---
title: "Ahrefs DR4 vs DR3: What Changed and What It Does to Backlink Value"
description: "Ahrefs' DR4 rates about half as many sites as DR3, weighs links from sites with search traffic more, and rates every subdomain on its own links. On 4,945 sites bklink checked, 998 of 4,458 rated sites lose their rating, and BV priced on DR4 falls 15% across mxverify's sites. 603 directories on mxverify show both prices behind a DR3 / DR4 toggle until BV switches."
canonical: "https://bklink.uk/blog/ahrefs-dr4-vs-dr3"
publishedAt: "2026-11-06T09:21:27.588Z"
updatedAt: "2026-11-06T09:21:27.588Z"
author: "Palash Bagchi"
category: "backlink-roi"
tags: ["domain-rating","dr","authority-metrics","backlink-roi","measurement"]
series: "Backlink Cost, Value & ROI"
image: null
---

# Ahrefs DR4 vs DR3: What Changed and What It Does to Backlink Value

Ahrefs' DR4 rates about half as many sites as DR3, weighs links from sites with search traffic more, and rates every subdomain on its own links. On 4,945 sites bklink checked, 998 of 4,458 rated sites lose their rating, and BV priced on DR4 falls 15% across mxverify's sites. 603 directories on mxverify show both prices behind a DR3 / DR4 toggle until BV switches.

## What Ahrefs announced

On 5 November 2026 Ahrefs announced DR4, the fourth version of its Domain Rating model ([Ahrefs' announcement](https://ahrefs.com/blog/domain-rating-dr4/)). DR4 replaces DR3 in the Ahrefs interface on 1 December 2026. Until then it can be seen ahead of time: Ahrefs' free Domain Rating API answers DR4 to a request that asks for it, and Ahrefs' demo page at [detailed.com/dr-v4](https://detailed.com/dr-v4/) shows any domain's DR3 and DR4 side by side. For a short period after 1 December the API will still give DR3 on request.

DR is still a score of links and nothing else. The method Ahrefs documents has not changed ([Ahrefs Help Center](https://help.ahrefs.com/en/articles/1409408-what-is-domain-rating-dr)): a site's rating flows to the domains it links to, split equally among them; the calculation is repeated across the whole link graph; and the result is scaled to 0–100, relative to every other site and logarithmic, so moving from 84 to 85 takes far more than moving from 54 to 55.

## The four differences between DR3 and DR4

| | DR3 | DR4 |
|---|---|---|
| Which links weigh most | Links from rated sites, by their rating | Links from sites (and subdomains) Ahrefs estimates to have organic search traffic weigh more |
| How many sites are rated | The baseline | About half as many |
| Subdomains | Most carry their root domain's rating | Every host is rated on its own links: help.ahrefs.com goes from 91 to 75, ahrefs.com stays 92 |
| Sites with Ahrefs' spam label | Kept their rating | Fall: those rated 30–70 on DR3 by a median 15–20 points |

Sites without the spam label move a median of close to nothing in most DR3 ranges, Ahrefs says. Of its own top 1,000 sites by organic traffic, 64.3% rise, 15.8% stay where they were and 19.9% fall, by 4 points at the median. The spam label itself has been set by a machine-learning model since January 2026.

**The ranking correlation, read carefully.** Across 10 million hosts, Ahrefs reports that DR4 correlates more strongly than DR3 with how many top-3 and top-10 Google positions a host holds: 0.128 to 0.332 for the top three, 0.140 to 0.359 for the top ten. Almost all of that gain is subdomains no longer copying their root domain's rating. On root domains alone, DR4 correlates less than DR3 did: 0.382 to 0.295 for the top three, 0.407 to 0.304 for the top ten. DR4 is a far better guide to a subdomain, and a slightly weaker one to a root domain's own rankings.

## What we measured on 4,945 sites

On 6 November 2026 bklink asked Ahrefs' free API for the DR4 of every site in its records: 4,963 hosts, the sites that appear in bklink's audits and every site with a report on mxverify, bklink's free [backlink value checker](https://mxverify.uk/backlink-value). 4,945 answered; Ahrefs refused 18 as names that are not valid domains. The endpoint is free, and every answer is kept.

- **Ratings lost.** Of the 4,458 sites rated on DR3, 998 have no DR4 rating. Their median organic traffic is 0 visits a month; 32 of them get 1,000 visits or more.
- **Ratings moved.** Root domains fell a median 7 points, subdomains 17.
- **By the kind of link a site gives.** Among sites rated 30 or more on DR3, by the kind of link BV finds they give: editorial links, a median change of 0; guest or sponsored posts, −13; press-release copies, listings and nofollow links, −20; link networks, −22.

