How to Check a Website's DA and PA, and How Much It Matters

Updated 16 July 2026

Many site owners obsess over DA and PA. Yet neither is made by Google, and neither is used to rank pages directly. This article explains what DA and PA actually mean, how to check them, and how to use them without getting trapped.

What are DA and PA?

Domain Authority (DA) and Page Authority (PA) are third-party scores from 1 to 100 that estimate how strongly a domain or page can compete in search. DA rates a whole domain, PA rates a single page. Keep in mind these are estimates, not official numbers from Google.

How to check them

You can check them with third-party tools that gather backlink data, either on their site or through a browser extension. Enter a domain or page address and the score appears, along with an estimate of backlinks and referring domains.

Why not to fixate on the number

A high DA does not guarantee rank one, and a low DA does not mean you lose. Google uses hundreds of its own signals, not a third party's score. Sites with a small DA often beat bigger ones for specific keywords because their content is more relevant. Use DA as a rough indicator, not the goal.

What DA and PA are actually useful for

• Comparing your relative strength with competitors in the same industry.
• Judging whether a site is worth a backlink before you reach out to it.
• Tracking a long-term trend, not a daily number that bobs up and down.

What deserves your attention instead

Rather than chasing a DA number, fix what you actually control: technical health, content quality, and links from trusted sources. To learn what is really holding your site back, run a check at SEO Fixindo. To understand healthy links versus spam, read quality backlinks vs spam.

Frequently asked questions

Does Google use DA to rank pages?

No. DA is a third-party estimate. Google has its own ranking system and does not publish a single score like that.

What is a good DA?

It depends on the industry. It is more useful to compare your DA with direct competitors than to chase a fixed absolute number.

Why did my DA drop when I changed nothing?

The score is recalculated periodically and can shift due to changes across the third party's entire backlink database, not just your site. Watch the trend, not one change.

Can I raise DA quickly?

The healthy way to raise it is to earn links from relevant, trusted sites over time. Buying links in bulk risks harming you instead.