Are backlinks still worth investing in during 2026?

Niamh Hart

Niamh Hart

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Hello everyone,
I'm fairly new to SEO and keep seeing mixed opinions about backlinks. Some people say content is everything now, while others still focus heavily on link building.
For those getting real ranking results, are backlinks still a major factor?
What types of links are working best today?
 
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Backlinks are absolutely still a major factor, but the style of link building has completely changed. Generic guest posts, PBNs, and cheap database links are completely ignored now because search algorithms easily spot the footprint.

Today, it's all about topical authority and real traffic. The links moving the needle are contextual mentions from active, niche-relevant sites that actually send referral visitors, along with high-tier digital PR. Content gets you indexed, but high-authority, trusted links are still what win the top rankings.
 
Niamh Hart said:
Hello everyone,
I'm fairly new to SEO and keep seeing mixed opinions about backlinks. Some people say content is everything now, while others still focus heavily on link building.
For those getting real ranking results, are backlinks still a major factor?
What types of links are working best today?
Click to expand...

Of course, you are right content plays a vital role in ranking. But without backlinks, it is not easy to compete. There is always a direct or indirect impact from the actions taken behind every website.

A good example is that even a brand mention on an authority website is enough to get listed on AI platforms. Google still shows blue links in the search results, which means it still values the backlinks built for the website.

So, I would say content and backlinks are both equally important for SEO.

As far as I've tested, brand mentions, guest posts, niche edits, and community platforms are still working well.
 
Content and Backlinks both play major role in rankings. Not just good content get you results, you must have solid backlinks.
 
totally agree with the replies here. back in the day, simple links worked, but now it's all about quality signals. i've built a few projects from scratch and honestly, chasing those cheap links is just a waste of time. focus on real brand authority and traffic—that's what actually stays in the long run
 
Content can't be everything. You may write the best article on a given topic and still not get any traffic because Google doesn't like your newly created website. Google is a robot and backlinks are still a major ranking factor.
 
Niamh Hart said:
Hello everyone,
I'm fairly new to SEO and keep seeing mixed opinions about backlinks. Some people say content is everything now, while others still focus heavily on link building.
For those getting real ranking results, are backlinks still a major factor?
What types of links are working best today?
Click to expand...
yes but quality matters much more now than just getting large numbers of links. relevant backlinks from trusted websites still help with authority and rankings. at the same time strong content and user experience are becoming just as important.
 
Yes backlinks still matter in 2026 but quality is more important now than quantity a few real niche relevant links work much better than hundreds of spam links. content is important too but good backlinks still help websites rank faster and build trust in Google eyes
 
Both are right that saying content is Everything and focus on backink..
here's how:
Content is everything but showing content to google source is backlinks that make google trust building and you ask which link is best
answer: Niche edit , Guest post , Profile backlinks (free)
 
Yes backlinks are still important in 2026 content alone helps but without good links it harder to rank in competitive niches best links now are niche relevant links real guest posts editorial mentions and traffic based links Spammy bulk backlinks not working like before and can even hurt rankings
 
Yes, backlinks still matters a lot in 2026,Especially in competitive niches. Good content is important but without quality links it is still difficult to rank for tougher keywords.
 
Niamh Hart said:
Hello everyone,
I'm fairly new to SEO and keep seeing mixed opinions about backlinks. Some people say content is everything now, while others still focus heavily on link building.
For those getting real ranking results, are backlinks still a major factor?
What types of links are working best today?
Click to expand...
instead of thinking about how many backlinks one can create, one should be thinking whether the link would make sense if google were to cease existing. this way if it does make sense, then it is worth considering. it is better to have fewer but real backlinks rellated to the niche than to have a lot of backlinks but just for the sake of SEO.
 
I look at whether the linking page itself gets indexed and starts ranking for anything

if Google barely values for that page then idc what dr the domain has
 
Hot_Box said:
I look at whether the linking page itself gets indexed and starts ranking for anything

if Google barely values for that page then idc what dr the domain has
Click to expand...
Indeed, page- level metrics reveal more than DR alone. If the linking page has no visibility or indexation whatsoever, then the domain metric becomes pointless, in my opinion.
 
Niamh Hart said:
Hello everyone,
I'm fairly new to SEO and keep seeing mixed opinions about backlinks. Some people say content is everything now, while others still focus heavily on link building.
For those getting real ranking results, are backlinks still a major factor?
What types of links are working best today?
Click to expand...
but TBH, backlink actually do work; the only thing is that they need to be relevant to your industry. backlink should come from website that have some sort of traffic related to your niche.
 
Niamh Hart said:
Hello everyone,
I'm fairly new to SEO and keep seeing mixed opinions about backlinks. Some people say content is everything now, while others still focus heavily on link building.
For those getting real ranking results, are backlinks still a major factor?
What types of links are working best today?
Click to expand...
Tbh, backlink do work, but I could not care less about it. What matters to me more is relevancy nd traffic rather than domain ranking nd how many links you have. Few gud backlink from other sites that are already established within the same niche will matter more to me than buying loads of link.
 
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