How to Check Backlinks in Google Search

You just paid someone to build backlinks to your website. They sent you a report with a bunch of URLs. Now what? You want to verify these links actually exist, and your first instinct is probably to head to Google and search for them.

Makes sense. Google knows everything, right?

Well, here’s the thing: checking backlinks directly in Google Search used to be possible, but it isn’t anymore. Let me explain what happened and show you the methods that actually work today.

The Old Way: Google’s link: Operator

Back in the day, you could type link:yourwebsite.com into Google and get a list of pages linking to your site. It was beautifully simple.

SEOs would use it constantly. Want to spy on a competitor’s backlinks? Just run link:competitor.com. Want to see who’s linking to a specific blog post? Easy: link:yoursite.com/specific-page.

If you try this today, you might still see some results. Don’t get excited. Google has confirmed the link: operator is deprecated. Whatever results you see are incomplete and unreliable. We’re talking maybe 5% of actual backlinks, if that.

So why do people still search for “how to check backlinks in Google search”? Because the old tutorials are still floating around, and honestly, it was such an elegant solution that people wish it still worked.

Why Google Killed the link: Operator

Google never gave an official explanation, but the SEO community has some theories:

1. Competitive Intelligence Got Too Easy

The link: operator was essentially free competitor research. Big brands didn’t love the idea of anyone being able to see exactly how they built their domain authority.

2. Link Spam Problems

When people could easily see backlink profiles, they’d reverse-engineer successful sites and build the exact same links. This contributed to the link spam problem Google was fighting.

3. Index Size Issues

Google’s index grew massively. Maintaining a real-time searchable database of all links across the web became impractical (or at least not worth the resources).

4. Business Reasons

Google wants you to use Google Search Console for your own sites. And if you want detailed backlink data? Well, there’s a healthy ecosystem of paid tools for that.

Whatever the reason, the link: operator is dead. Let’s focus on what actually works.

Method 1: Google Search Console (Free, For Your Own Sites)

Google Search Console is the official, Google-sanctioned way to see your backlinks. The catch? You can only see links pointing to websites you own and have verified.

How to Check Your Backlinks in Search Console

1. Go to Google Search Console
2. Select your property (if you have multiple sites)
3. In the left sidebar, click Links
4. You’ll see two main sections:
   • External links — links from other websites to yours
   • Internal links — links within your own site

Understanding the External Links Report

The External links section shows you:

• Top linked pages — Which of your pages get the most backlinks
• Top linking sites — Which domains link to you most often
• Top linking text — The anchor text people use when linking to you

Click on any of these to drill down. For example, click a linking site to see exactly which of your pages they link to.

Exporting Your Backlink Data

Want to analyze this data elsewhere? Click the export button in the top right corner. You can download as CSV or Google Sheets.

The Limitations of Search Console

Search Console is great, but it has gaps:

• Sampling, not complete data — Google shows a representative sample, not every single link
• Own sites only — Can’t check competitor backlinks
• No link quality indicators — Doesn’t tell you if links are dofollow/nofollow
• Delayed data — Can take weeks for new links to appear
• No historical data — Only shows current state, not link history

For your own site’s backlinks, Search Console is your starting point. But it’s not the whole picture.

Method 2: Site: Operator (Limited But Useful)

While the link: operator is dead, the site: operator still works and can help in specific situations.

Type site:linkingwebsite.com "your brand name" into Google. This shows pages on that specific site that mention your brand, which might include links to you.

It’s not a backlink checker per se, but it helps you:

• Verify if a guest post was published
• Find unlinked brand mentions (outreach opportunity!)
• Check if your link is on a specific page

Example: If someone says they added a backlink from forbes.com, search:
site:forbes.com "your company name"

Method 3: Third-Party Backlink Tools

For serious backlink research — especially competitor analysis — you need dedicated tools. Here are the main players:

Ahrefs

The gold standard for backlink analysis. Their crawler is massive, and the data is usually the freshest. The free version (Ahrefs Webmaster Tools) lets you see your own site’s backlinks.

