How to Choose a Backlink Package Without Wasting Money
Backlink packages are sold the way phone plans are: a few tiers, big numbers on the front, and the details in small print. A package with 10,000 links is not ten times better than one with 1,000. It might be the right choice, or it might be ten times the risk for the same result. The point of this guide is to help you work out which.
Before comparing anything, be clear on the ground rules. Google's spam policies treat paid links meant to pass ranking credit as a link scheme. Packages carry risk, more so the larger and lower quality they are. Read how to buy backlinks safely first if you have not already.
Decide what the package is for
Packages usually fall into three jobs:
- Direct links to your site. Usually smaller numbers of higher-quality, contextual links. This is Tier 1 territory.
- Strengthening existing links. Links pointing at your guest posts, profiles or other Tier 1 pages, not at your own site. This is Tier 2.
- Bulk support links. Large volumes of low-quality links aimed at Tier 2 pages, mainly to help them get crawled. This is Tier 3.
If you do not know which job you need, you are not ready to buy. Our explainer on what tiered backlinks are covers how the layers fit together.
Match the size to your site
The right size depends on your site's current profile, your niche and your tolerance for risk.
| Situation | What usually makes sense |
|---|---|
| New site, few links, money site you care about | Small number of strong Tier 1 links, slow pace, no bulk links at the site |
| Established site with a natural profile | Modest Tier 1 additions, possibly Tier 2 support for existing guest posts |
| Existing Tier 1 links that are not indexed or not passing much | Tier 2 or Tier 3 support aimed at those pages |
| Test or churn-and-burn site | Larger packages, accepting that the site may not last |
A Jaipur bakery's website with 40 referring domains does not need 25,000 links. A link profile that grows from 40 domains to thousands in a month looks nothing like a real bakery. Big packages exist for big tiered campaigns, and they should not be pointed straight at a small business site.
Read what is actually included
Two packages with the same link count can be completely different products. Ask or check:
- Link types. Contextual links in articles, Web 2.0 posts, profiles, comments, directories, social bookmarks? Our guide to types of backlinks explains the differences.
- Dofollow vs nofollow mix. A mix is normal and natural. Packages that promise only dofollow on every link are a warning sign about where the links come from.
- Referring domains vs links. 5,000 links from 200 domains is very different from 5,000 links from 5,000 domains. Ask which number they are quoting. See referring domains vs backlinks.
- Relevance. Are the sites in any way related to your topic, or completely random?
- Delivery pace. Can you spread delivery over weeks rather than receiving everything at once?
- Anchors. Can you supply a mix of anchors, or does everything go out with your main keyword?
- Reporting. Do you get a full list of URLs you can check yourself?
Questions to ask the seller
- What kinds of sites will the links be on, in general terms?
- Can I see a sample report from a previous order?
- Can delivery be drip-fed?
- How do you handle anchors, and can I provide my own list?
- What happens if a large share of links are removed or never go live?
Good sellers answer plainly. Vague answers, or promises of ranking positions or "zero risk", tell you more than the price list does.
Price is a clue, not the decision
Very cheap per-link prices usually mean automated platforms and throwaway sites. That is not automatically useless for Tier 3, where the job is mostly crawl discovery, but it is a bad fit for anything pointing at your own domain. Expensive does not guarantee quality either. Judge on what is in the report.
When a package is the wrong buy
- Your site has technical problems that stop pages being indexed. Fix those first.
- Your content is thin. Links to weak pages tend to produce weak results.
- You are already under a manual action.
- You cannot afford to lose the site's rankings.
- You have not tried the basics: local citations, partner links, and content that earns mentions.
A sensible way to start
If you decide to buy, start with the smallest package that fits the job, point it at the right tier, and track the results for a couple of months before scaling up. Packages from providers such as RankRonin, listed on the pricing page, are split by tier for this reason: so you can match the purchase to the layer you are working on rather than buying the biggest number on offer.
Putting it into practice
Write down three things before you open any price list: which pages or Tier 1 links you want to support, your current referring domain count, and the anchor mix you already have. If you check anchors with the anchor text analyzer, you will know what a package can add without tipping the balance.