Skip to content
    Moz logo Menu open Menu close
    • Products
      • Moz Pro
      • Moz Pro Home
      • Moz Local
      • Moz Local Home
      • STAT
      • Moz API
      • Moz API Home
      • Compare SEO Products
      • Moz Data
    • Free SEO Tools
      • Domain Analysis
      • Keyword Explorer
      • Link Explorer
      • Competitive Research
      • MozBar
      • More Free SEO Tools
    • Learn SEO
      • Beginner's Guide to SEO
      • SEO Learning Center
      • Moz Academy
      • MozCon
      • Webinars, Whitepapers, & Guides
    • Blog
    • Why Moz
      • Digital Marketers
      • Agency Solutions
      • Enterprise Solutions
      • Small Business Solutions
      • The Moz Story
      • New Releases
    • Log in
    • Log out
    • Products
      • Moz Pro

        Your all-in-one suite of SEO essentials.

      • Moz Local

        Raise your local SEO visibility with complete local SEO management.

      • STAT

        SERP tracking and analytics for enterprise SEO experts.

      • Moz API

        Power your SEO with our index of over 44 trillion links.

      • Compare SEO Products

        See which Moz SEO solution best meets your business needs.

      • Moz Data

        Power your SEO strategy & AI models with custom data solutions.

      Track AI Overviews in Keyword Research
      Moz Pro

      Track AI Overviews in Keyword Research

      Try it free!
    • Free SEO Tools
      • Domain Analysis

        Get top competitive SEO metrics like DA, top pages and more.

      • Keyword Explorer

        Find traffic-driving keywords with our 1.25 billion+ keyword index.

      • Link Explorer

        Explore over 40 trillion links for powerful backlink data.

      • Competitive Research

        Uncover valuable insights on your organic search competitors.

      • MozBar

        See top SEO metrics for free as you browse the web.

      • More Free SEO Tools

        Explore all the free SEO tools Moz has to offer.

      NEW Keyword Suggestions by Topic
      Moz Pro

      NEW Keyword Suggestions by Topic

      Learn more
    • Learn SEO
      • Beginner's Guide to SEO

        The #1 most popular introduction to SEO, trusted by millions.

      • SEO Learning Center

        Broaden your knowledge with SEO resources for all skill levels.

      • On-Demand Webinars

        Learn modern SEO best practices from industry experts.

      • How-To Guides

        Step-by-step guides to search success from the authority on SEO.

      • Moz Academy

        Upskill and get certified with on-demand courses & certifications.

      • MozCon

        Save on Early Bird tickets and join us in London or New York City

      Unlock flexible pricing & new endpoints
      Moz API

      Unlock flexible pricing & new endpoints

      Find your plan
    • Blog
    • Why Moz
      • Digital Marketers

        Simplify SEO tasks to save time and grow your traffic.

      • Small Business Solutions

        Uncover insights to make smarter marketing decisions in less time.

      • Agency Solutions

        Earn & keep valuable clients with unparalleled data & insights.

      • Enterprise Solutions

        Gain a competitive edge in the ever-changing world of search.

      • The Moz Story

        Moz was the first & remains the most trusted SEO company.

      • New Releases

        Get the scoop on the latest and greatest from Moz.

      Surface actionable competitive intel
      New Feature

      Surface actionable competitive intel

      Learn More
    • Log in
      • Moz Pro
      • Moz Local
      • Moz Local Dashboard
      • Moz API
      • Moz API Dashboard
      • Moz Academy
    • Avatar
      • Moz Home
      • Notifications
      • Account & Billing
      • Manage Users
      • Community Profile
      • My Q&A
      • My Videos
      • Log Out

    The Moz Q&A Forum

    • Forum
    • Questions
    • Users
    • Ask the Community

    Welcome to the Q&A Forum

    Browse the forum for helpful insights and fresh discussions about all things SEO.

    1. Home
    2. SEO Tactics
    3. Link Building
    4. Can Foreign Language Backlinks Be Valuable?

    Moz Q&A is closed.

    After more than 13 years, and tens of thousands of questions, Moz Q&A closed on 12th December 2024. Whilst we’re not completely removing the content - many posts will still be possible to view - we have locked both new posts and new replies. More details here.

    Can Foreign Language Backlinks Be Valuable?

    Link Building
    backlinks link building
    6
    9
    5933
    Loading More Posts
    • Oldest to Newest
    • Newest to Oldest
    • Most Votes
    Reply
    • Reply as question
    Log in to reply
    This topic has been deleted. Only users with question management privileges can see it.
    • David5675
      David5675 Subscriber last edited by

      I've done a lot of searching on this subject, but I keep seeing conflicting answers.

      Are backlinks from foreign language websites valuable?

      For example, a travel website in English picks up a couple backlinks in Indonesian language (and other languages) from foreign sites that have a DA of 60-70 or higher.

      The topic is partially related, but the language is totally different.

      Would those links still be valuable for the English website's DA?

      Has this ever been answered conclusively?

