The link building world is full of people who are both innovative and generous. That’s precisely why you can find an abundance of free link building tools lists on the web.
Talented creators and programmers are always trying to find new ways to make our optimization work easier, sleeker, and faster.
But, if you’re looking for free link building tools, diving in can be overwhelming. There are hundreds of tools available, and just making a simple choice between a couple of similar tools can be daunting.
Plus, no one has time to test out every tool on the market. You also need to have a specific goal in mind before you select a tool, or you’ll be looking through your options for hours.
And, on top of all that, some of the best free link building tools aren’t as easy to find with a simple Google search as they should be.
That’s why I put together this list for you. They’re all tools I use personally, and I vouch for all of them. They’re all cool, useful, fun, and 100% FREE!
In this post, I have some suggestions that I’ve never seen on many of the “best link building tools” lists. I feel comfortable calling many of these tools the “hidden gems” of the SEO world.
I won’t call this “the definitive list” because you’d need hours and hours to look through any such list. Instead, I’m giving you access to my go-to stash of free link building tools. These are all good, useful tools, and you won’t feel overwhelmed just by looking through them!
So, if you need a few more items for your personal toolkit, you’re in the right place. And if “free” sounds like the perfect price, you’ll be even more satisfied.
Thanks for stopping by, and please feel free to ask questions, or to ask for any further tool suggestions. Believe it or not, I have even more tricks up my sleeve.
So here we go!
Best FREE Link Building Tools
1) Prospecting Tool – This is our very own free tool that allows you to view multiple URLs and refine your list, all from one page.
2) Link Grabber – Chrome extension that grabs all of the links on a webpage.
3) Check My Links – Chrome extension that identifies all the broken links on any given webpage.
4) Backlink Checker — Research the backlinks of any website with our powerful free backlink checker!
5) Guest Post Finder – Discover guest posting opportunities in your specific niche.
6) Website “Authority” Checker – Check the authority score of any website.
7) Startpage – Search Google completely anonymously without any tracking. You can also set your location.
8) Google Cache Check — Checks Google cache of any webpage
9) Internal Links Finder – Quickly discover internal link opportunities on your website.
10) DupliChecker – Plagiarism checker.
11) Discover Resource pages – Find resource pages related to your specific niche.
12) Grammarly – Chrome extension that checks your content for spelling and grammar errors.
13) Boomerang– Schedule emails, follow-ups, and reminders. Great for outreach.
14) SEO & Website Analysis – Chrome extension for SEO analysis and recommendations.
15) Slerpee – Shows how your webpage will appear in the SERPs and identifies meta-data truncation issues.
16) Wayback Machine – See historical archives of websites and webpages.
17) Redirect Path – Chrome extension to identify redirect errors.
18) ImageRaider – Reverse image lookup that searches the internet to see where your image is being used. Great for image link building.
19) Canva – A must have for bloggers without design skills.
20) Webpage Word Counter—Checks word count of webpages (up to 10 URLs at once).
21) Google Website Speed Check – This tool from Google will ensure your website is fast across all devices.
22) Social Media Profile Finder – Quickly find social media profiles of prospects.
23) Google Grump Rating – Find out Google’s ‘mood’ and if there are ranking fluctuations taking place.
24) Sponsored Posts Finder – Find opportunities to sponsor posts on websites related to your industry.
25) Email Hunter – Chrome extension that finds working email addresses on the website you’re browsing.
26) WordPress Theme Detector – Discover the theme of a particular WordPress site.
27) Unsplash– High-resolution images
28) Stock Up – Aggregates dozens of free stock photo websites into one.
29) Keyword Rank Checker – Check the rankings of up to 10 keywords at a time.
30) RankTank.org — Open source SEO tools built on Google Sheets.
31) Data Points Finder – Improve your linkable assets with relevant data points and statistics.
32) No Follow – Chrome extension that outlines no-follow links.
33) Screaming Frog – Checks your site for broken pages, links and other errors that could halt on-site performance or visitor experience.
34) URL Opener– Convert a list of url’s into hyperlinks + URL opener.
35) Infographic Link Building Tool – Find niche publications to promote your infographic.
36) Help a Reporter Out (HARO) – Connect and pitch your expert opinion to journalists.
37) Google Alerts – Monitor “fresh mention” opportunities.
38) SimilarWeb – Check out traffic sources of any website.
39) Browseo – Preview what your site looks like in the SERPs.
40) Forum Search – Find out what people are talking about in forum threads.
41) Undirect – Chrome extension that removes tracking and redirection from google search results.
