How to find the number of referring sites

As part of our Kanoppi plugin installation we ask you to provide us with the number of referring websites (backlinks).

Below are three ways to find this number.

Google Search Console

If you have Google Search Console setup (which we recommend) then it is easy to find the number of referring websites.

Step 1: Log in to Google Search Console

• Go to Google Search Console and log in with the Google account associated with your website.

Step 2: Select Your Website

• Once logged in, select the website property from the list of sites if you manage multiple websites.

Step 3: Navigate to the “Links” Section

• In the left-hand sidebar, scroll down and find the “Links” section.
• Click on “Links” to access the backlinks data.

Step 4: View Referring Websites

• Under the “External Links” section, you’ll see several subsections:
  • Top linked pages: This shows the most linked pages on your website.
  • Top linking sites: This is where you’ll find the number of referring domains or websites.

Step 5: Analyze “Top Linking Sites”

• In the “Top Linking Sites” section, you will see a list of websites that link to your domain.
• The number of referring domains (websites) will be listed next to each site.

Step 7: Review the Backlink Count

• Review the list and the total number of unique referring domains to get a full view of how many websites are linking to your site.

Ahrefs

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to find the number of referring websites (referring domains) in Ahrefs:

Step 1: Log in to Ahrefs

• Go to Ahrefs and log in with your account credentials.

Step 2: Enter Your Website URL

• Once logged in, go to the Site Explorer tool.
• In the search bar at the top, enter the URL of the website you want to analyze (including the correct version, such as https://www.example.com).

Step 3: View Backlink Overview

• After you input your URL, Ahrefs will load an overview of your website’s data.
• You’ll see several metrics, including Backlinks and Referring Domains.

Step 4: Focus on “Referring Domains”

• The Referring Domains section, found on the right-hand side or under the overview graph, shows the total number of unique websites that link to your domain.
• This number represents how many different websites (domains) are linking back to your website.

Using Google Search

To find the number of referring domains using a Google search, you can follow this method, although it’s not as precise as using a tool like Ahrefs or Google Search Console. It provides an estimate by looking for websites that link back to yours.

Step 1: Perform a Basic Google Search

• Open Google and in the search bar, type the following query: link:yourwebsite.com.
  Replace yourwebsite.com with your actual website’s URL.
• This search query tells Google to display results that contain links pointing to your website.