      Thanks

      Domain-Matty 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
      • Domain-Matty
        Domain-Matty @backstagecreat last edited by

        @backstagecreat DA is not a direct correlation in terms of the ranking power of a backlink. I am afraid the above mentioned is incorrect.

        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • Domain-Matty
          Domain-Matty @backstagecreat last edited by

          @backstagecreat This is completely incorrect.

          The DA score is nothing but a 3rd party measurement and is not a direct correlation of a backlinks SERP impact.

          A website with a MOZ DA score of just DA20 can provide much higher rank impact then a MOZ DA40 backlink depending on many other factors.

          The DA score in the light you have announced it is meaningless and bad advise.

          The DA score or the "Higher The DA" has nothing to do rank power of a link.

          The rank power depends more on the type of referring domain either that being the niche or domain trust.

          This is explained further

          You own a hairdressing website and you get a DA40 link from a lawnmower shop website.

          You also then get a link from a different website. This website is DA10. But its actually another hairdressing shop that linked to you.

          The DA10 link is going to give much large ranking impact than the DA40 link

          DA is just a way to measure things. It is in no way a reflection of the ranking power of a backlink.

          I hope this clears up the conflicting and incorrect information made in backstagecreat comment

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • backstagecreat
            backstagecreat @LynnPatchett last edited by

            @lynnpatchett Backlinks are a cornerstone of SEO. However, not all backlinks deliver the same value. Links that are higher on a page or from pages with a higher DA will help your website rank better in Google's search results. You can use this information to build higher-quality backlinks.

            Domain-Matty 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • Domain-Matty
              Domain-Matty @abdoselim2050 last edited by

              @abdoselim2050 I disagree. Not every backlink has actual value.

              These include.

              1. Links on noindex pages.

              2. Links from noindex spam blogs

              3. Links that Google will choose to totally ignore

              4. Links from highly spammed and high OBL pages.

              5. If a indexed nofollow link is on a page that's never visited

              There are many useless hyperlinks out there on there internet some which I have not mentioned here due to he list becoming to long.

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • Domain-Matty
                Domain-Matty @David5675 last edited by

                @david5675 Of course they are mate. Google does not care about the origin or language of the site you get a link from. They look first at the niche, the topical relevance and the domains overall authority and trust. As most optimisation pros are aware there is over 200 factors the major search engines base there algorithms on. Google automatically translates the content so it makes no difference in respect to the foreign language.

                So can they be valuable. The answer is it makes no difference so yes they are. As long as language and topical relevance translates into the same niche and the page has a low OBL at not spammed to death your good to go.

                Many foreign language sites have huge SERP impact. This is why I personally like to target some of my outreach to these sites due to the fact some of them are actually interested in getting an English point of view on certain topics. Furthermore, looking back at the 200 factors Googles evaluates a website with. Diversity is one of them.

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                • NatashaKvitka
                  NatashaKvitka last edited by

                  That's an interesting question indeed. I never saw a conclusive study on this topic, however, it seems that the answer would be: unique, genuine, high quality links will always be of use, especially if the topic of the page is relevant (just like in the example with foreign travel communities linking to travel websites in English) even though it would provide less value because of the anchor and surrounding text being in other language. How exactly less, that's still questionable. I would not concentrate on acquiring such links deliberately, but would not fight against them as well.

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • abdoselim2050
                    abdoselim2050 Banned last edited by

                    Every backlink has value, nothing is without value
                    However, the earned value varies from one link to another
                    Get backlinks from more than one language - This increases his strength and chances of appearing in the first ranks

                    Domain-Matty 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • LynnPatchett
                      LynnPatchett last edited by

                      Hi,

                      This kind of link is pretty common, especially in the travel/tourism industry where lots of foreign language sites discussing holiday destinations etc give links out to relevant sites that are not necessarily in the language of the original article. If it is a freely given link from a somewhat relevant page then it certainly would not hurt, if it is a link that you are outreaching for then I would personally concentrate on other options that are in the same language as your website, Hope that makes sense 🙂

                      backstagecreat 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • 1 / 1
                      • First post
                        Last post

                      Got a burning SEO question?

                      Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.


                      Start my free trial


                      Browse Questions

                      Explore more categories

                      • Moz Tools

                        Chat with the community about the Moz tools.

                      • SEO Tactics

                        Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers

                      • Community

                        Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!

                      • Digital Marketing

                        Chat about tactics outside of SEO

                      • Research & Trends

                        Dive into research and trends in the search industry.

                      • Support

                        Connect on product support and feature requests.

                      • See all categories

                      Related Questions

                      • laurentjb

                        Backlink builder (Professional)

                        backlink profile backlinks

                        If I wanted to hire a professional person to build high quality backlinks for me, where would I look? I'm asking here because I'd rather go on the recommendation of other businesses owners, than a google search. Does anyone have a person that they can recommend? It's for an insurance agency in Texas. Many thanks

                        Link Building | | laurentjb
                        2
                      • pixou

                        how to improve rank

                        backlinks rankings

                        I have a site, can you help me to:
                        improve ranking
                        get high authority backlinks

                        SEO Tactics | | pixou
                        0
                      • wcksmith1

                        Nofollow backlinks - are they worth it?