42) Bridge URL – Scroll thru a list of URL’s in a ‘slideshow’ format. Great for link prospecting.
43) Trello – Board for teams to work collaboratively on projects.
44) Image Compressor — Reduce the size of an image with no compromise on its quality, to enhance page load speed.
45) Website Name Generator – Generates a list of available domain names based off of niche topics.
46) Content Idea Generator – Generate a week’s worth of relevant blog post titles.
47) Buffer – Schedule your blog content across multiple profiles on social media.
48) Built With – Find out what any website is built with.
49) Bitly – Shorten and brand your social sharing links and track their performance.
50) GTmetrix – Checks website speed and performance and gives remedies to improve.
How These Tools Can Help Your Link Building
There is no silver bullet solution when it comes to scoring higher rankings in the SERPs. There are hundreds of factors at play which ultimately determine whether or not you’ll sit atop Google or drop to the second or third page.
Crazy, right? But that doesn’t mean that it’s impossible to rank.
With so many moving pieces of SEO, it always helps to have as many tools in your toolbox as possible to make ranking easier. While there are tons of tools and factors to consider, let’s dive into some of the most essential for improving your ability to rank. To make the most of these best free link building tools, it’s crucial to know what search engines are looking for from your site.
Keywords
We can’t talk about link building without talking about keywords.
Businesses need to perform their due diligence when it comes to which keywords they want to target. On one hand, you don’t want to punch above your weight and go after keywords you have no hope ranking for. On the flip side, you don’t want to obsess over keywords with little to no search volume.
Conventional wisdom tells us to go after low-hanging fruit by first targeting long-tail keyword phrases that make up four or more terms. Approximately 70% of page views come from longer keywords, signaling the need for businesses to go beyond single phrases and terms if they hope to realistically rank.
Keyword research is not a guessing game. If you’re stuck with what keywords to start with throughout your content, spend some quality time working with some of the keyword tools outlined above.
In-Depth Content
You can’t target keywords without publishing heaps of content on-site. Businesses today should prioritize both quality and quantity, finding a balance between helpful, informational blog posts and pages optimized for keywords.
In short, “quality” means in-depth, plagiarism free content that actually solves the problems of your target audience. Conventional wisdom tells us that longer content outranks shorter pieces, which makes perfect sense when you think about it. You can’t just pump out a 300-word keyword-stuffed article and expect it to outrank a 3,000-word case study that’s brimming with useful information.
As such, these link building tools can help you iron out details of your content to ensure that it’s readable, free of errors and isn’t copycatting what someone else has always written.
External Links
Direct link-building is essential to ranking, plain and simple. You have the highest quality content on paper and a fully-optimized site, but it all means nothing if nobody’s willing to throw you a link.
The key to winning links? Create content that’s worth linking to.
High-quality links don’t simply come out of thin air. A combination of promotion, outreach and consistent content creation represent the numbers game that results in better rankings over time.
Tools that help assess your competitor’s’ links can help you better understand what kind of content you’re up against and what sort of sites might be interested in linking to you.
Tags and Metadata
Ignore the “fine details” of your website at your own peril. Something as minor as leaving out essential keywords in your title or H1 tags could mean losing out on better rankings. These details signal to Google that your content is relevant and makes it easier to structure your website for visitors.
From crafting the perfect meta description to ensuring the images on your pages have alt-tags, don’t forget the “small stuff.” These tools can help you double-check your site for tags and metadata to make sure you’re not missing anything.
Internal Links
While external links are the bread and butter of sites that rank well, internal linking and site structure also plays a significant role in your site’s SEO. Linking to your own content not only allows you more opportunities to incorporate relevant keywords into your content, but also makes it easier for people to navigate your site. Don’t look at internal linking as an opportunity to stuff keywords, but instead to guide readers from Point A to Point B.
Usability and UX
Last but not least, even if you have the best links out there, your site can’t hope to rank if nobody can navigate it.
For example, slow loading speeds can increase your site’s bounce rate and indirectly impact your site’s search rankings. High bounce rate signals to Google that your site isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be, representing a kiss of death for even the most well-meaning businesses.
Does your site load properly on mobile devices? Is your site’s speed up to snuff? Are your articles readable, split up by images, headers and links that actually work? With the help of some of the tools outlined above, you don’t have to second-guess your site’s usability.
Don’t let the idea of beefing up your site’s rankings overwhelm you. By having these tools in your arsenal and understanding the essential pieces of scoring links and optimizing your site, you’ll be well on your way to a better position in the SERPs.
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