Cons: Doesn’t reflect spam, not a Google metric.

Domain Rating (DR) – by Ahrefs

Domain Rating (DR) is a proprietary metric from Ahrefs that quantifies the strength of a website’s backlink profile on a scale from 0 to 100. Unlike DA, DR focuses solely on external backlinks.

It is calculated based on the number of unique referring domains, the strength of those domains, and the presence of do-follow links. Use DR to identify link-building opportunities and assess domain strength for partnerships.

Trust Flow (TF) – by Majestic

Trust Flow (TF) is Majestic’s quality-based score that measures the trustworthiness of a website based on the proximity of backlinks from a set of seed authoritative sites. It ranges from 0 to 100.

TF is important because it reflects link quality. Scores above 40 are considered very trustworthy. It helps detect toxic backlinks and assess healthy backlink profiles.

Citation Flow (CF) – by Majestic

Citation Flow (CF) evaluates the link volume of a website, measuring how many links point to a domain regardless of quality. It is quantity-focused.

An ideal TF/CF ratio is close to 1:1. High CF with low TF can indicate spam. Use CF to spot link manipulation and assess link-building strategy.

Comparison Table: DA vs DR vs TF vs CF

DA (Moz): Measures SEO strength, 0-100 scale, good for benchmarking.
DR (Ahrefs): Measures backlink profile, 0-100 scale, good for link outreach.
TF (Majestic): Measures trust from backlinks, 0-100, essential for toxic link detection.
CF (Majestic): Measures link quantity, 0-100, used with TF for profile audits.

Which Metric Should You Trust?

None of these are official Google metrics.
Use them comparatively, not as absolutes.
Pick based on your SEO tools and goals.
Look for patterns across all scores rather than relying on one number.

Tips to Improve Your SEO Authority Scores

1. Build quality backlinks via guest posts and PR.
2. Improve content depth and internal linking.
3. Increase trust signals like HTTPS, privacy policy.
4. Maintain technical SEO—fix errors, improve speed.

Conclusion

SEO authority scores like DA, DR, TF, and CF are essential tools in your SEO toolkit. They offer insights into your website's trust and performance. Use them wisely to build a sustainable SEO strategy.