                        As we all attempt to get backlinks for the sites we manage, I have to wonder if it's worth it at all to get a nofollow backlink.  Does Google give and positive credit for a link to a site if it is a nofollow link? Obviously, the follow links are worth pursuing.  I'm just trying to gain some perspective. Thanks,  Wick

                        Link Building | | wcksmith1
                        0
                      • wikiBudgets

                        Does iframe itself count as a backlink?

                        Our situation is similar to YouTube. We have an original content on every subpage that is genuinely useful when embedded as a widget on 3r party websites. That is why we offer an embeddable widget that shows slightly simplified version of the content - exactly like a YouTube video embedded on your blog. The embed code is simply an iframe sourcing from our subpage: <iframe src="wikibudgets.org/subpage"></p> </blockquote> <p>1/ Does the iframe itself pass any link value at all to the subpage?</p> <p>2/ If yes, what would be the equivalent of anchor text in iframe?</p> <p>3/ If not, will any link in the subpage pass link value from the 3rd party website to my domain/subpage?</p> <p>4/ If not, will I be punished/rewarded if I ask users to put a visible, unobfuscated link to the subpage below the iframe?</p> <blockquote style="background: #f7f7f7; padding-top: 5px; margin-left: 0px; padding-left: 2px; padding-bottom: 5px; white-space: nowrap; overflow-y: auto; font-family: monospace;"> <p><iframe src="wikibudgets.org/subpage" /><a href="wikibudgets.org/subpage">rich anchor text</a></p> </blockquote></iframe>

                        Link Building | | wikiBudgets
                        0
                      • poke1

                        Rankings Dropped After New Backlinks.

                        I have a low-traffic website (under 100 unique visitors per day) and I've encountered a strange issue started yesterday morning. I acquired three back-links, one of these back-links is contextual and the other two are site-wide. The site-wide back-links are from PA 40+ blogs. It looks like the back-links are already indexed by Google. Despite these new back-links, my rankings across multiple keywords have dropped several positions. I'm new to SEO, but I would assume new back-links would improve my rankings. None of these back-links are low quality links, they are from real established blogs with high domain and page authority values. Could anyone give me insights into why my rankings may have dropped with new back-links?

                        Link Building | | poke1
                        1
                      • The_Kiwi_Man

                        $10,000 backlink?

                        Hello guys, Would you pay $10k for a pr9 backlink? Thanks!

                        Link Building | | The_Kiwi_Man
                        0
                      • JABacchetta

                        Homepage Vs. Inner Page Backlink Building?

                        If I'm trying to rank multiple inner pages, when does strengthening the homepage become more productive than strengthening the inner pages themselves? Is there a strategy to this? For example, maybe you build up a few dozen backlinks to each inner page, and then focus all your efforts on the homepage? Because, from my understanding, strengthening the homepage will go a long way towards helping your inner pages rank. Is that correct?

                        Link Building | | JABacchetta
                        0
                      • clickangel

                        Changing backlinks anchor text

                        Hi, I've read a few blog post here that suggests the strength of building links using your brand as an anchor text. This supposedly gives the site authority. Currently a chunck of the back links to my homepage are on generic terms i'm trying to rank for which doesn't seem to be working very well. I was thinking of contacting the various webmasters to change the anchor text to that of the site brand name but wondering if this will signal a manipulation of links to the search engines and potentially could be flagged as paid links? Has anybody done this before and what is the danger of doing this? Thanks Duke

                        Link Building | | clickangel
                        0

                      Get started with Moz Pro!

                      Unlock the power of advanced SEO tools and data-driven insights.

                      Start my free trial
                      Products
                      • Moz Pro
                      • Moz Local
                      • Moz API
                      • Moz Data
                      • STAT
                      • Product Updates
                      Moz Solutions
                      • SMB Solutions
                      • Agency Solutions
                      • Enterprise Solutions
                      • Digital Marketers
                      Free SEO Tools
                      • Domain Authority Checker
                      • Link Explorer
                      • Keyword Explorer
                      • Competitive Research
                      • Brand Authority Checker
                      • Local Citation Checker
                      • MozBar Extension
                      • MozCast
                      Resources
                      • Blog
                      • SEO Learning Center
                      • Help Hub
                      • Beginner's Guide to SEO
                      • How-to Guides
                      • Moz Academy
                      • API Docs
                      About Moz
                      • About
                      • Team
                      • Careers
                      • Contact
                      Why Moz
                      • Case Studies
                      • Testimonials
                      Get Involved
                      • Become an Affiliate
                      • MozCon
                      • Webinars
                      • Practical Marketer Series
                      • MozPod
                      Connect with us

                      Contact the Help team

                      Join our newsletter
                      Moz logo
                      © 2021 - 2025 SEOMoz, Inc., a Ziff Davis company. All rights reserved. Moz is a registered trademark of SEOMoz, Inc.
                      • Accessibility
                      • Terms of Use
                      • Privacy

                      Looks like your connection to Moz was lost, please wait while we try to reconnect.