Sites with real audiences barely move: theorg.com 76 to 75, ietf.org 93 to 91, pbase.com 82 to 86. Press-release syndication subdomains fall hard: atlanta.newsnetmedia.com 71 to 15, wpta.marketminute.com 73 to 27, and marketminute.com itself 73 to 4. Pages on free hosts lose the platform's rating they used to carry: blogs on blogspot.com and sites on pages.dev went from 93–95 to 0.

DR3 and DR4 figures on this page: [Domain Rating by Ahrefs](https://ahrefs.com/), from Ahrefs' free Domain Rating API on 6 November 2026.

## What it does to BV

BV is the value of one new followed link from a site, in dollars. It starts from the site's Site Strength: half its Ahrefs DR and half its organic traffic on a log scale, 0–100 ([how BV is worked out](https://mxverify.uk/methodology)). The dollar figure halves for every 16.2 points of strength, so one point of DR is worth about 2.2% of a site's BV, and ten points about 19%. A site Ahrefs does not rate is valued at $0: without a rating there is no link equity to price.

Priced on DR4 with nothing else changed, on 6 November 2026:

| | On DR3 | On DR4 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| mxverify's 4,443 priced sites, value of one link from each | $207,118 | $176,028 | −15.0% |
| Root domains (2,837) | $181,170 | $160,528 | −11.4% |
| Subdomains (1,553) | $24,394 | $14,847 | −39.1% |
| bklink's 18 audited campaigns, estimated value | $13,041 | $10,310 | −20.9% |

941 priced sites lose their rating and go to $0. By DR3 band, sites rated 80 or more lose 6% between them; sites rated 30–49 lose 28%.

### Are subdomains discounted twice?

No. Under DR3 most subdomains carried their root domain's rating, so BV priced a press-release subdomain on its parent's authority, and BV needed rules to keep such hosts from counting that authority over and over. Under DR4 both halves of a subdomain's Site Strength are its own: its links and its traffic. That is how BV has always priced a root domain. No BV rule adds a discount for being a subdomain. The rules that touch subdomains measure other things: several hosts of one brand linking to the same site count as one source, because they have one owner; and a page anyone can make for free on a hosting platform is a lesser kind of link, whatever its rating.

### Are sites that sell placements penalised twice?

DR4's falls land mostly on sites BV already finds give guest-post, press-release or network links. The two measure different things. DR is the authority a site receives through its links. BV's link type is how much of that a link of a given kind passes, from a fixed table based on Google's published position on links, never fitted to DR. Under DR3 these sites' authority was overstated; DR4 corrects that, and the kind of link they give is unchanged.

## Watch it on 603 directories

Until BV moves to DR4, every directory with a report on mxverify carries a DR3 / DR4 toggle on its backlink value card: the same BV, priced twice, once on each rating. Directories are where DR4 moves furthest. Of 603, 117 lose their rating, the median rating falls 16 points, and their BV falls 30% between them. Launch directories that mostly link to one another fall hardest; long-standing directories hold or rise.

| Directory | DR3 | DR4 | BV on DR3 | BV on DR4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [clutch.co](https://mxverify.uk/publications/clutch.co) | 91 | 91 | $263.60 | $263.60 |
| [theresanaiforthat.com](https://mxverify.uk/publications/theresanaiforthat.com) | 77 | 73 | $315.04 | $315.04 |
| [alternativeto.net](https://mxverify.uk/publications/alternativeto.net) | 81 | 81 | $142.41 | $142.41 |
| [futurepedia.io](https://mxverify.uk/publications/futurepedia.io) | 73 | 73 | $232.50 | $232.50 |
| [twelve.tools](https://mxverify.uk/publications/twelve.tools) | 84 | 76 | $251.69 | $203.26 |
| [betalist.com](https://mxverify.uk/publications/betalist.com) | 76 | 70 | $243.57 | $196.70 |
| [uneed.best](https://mxverify.uk/publications/uneed.best) | 76 | 62 | $193.22 | $156.04 |
| [fazier.com](https://mxverify.uk/publications/fazier.com) | 84 | 69 | $249.66 | $162.83 |
| [tinylaunch.com](https://mxverify.uk/publications/tinylaunch.com) | 74 | 52 | $194.99 | $127.17 |
| [saascity.io](https://mxverify.uk/publications/saascity.io) | 71 | 24 | $204.90 | $70.39 |
| [launchllama.co](https://mxverify.uk/publications/launchllama.co) | 73 | 2.5 | $171.08 | $38.33 |
| [publishyoursaas.com](https://mxverify.uk/publications/publishyoursaas.com) | 58 | 1.2 | $78.09 | $26.82 |
| [launchitonline.com](https://mxverify.uk/publications/launchitonline.com) | 72 | not rated | $79.90 | $0 |
| [curlie.org](https://mxverify.uk/publications/curlie.org) | 70 | 82 | $165.47 | $204.90 |
| [goodfirms.co](https://mxverify.uk/publications/goodfirms.co) | not rated | 86 | $0 | $107.92 |

DR3 and DR4: [Domain Rating by Ahrefs](https://ahrefs.com/), from Ahrefs' free Domain Rating API on 6 November 2026. BV 2.9: the value of one new followed link from the site. The reports show each day's figures, so they can differ from this table.

