Short answer: paste the full list of guest post sites into a bulk DR checker, remove everything below your minimum DR, then check domain age, organic traffic and topical relevance for the sites that remain. This takes minutes and filters out most of the weak or inflated offers before you spend any money.
Why you should never trust the DR on a vendor list
Guest post vendors usually send spreadsheets with a DR column. Those numbers are often weeks or months old, and occasionally simply wrong. Domain Rating changes as sites gain and lose links, and some sites lose authority quickly once they are known as link sellers. Checking the live DR yourself is the cheapest insurance in link building.
Step 1: Collect and clean the list
Put every site you are considering into one list: vendor spreadsheets, marketplace exports, sites you found through outreach. Do not worry about formatting. The bulk DR checker accepts full URLs, removes https://, www and paths, and deletes duplicates automatically.
Step 2: Check DR in bulk
Paste the list (up to 1,000 domains per run) and press Check DR. When the results are in:
- Sort by Domain Rating, highest first.
- Decide on a minimum. Many teams use DR 30, but set yours from your competitors’ link profiles.
- Use the tier filter to hide everything below your minimum.
- Download the CSV so you have a dated record of the live numbers.
Step 3: Look at domain age
Paste the list into the free Domain Age checker. It shows when each domain was registered (or first seen online when the registry does not publish the date). Age is not good or bad by itself, but it adds context:
- A domain registered a few months ago with DR 50+ was probably built from an expired domain or a link network. Look closely.
- A domain that has existed for 10+ years with steady DR is usually a real publication.
Step 4: Check organic traffic
A real website attracts real visitors from search. Use any traffic estimation tool or ask the vendor for a Search Console screenshot. Warning signs include traffic that collapsed recently, traffic only from unrelated countries, or no meaningful traffic at all despite a high DR. Our article on DR vs traffic explains how to weigh the two.
Step 5: Check relevance
Open the site and read a few recent articles. Ask yourself whether your target audience would read this site. A relevant link from a modest site often helps rankings more than an unrelated link from a powerful one, and it also brings referral visitors who actually care about your topic.
Step 6: Look for link-seller footprints
- A “write for us” page that lists prices for every topic, including casino, crypto and health.
- Recent posts on wildly unrelated subjects, each with several commercial outbound links.
- Thin, generic articles with no author information.
- Very similar design and content across a group of sites from the same seller.
One footprint is not always a deal-breaker, but several together usually mean the site exists mainly to sell links.
Step 7: Check the page, not just the domain
Ask where your post will be placed and whether it will be linked from the homepage or category pages. A post buried deep in a site with no internal links passes less value than one that is easy to reach. Also confirm the link will be followed and that the post will stay live.
A simple scoring sheet
| Check | Pass | Fail |
|---|---|---|
| Live DR | At or above your minimum | Well below what the vendor claimed |
| Domain age | Consistent with the site’s authority | Very young with very high DR |
| Organic traffic | Stable or growing | None, or collapsed recently |
| Relevance | Same or closely related topic | Publishes on everything |
| Footprints | Real editorial content | Obvious post-selling site |
How many sites do you need?
Look at how many referring domains the pages ranking above you have, and plan a steady monthly pace rather than one big batch. A natural link profile grows gradually. For help deciding on your minimum DR, read what DR a site should have before you buy a backlink.
Example: vetting a 300-site vendor list in 20 minutes
A typical vendor sends a spreadsheet of 300 sites with prices and DR values. Paste the domain column into the checker. After a minute you have live DR for all 300. Filtering to DR 30+ leaves around 140. Running the same list through the domain age checker reveals 25 domains registered within the last year but showing DR 50+; you mark them for a manual review. A quick look at traffic and topics removes another 60 sites that publish on everything. You are left with roughly 50 strong candidates to review properly – a manageable list, built in the time it would take to check ten sites by hand.
Frequently asked questions
Can I check guest post sites without an Ahrefs account?
Yes. The bulk checker fetches live Domain Rating from the Ahrefs API, so you do not need your own subscription.
Should I avoid every site with a “write for us” page?
No. Many legitimate publications accept contributions. The warning sign is a site that seems to exist only to sell posts, with no real readership or editorial focus.
How often should I re-check a vendor’s list?
Right before each purchase. Domain Rating changes as sites gain and lose links.
Final thoughts
Vetting guest post sites is mostly about removing the obvious mistakes quickly so you can spend your time on the best opportunities. Start with live DR in the bulk DR checker and registration dates in the free Domain Age checker, then review traffic and relevance by hand. If you prefer a ready-made list, you can also browse our vetted guest post sites by country and domain ending.