The panel headed Ranking credit going to flagged links answers one question: how many of the followed external links on your site point at a destination that Link Signals has flagged, and what share of all your followed links is that? A followed link can pass credit to the site it points at, so a link to a parked, unregistered, hidden, unsafe or broken destination sends that credit somewhere you would not choose.
It counts links. It does not claim a quantity of PageRank, because search engines do not publish what a link is worth, and a figure in made-up units would be a guess.
What is counted
- A link is counted when it is flagged and followed. Followed means it carries no nofollow, sponsored or ugc marker.
- Links marked nofollow, sponsored or ugc are left out, because they pass no credit.
- Each destination is counted once, however many of your pages link to it.
- The share is the counted links divided by all your followed external links.
Why the panel and the score can disagree
The panel and the score are made from the same flagged links, but they ask different questions. The score takes points off for every flagged link, whatever its marker. The panel counts only the followed ones, and adds no points of its own.
| What you see | Likely reason |
|---|---|
| The panel says None while the score is low | The flagged links are all marked nofollow, sponsored or ugc, or the points were lost in a row that is not about links, such as your own certificate. |
| A flagged link is missing from a score row | It is counted in another row. Each link is charged once, in the first row it matches. |
| A report has no panel | How links were marked was not recorded for that scan. A new scan records it. |
| The 90-day list of expiring domains is longer than the score row | The list looks further ahead for planning. The score counts only the domains that run out within 30 days. |
What to do with the number
- Open the list behind itSelect Show these links. The Passing credit tab is narrower and a good place to start.
- Fix or remove each linkPoint it at a live page or take it out. This clears the panel and the score together.
- Mark the ones you keepA paid or user-written link should carry the right marker. Marking a link nofollow lowers the panel, but not the score.
Where to read more
- Ranking credit in full: the method, a worked example and what the panel does not mean.
- Which rel should a link have: choosing between nofollow, sponsored and ugc.
- Do outbound links hurt my rankings?: what Link Signals can and cannot say about search engines.
Questions
Is the percentage a PageRank figure?
No. It is the number of flagged followed links divided by all your followed external links, to one decimal place. Nothing in it comes from a search engine.
Does the panel change my LinkSignal score?
No. The score is worked out from the rows in its published method. The panel sits beside it and adds or removes no points.
What does Show these links open?
The findings view called Credit going to flagged links, which is the exact list behind the number. On a rescan the panel also says how the count moved.
Run a scan and the panel sits beside the score.
