Have you noticed a pattern in toxic backlinks? A website that does not have traffic suddenly gets traffic and receives hundreds of backlinks from unrelated websites with the same keyword and anchor text? At the start, these websites have no genuine traffic, and suddenly they get a massive surge. So whenever we investigate, we look for these signals to identify toxic backlinks.
- Links coming from PBNs
- A sudden increase in backlinks out of nowhere
- Anchor text has zero connection with the content
- Link spam has been done to manipulate the search engine rankings
Don’t panic; these issues can be troubleshot easily, and that is the reason why a toxic backlink checker exists.
Toxic Backlink Checker: Understanding the function
The learning curve of Toxic Backlink Checker is fairly simple. Most of these tools use a score of 1-100. The scores are usually based on certain parameters, and they are known as referring website authority, anchor text for the link, changes in backlink volume, and link juice passed from low-quality websites.
For instance, if a low-quality website refers to your website with no significant traffic or has anchor text that is not built around the content, then the toxicity score would be high. Now, if you receive a backlink from a genuine industry publication, then the toxicity score will be low
Quick note: we don’t put complete trust in toxic backlink checkers, as they have their own algorithms and signals, and in our experience they sometimes flag legitimate backlinks. However, that does not mean they are completely useless; they are lifesavers when you are operating in an agency and need to check multiple websites. Hence, it’s advised that you do not automatically disavow every link that the tool flags as high. We would advise you to manually review it before making a decision.
Toxic Backlink Checkers: The ones we vouch for
Ahrefs
Ahrefs is pretty useful for analyzing backlink patterns and detecting suspicious link text. For instance, we use the “Backlink Report” feature to narrow down the links that need manual review. Then we use Ahrefs to check our competitors’ backlinks; this helps us understand the link gap. So Ahrefs is best for identifying unusual backlinks and studying competitor backlinks. The only limitation is that it requires manual review to detect harmful backlinks.
SemRush
The next on our list is SEMrush. The tool has a dedicated feature for identifying backlinks and uses more than 45+ toxic markers to assign scores from 0 -100. Another SEMrush feature we absolutely love is the category feature. It lets you identify links for review, disavowal, and removal.
Moz
The third tool on our list is Moz. One of the best features of this tool is spam score. We generally use this as a second-place tool so that we can get more revisions to the database that are not identical. For instance, Semrush may flag a particular domain, and Moz may flag a particular domain. So this gives us the chance to locate and investigate. So it’s best for a second opinion and comparing backlink data.
Google Search Console
This is different from paid SEO tools that you have used, since the data is derived from Google’s own system. When you review it carefully, you can see the top linked pages and the link text. Now you should treat this as a sample and not as an absolute authority. The links report feature is helpful here.
Another feature is known as “ manual actions report”. When you view it, you can see whether you have manual actions against your website. This can be meaningful to us since we can now see a link that Google itself reviewed as suspicious, rather than some SEO tool flagging it as suspicious.
One of the craziest features that we absolutely love is the disavow feature. Google does not automatically disavow any links; it identifies and neutralizes spammy websites that are targeting your website. The only downside we found here is that there is no feature showing the toxicity score. You can directly ask Google to remove a specific backlink that you want to ignore.
Ubersuggest
This is mainly built for people who are just starting in backlink analysis. For example, you are investigating a competitor profile, and you see the referring domains and backlinks that link to it. The best part of this tool is its simplicity. So, for occasional checks, this is our go-to tool for basic backlink research. The only downside is the fact that it doesn’t provide a detailed backlink report like Ahrefs and Semrush.
Comparison chart
| Tool | Strength | Good for | Toxicity score availability |
| Moz | Spam score and backlink data | Second opinion | Yes |
| Ahrefs | Deep backlink data provided | Competitor analysis | No |
| Semrush | Entire backlink data audit provided | Cleanup for toxic backlink | Yes |
| Search Console | Data directly from Google | Manual investigation analysis | no |
| Ubersuggest | Best backlink checker for simple research | Beginners who are starting out | Basic provided |
Once you have identified the tool that you want to use as a toxic backlink checker, the next part would be removing backlinks. There are two ways to do it. The first one is by requesting removal directly, and the next is through manual checking.
Removing toxic backlinks in less than 20 minutes
Requesting removal
The first step is asking the owner to remove the backlink; send them a message and ask them politely. Tools like Ahrefs and Semrush can greatly help you identify the profiles that have linked to your website. This can help with outreach management.
Manual removal
This is done when the link is extremely problematic. When the website owner refuses to remove the link, a disavowal may be done, and Google allows it. For instance, if you find many spammy backlinks that are linking back to your site, then you can easily compile the file and disavow at once.
Quick tip: Google reports that most sites do not need the disavow tool. It’s only required if the website has received multiple spammy backlinks. Only use this feature if the link is absolutely troublesome and cannot be removed at all costs.
How to prevent toxic backlinks
You know that removing every backlink that the checker flags as problematic can be an issue. This is the reason why people do manual removal. Most of the SEO professionals check the backlink profile when they notice a backlink drop; what we suggest is that you check your backlinks every two months.
This will help you notice unusual anchor text and clusters of websites that have linked to your site. Also, please be really careful when you hire link-building agencies and freelancers; they tend to promise you hundreds of backlinks but don’t tell you where they have come from.
In closure
In our experience, toxic backlink checkers are a pathway that shows you the links that deserve your attention. The right process is not immediately disavowing the link; the right process is making sure that you run a manual audit and review the flagged links. Please note that not every low-quality backlink can be treated as dangerous. The goal is to make sure that you identify links that are dangerous and manipulative.
