Backlinks are the foundation of Google’s algorithm. Generally speaking, the more backlinks your website has, the higher Google’s algorithm will rank it in the SERPs. 

Of course, there are exceptions to this rule, and a handful of high-quality links from sites like the BBC or Wikipedia is much better than hundreds of spammy and irrelevant links. 

But, how many backlinks are good for SEO, and how many links does a page need in order to rank? Let’s take a look. 

How Many Links Do I Need for a Page to Rank? 

The exact number of backlinks you’ll need to rank well will be determined by a number of factors, including the quality of your website and the level of competition in your niche. 

However, SEO experts generally agree that a website’s homepage should have 30-50 high-authority links pointing to it. Individual pages will then have somewhere between 0 (low-priority navigational pages) and 100 links (high-performing blogs).

However, you should remember that these figures are not set in stone and the number of backlinks required to rank well will vary depending on the competitiveness of your niche and the terms you’re looking to rank for. 

Can I Have Too Many Links? 

In short, not really. However, this logic only applies if you’re using natural linkbuilding practices. If you’re writing really good content and providing great resources that people want to link to, you’ll gradually increase your number of links over time. Due to this, it’s not uncommon for certain sites to have tens of thousands of links. 

However, if you’re paying for guest posts and buying links, then it is possible to build an excessive number of backlinks. If you suddenly build loads of links this way and the number of backlinks your site has suddenly spikes, then this may raise red flags. If the algorithm thinks you’re using manipulative practices, then this could negatively impact your site’s SEO. 

Remember though, there’s a balance to strike here. After all, if you have too few links, then Google may see your site as untrustworthy or irrelevant and it will not rank it for important queries. 

How Many Backlinks are Good for SEO? Our Conclusions 

When you’re building backlinks to your website, you should first concentrate your efforts on the homepage. When doing so, you should aim to build 20-30 high-quality and natural-looking links over an extended period of time. Remember, if you build them all in one month, this will look spammy. 

From here, you can broaden your strategy and build links to ‘core pages’, while also continuing to support the homepage. If you’re writing blogs, aim to do these in a way that allows them to pick up natural links. 

Overall though, focus on ensuring that you’re only getting high-quality backlinks from reputable websites within your niche. This is because it’s better to have fewer high-quality links than lots of spammy and irrelevant ones. So, don’t just focus on the total number of links you’re acquiring, and ensure you always check where those links are coming from.