What is PageRank?
Google’s original link-graph algorithm scoring pages by the quantity and quality of inbound links. Still conceptually alive inside modern systems, even though the public score is long dead.
Related terms
Link Equity
The ranking value passed through a link, shaped by the source’s authority, relevance, and number of outbound links. Internal links distribute equity; external links earn it.
Backlink
A link from another site to yours, still the strongest authority signal at page level. One relevant editorial link beats dozens of low-quality ones, and aged links decay as sources disappear.
Domain Authority (DA)
Moz’s 1–100 prediction of a domain’s ranking strength, driven largely by links. A third-party proxy, not a Google metric: use it for triage, never as a goal.
Off-Page SEO
Everything that builds a site’s reputation elsewhere: backlinks, mentions, reviews, and digital PR. Off-page signals validate what on-page content claims about expertise.
Referring Domain
A unique site linking to you. Domain diversity matters more than raw link counts: 100 links from one site look like one relationship, not 100 votes.
Dofollow Link
A normal link passing ranking signals (the default when no rel attribute says otherwise). Editorial dofollow links from relevant pages are the unit of link building.