As competition in the digital space increases, companies are deploying advanced outreach and link building strategies that often involve buying links. As a small business, buying links might be one of the only effective ways for you to stay competitive.
Buying links is important but what does link building pricing look like in 2022 and can you really afford it? The answer to that depends on several factors including how many links you need to be competitive, which agency you outsource to, and the quality of links you need to acquire.
We know it can be complicated to navigate the world of thoughtful link buying. For your ease, we have compiled the definitive guide to site link costs so you can ensure that your website doesn’t fall into the wrong hands!
Top Link Building Agencies: Pricing Comparison
If you’ve made the choice to go for a link building agency, you’ll want to explore different options and pricing models. To make your job easier, we’ve prepared a comparison of the top link building agencies based on their prices.
Link Building Agency | Price Per Link (Depending on DA): | Other Pricing Plans (Per Month) |
|---|---|---|
| OutreachMama | $110 to $280 | Custom Blogger Outreach Service: $850 to $1775 per month Guest Posting Service Price: $140 to $350 per month. |
| Get Me Links | Tier 2 Links $75 – $190 | Packages Ranging From $600 to $80,00 |
| FatJoe | $46 – $481 | Blogger Outreach: $42 to $438 Niche Edits: $73 to $438 Local Business Citations: $48 to $121 |
| OutreachFrog | Premium Plan $385+ ($2700 for 7 DA 55+ links) | Foundational Link Building: $1199 to $2700 Guest Posting: $100 to $575 |
| The Hoth | $49 – $149 | Packages Ranging From $60 to $500 |
Note: OutreachMama does real, white-hat blogger outreach that doesn’t put your SEO at risk as preferred by Google. This comparison is purely for the sake of maintaining transparency regarding the pricing landscape. We do not endorse or guarantee the methods other companies use and recommend you do your research to make the best choice for your business.
Site Link Costs for 2022: A Comprehensive Overview
Before you settle on what kind of investment you should make for link building, it’s important to examine your goals and expectations to plan better. Let’s take a look at some of the biggest advantages of thoughtful link buying and how the payout may differ depending on your unique needs.
WHY PAY FOR LINKS?
What comes to your mind when we say paid links? Don’t worry if you’re confused, this term can have multiple meanings.
It’s important to differentiate real links from paid PBNs which may land you in a world of trouble with Google. The Authority Hacker Podcast describes paid links as real links that have some additional costs associated with them. These costs may include software tools, employee compensation, and the editorial or publishing fee demanded by the website.
There’s a reason why most famous websites and agencies spend a good amount of money on ethical link building. In fact, there are several benefits that you may achieve by paying for links, these include:
1. Saves Time
Success in online markets doesn’t come overnight but you can certainly speed up the process with some paid links.
Natural link building opportunities won’t knock on your door until you boost your online visibility. Buying links is a more time-efficient way to get where you need without losing focus on what really matters.
2. Helps Keep Up with the Competition
As more and more people realize the value of links, it’s getting increasingly hard to run a successful SEO campaign on natural link building alone. Everything comes at a price, even links.
After genuine blogger outreach, you will often be approached by websites that demand a publishing fee. Without availing these opportunities, you won’t be able to keep up with the competition.
3. You Can Choose What You Pay For
In the world of paid links, there’s a lot of diversity and multiple options for different needs. Depending on your budget, audience, and goals, you can choose the kind of link buying you want to be involved in.
Some of the most famous tactics include blogger outreach, guest posting, niche edits, and more.
WHAT ARE THE FACTORS AFFECTING LINK BUILDING COSTS?
As we mentioned earlier, link building pricing can depend on a number of factors, which include:
1. The Kind of Content your Website Has
Paying for link building is all well and good but ultimately it all boils down to the kind of content you create. If your website has amazing content that people want to read, it’ll be easier and more cost-effective to find links for it.
Conversely, for websites that rely too heavily on commercial landing pages without much content, it’s harder and way more expensive to find links.
2. Your Brand Strength
Brands that are relatively well known in the online space tend to get links much more easily than ones that are new and unknown.
The more well-known your brand is, the more people would like to link to it. This drastically decreases the price of link building for strong brands.
3. Website and Link Quality
It can be extremely hard to earn links from well-reputed and authoritative websites. That’s why many link building agencies use the DR or DA model which takes the domain rating and domain authority of the website into account.
These scores are used as a benchmark to measure the quality of the website. Naturally, links belonging to higher DR or DA websites will cost more but will also get better results.
4. The Industry you Operate In
The industry you work in also contributes to the overall cost factor. Some industries are more difficult to navigate in terms of getting links.
For example, in the finance industry, you’ll probably be paying an inflated fee to get featured. While industries like gaming have a lot of linking opportunities so the cost per link is much lower.
In House Link Building Vs. Agency Link Building
Apart from all the factors we mentioned above, there’s another important consideration that will drastically affect the overall price of link building. Yes, we’re talking about the age-old question, to outsource or not to outsource?
IN-HOUSE LINK BUILDING
In-house link building is no piece of cake. It involves the expertise of SEO professionals, content writers, and several advanced tools that can cost a fortune. In addition to those costs, you will be spending the general cost of paid links and sponsorships every month.
The only advantage is that you get full control over all your link building. However, unless your company has very rigid standards, it’s way more cost-effective to pay for an agency instead of paying double the amount for an in-house operation.
AGENCY LINK BUILDING
Link building agencies are well-equipped with all the tools and professionals you will need for a successful link building campaign. All you have to do is choose the package that meets your budget and let the agency take care of the rest.
While this may not give you full control over the link building efforts, it will certainly cut down the costs. Some agencies even offer customizable plans which might be a better option than going in-house. Within this realm, you’ll see price differences from one company to the other, depending on their pricing models and depth of service.
The Dos and Don’ts of Paying for Links
The world of link building can be a treacherous place. To ensure that you don’t end up putting your website and SEO at risk, keep these little words of wisdom in mind!
The DOs
– Do focus on creating high-quality and relevant content. Google’s really into that!
– Do choose websites and creators who have a similar audience as yours.
– Do outsource to a white-hat link building agency if you have the budget.
– Do research the link building company you are working with.
– Do purchase links that are on relevant and authoritative websites.
The DON’Ts
– Don’t go for quantity over quality when it comes to links.
– Don’t trust link building opportunities offering suspiciously low prices. If it’s too good to be true it probably is!
– Don’t rely on backlinks as your only outreach strategy.
– Don’t waste your money on non-reliable, low-cost links.
– Don’t fall for companies that use PBNs or Private Blog networks and sell it as real outreach.
Link Building Pricing: In Closing
Relying on natural link building to get you the online presence you need is simply not good enough. In today’s highly competitive online market, everyone is paying for links, and for good reason! However, you shouldn’t trust just anyone promising to provide low-cost links.
Remember, not all links are made equal. Do your research and compare costs to make the most out of your link building investment. With a sound strategy, clear goals, and a reliable link building agency by your side, the benefits of link building outweigh the costs.