Key takeaways
- There are two routes for how to get backlinks: earn them with content and outreach, or build them with placements.
- Earned links are valuable but slow and unpredictable; built links are faster and easier to plan.
- The best backlink strategy combines a natural foundation base with stronger contextual links on top.
- The hidden cost of most methods is time, not money.
- Many site owners order part or all of the work so they can focus on running the business.
How to get backlinks comes down to two routes. You can earn them, by publishing content other sites want to reference and asking them to link. Or you can build them, through guest posts, niche edits, PBN links and foundation links placed on purpose. Almost every successful site uses some mix of both.
The right mix depends on your budget, your timeline and how much of your own time you can spare. Below we compare the eight main methods honestly, with what each one costs in time and money, so you can choose a backlink strategy that fits.
New to links? Our plain English guide to what backlinks are covers the basics first. If you already know you would rather have the work done for you, see our full range of link building services.
How to get backlinks: the eight main methods compared
Here is how the main ways to get backlinks to your website compare. Times and costs are what we usually see, and they vary with niche and competition.
| Method | Time to results | Cost | Control |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linkable content | Months, often longer | Writing and promotion time | Low |
| Outreach | Weeks per link | Many hours of staff time | Low to medium |
| Digital PR | Weeks to months | High, campaign based | Low |
| Broken link building | Weeks per link | Research and outreach time | Low |
| Guest posts | 7 to 30 days when ordered | Per placement | Medium to high |
| Niche edits | 7 to 30 days when ordered | Per placement | Medium to high |
| PBN links | 7 to 30 days | From $170 a package with us | High |
| Foundation links | Days to weeks | $62 for 230 links with us | High |
The first four methods earn links. The last four build them. Let us look at each.
Earned links: content, outreach, PR and broken links
Linkable content
Original research, free tools, detailed guides and strong visuals attract links because other writers want to cite them. When it works, the links are excellent. The catch is that most content never earns a single link without promotion, and new sites have little reach to start with.
Outreach
Outreach means emailing site owners and asking them to link to a page of yours. It works, but response rates on cold emails are low, so each link can take many pitches and follow ups. The real cost is staff hours.
Digital PR
Pitching stories, data or expert comment to journalists can win links from big publications. These links carry trust, but campaigns are expensive, results are uncertain and many large sites use nofollow links.
Broken link building
You find dead links on other sites, offer your page as a replacement and hope the owner swaps it. It is polite and effective in theory, but slow, and good opportunities are harder to find every year.
Built links: guest posts, niche edits, PBN links and foundation links
Guest posts
A new article on a real site, with a contextual link to you. Guest posts on sites with genuine traffic give you relevance and authority together. Ours go on sites with Moz DA 20+, 100+ referring domains and 1,000+ monthly traffic.
Niche edits
A link added to an article that is already published and indexed. The page has age and links of its own, so the link often takes effect sooner than a fresh post.
PBN links
Links from sites built on aged expired domains that already carry strong backlink profiles. They are the most controllable source of power: you choose the target page and the anchor. Quality depends entirely on the network. Ours runs to 10,000+ sites on aged auction domains, hosted to avoid footprints, with every link inside a handwritten article.
Foundation links
Profile, forum, Web 2.0, comment, bookmarking, infographic and PDF links. Each one is modest, but together they give your profile a broad, natural base with a healthy follow and nofollow mix.
How to get high quality backlinks, whatever the method
The method matters less than the quality of the page the link sits on. Whichever route you take, check every link against the same standards:
- Real authority: genuine referring domains, not just a high score.
- Age and clean history: no spam past, no long abandoned periods.
- Indexed: the linking page appears in search, or it passes nothing.
- Contextual: the link sits inside real text, not a footer or sidebar.
- Few outbound links: a page linking to dozens of sites shares its value thin.
We judge links by these signals rather than by Spam Score, Trust Flow or Citation Flow, which are poor guides in our experience.
Building a backlink strategy that works
A good backlink campaign usually follows the same shape, whatever the niche:
- Lay a natural base. Foundation links and brand mentions, especially on a new site.
- Add contextual links. Guest posts and niche edits on real, relevant sites.
- Add power where it counts. PBN links aimed at the pages that earn money.
- Keep a steady pace. Links arriving month after month look like a growing business, not a campaign.
- Vary your anchors. Mostly brand, URL and partial match, with exact match used sparingly.
To decide how many links you need, look at the referring domains of the pages ranking above you, then plan to reach the same range with links of similar or better quality. Our guide to how much backlinks cost helps turn that plan into a budget.
The hidden cost of doing it all yourself
Every earned link method is free in cash and expensive in time. Finding sites, checking their quality, writing pitches, following up, writing articles and tracking results can easily become a part time job. Most of that effort produces nothing, because most pitches are ignored.
Built links take skill too. Picking guest post sites that are not link farms, finding niche edit pages that are indexed and trafficked, and running a private network that stays clean all take years of practice. Done badly, they add little or even attract the wrong kind of attention.
That is why many site owners and agencies order backlinks from a team that already has the sites, the writers and the process. We have done exactly that since 2012, from our in house team in Chennai, with unbranded Excel reports so agencies can resell the work.
Why many site owners order backlinks
Ordering does not replace good content or a good site. It replaces the slow, repetitive parts of link building with a predictable process:
- You choose the link type, the target URLs and the anchors on the order form.
- We handle site selection, writing and placement, with delivery in 7 to 30 days for most services.
- You pay in USD by PayPal or INR by Razorpay and receive a report listing every link.
Many clients keep doing their own content and outreach, and order links to cover the gap. That combination is often the fastest way to see steady movement, which for most sites starts within one to three months.
FAQ
Can you get backlinks for free?
Yes, through profiles, comments, directories and outreach, but each one costs time, and many free sources are weak or spammy. They are best treated as part of a base, not the whole plan.
Should a brand new website build backlinks straight away?
Yes, gently. A new site benefits from a natural foundation first, then a slow build of contextual links as its pages get indexed.
Do backlinks from unrelated sites help?
Authority from a strong, clean site still helps, but relevant links add context as well. A mix of both is normal for real websites.
Ready to get backlinks without the grind?
Choose the links that fit your plan, from foundation links to guest posts, niche edits and PBN links, in our backlink services. Not sure where to start? Ask our team and we will suggest a mix for your site and budget.
About the author
KINGPINWEB Team
KINGPINWEB is an SEO and link building company based in Chennai, India. Since 2012 our in-house team has helped site owners, agencies and businesses rank higher in search. Everything we publish here comes from hands-on work: campaigns we run, rankings we track every day and tests we carry out ourselves. We write these guides to share what works in practice. Our team is led by co-founders Issac M. Paul and Balaji Ragupathi.