Two things the toggle makes visible. mxverify prices Site Strength in steps of 5 points, so a small change in DR can leave BV exactly where it was (theresanaiforthat.com, 77 to 73) or move it a whole step, about 19%. And where DR4 gives a site no rating, its DR4 side reads $0.

Every directory with a report: [mxverify.uk/publications/type/directory](https://mxverify.uk/publications/type/directory).

## What happens on 1 December

BV stays on DR3 for every site until bklink switches, and the switch is a change we make, not whatever Ahrefs' API answers on the day: bklink now names the Domain Rating model in every request it sends. When BV moves to DR4 it does so as a new BV version, so every price says which rating it was worked out on, and the directory pilot is how we decide when. After the switch, a site DR4 does not rate is valued at $0, as an unrated site always has been.

Two parts of BV are tied to DR3 and are reviewed with it. The two prices BV's dollar scale is anchored to are marketplace asking prices quoted in DR3, so they will be measured again from listings quoted in DR4 after 1 December. And how stored audit reports move at the switch is still to be decided.

## If your DR falls

Ahrefs is plain that a lower DR4 is not a verdict on a site's content: it means Ahrefs sees fewer links from sites with search traffic pointing to it. Look at which sites link to you, and compare with your closest competitors, who will move too. For what DR is and is not, and how it differs from Moz's DA, see [DR vs DA vs BV](/blog/dr-vs-da-difference).

## Key Takeaways
- DR4 is Ahrefs' fourth Domain Rating model: in the Ahrefs interface from 1 December 2026, and in its free Domain Rating API now.
- Four changes from DR3: about half as many sites rated, more weight on links from sites with search traffic, every subdomain rated on its own links, and spam-labelled sites marked down.
- On 4,945 sites bklink checked, 998 of 4,458 rated sites lose their rating; root domains fall a median 7 points and subdomains 17.
- BV is half Ahrefs DR through Site Strength, so each DR point is about 2.2% of a site's BV: priced on DR4, mxverify's sites fall 15% and bklink's audited campaigns 21%.
- Sites with real audiences barely move; launch directories, press-release subdomains and free-hosting pages fall most.
- Subdomains are not discounted twice: under DR4 both halves of a subdomain's strength are its own figures, as for any root domain.
- 603 directory reports on mxverify show BV on DR3 and on DR4 behind a toggle until BV switches.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### When does Ahrefs switch from DR3 to DR4?

DR4 replaces DR3 in the Ahrefs interface on 1 December 2026. Ahrefs' free Domain Rating API already answers DR4 to a request that asks for it, and will give DR3 on request for a short period after the switch.

### Why did my site's DR fall under DR4?

DR4 gives more weight to links from sites with organic search traffic, so a site linked mostly from sites without it falls. Spam-labelled sites fall more, and a subdomain no longer carries its root domain's rating. Ahrefs says a lower DR4 is not a judgement of a site's content.

### Does BV change on 1 December?

Not by itself. bklink names the Domain Rating model in every request, so BV stays on DR3 until bklink switches it, as a new BV version. Until then, directory reports on mxverify show both prices behind a DR3 / DR4 toggle.

### Does BV discount subdomains twice under DR4?

No. Under DR4 a subdomain's links and its traffic, the two halves of its Site Strength, are both its own, as they are for a root domain. No BV rule adds a separate discount for being a subdomain.

### Why does a small DR change sometimes leave BV unchanged, or move it by about a fifth?

mxverify prices Site Strength in steps of 5 points. A change of a few DR points either stays inside a step, leaving BV where it was, or crosses into the next one, which moves BV by about 19%.

### What happens to a site DR4 does not rate?

BV values it at $0 once BV is priced on DR4, as it values any site Ahrefs does not rate: without a rating there is no link equity to price.

### Where can I see the change for one site?

On mxverify, every directory with a report has a DR3 / DR4 toggle on its backlink value card. For any other domain, Ahrefs' demo page at detailed.com/dr-v4 shows its DR3 and DR4.

## Sources
1. [Ahrefs – Introducing a Preview of DR4 (5 November 2026)](https://ahrefs.com/blog/domain-rating-dr4/)
2. [Detailed – Domain Rating Feedback: DR3 and DR4 compared](https://detailed.com/dr-v4/)
3. [Ahrefs Help Center – What is Domain Rating (DR)?](https://help.ahrefs.com/en/articles/1409408-what-is-domain-rating-dr)
4. [mxverify – How BV is worked out](https://mxverify.uk/methodology)
5. [mxverify – Directory sites](https://mxverify.uk/publications/type/directory)