• Best for: Comprehensive backlink profiles, competitor research
• Free option: Ahrefs Webmaster Tools (own sites only)
• Paid: Starts at $99/month

Moz Link Explorer

Been around forever. Good data, slightly smaller index than Ahrefs.

• Best for: Beginners, Domain Authority metrics
• Free option: 10 queries per month
• Paid: Starts at $99/month

Semrush

All-in-one SEO platform. Backlink database is solid, plus you get keyword tools, site audits, and more.

• Best for: Full SEO toolkit users
• Free option: Limited queries
• Paid: Starts at $139/month

Ubersuggest

Neil Patel’s tool. More affordable, decent for small sites.

• Best for: Budget-conscious users
• Free option: 3 searches per day
• Paid: Starts at $29/month

Majestic

Specializes specifically in backlinks. Has some unique metrics like Trust Flow and Citation Flow.

• Best for: Deep link analysis
• Free option: Limited site explorer
• Paid: Starts at $49/month

Which Tool Should You Use?

Honestly? If you’re just checking your own backlinks occasionally, Google Search Console plus Ahrefs Webmaster Tools (both free) will cover most needs.

If you’re doing serious SEO work or need competitor research, budget for Ahrefs or Semrush.

The Part Everyone Forgets: Verifying Your Backlinks

Here’s what happens to most people:

1. They hire someone to build backlinks
2. They receive a shiny report with 50 URLs
3. They check a few links manually (boring, time-consuming)
4. They assume the rest are fine
5. Three months later, half the links are gone, nofollow, or never existed

Finding backlinks is only half the battle. You also need to verify them.

When verifying backlinks, you want to check:

• Does the link actually exist? Sometimes links are removed, or they never existed in the first place
• Is it dofollow or nofollow? Nofollow links don’t pass SEO value
• What’s the anchor text? Is it what you expected?
• Are there any rel attributes? Sponsored, UGC, and nofollow affect how Google treats the link
• Is the page itself indexed? A link on a noindex page is worthless

Manually checking these things means:

1. Opening each URL
2. Right-clicking, viewing page source
3. Ctrl+F to find your link
4. Checking the rel attribute
5. Repeat 49 more times

Nobody has time for that. Seriously, life is too short.

The Complete Backlink Workflow

Let me tie this all together with a practical workflow:

For Your Own Website

1. Start with Google Search Console — Get the official data on who’s linking to you
2. Export the data — Download as CSV for further analysis
3. Supplement with Ahrefs Webmaster Tools — Catch links Google might miss
4. Verify quality links — Run your most important backlinks through a verification tool

For Competitor Research

1. Use a third-party tool — Ahrefs, Semrush, or Moz
2. Export their backlink list — Focus on their highest-quality links
3. Find link opportunities — Which sites link to them that might also link to you?
4. Verify before outreach — Make sure those links still exist before reaching out

For Verifying Deliverables

1. Get the report from your SEO person — Usually PDF, CSV, or spreadsheet
2. Run it through a backlink checker — Verify all links in one go
3. Flag any issues — Missing links, nofollow when you paid for dofollow, etc.
4. Follow up — Request replacements for any problematic links

Common Issues When Checking Backlinks

Even after you find and verify backlinks, you might encounter problems:

Link Shows in Tool But Not on Page

This happens when:

• The link was removed after the tool’s last crawl
• The page requires JavaScript rendering
• The link is behind a paywall or login
• The tool has cached/stale data

Always verify important backlinks directly.

Link is Nofollow (When It Should Be Dofollow)

Many sites add nofollow by default, especially:

• Comment sections
• User-generated content areas
• Sponsored content (by policy)

If you paid for a dofollow link and got nofollow, that’s a problem to address with your link builder.

Page is Blocked by robots.txt

A link on a page that’s blocked from search engines is worthless for SEO. The page might exist, your link might be there, but Google can’t see it.

The Redirect Game

Sometimes your link exists, but there’s a redirect chain involved. Multiple redirects or nofollow redirects can dilute or eliminate the link’s value.

Google’s Stance on Backlinks in 2024

Worth mentioning: Google’s relationship with backlinks has evolved. They still matter, but Google has gotten much better at detecting manipulative link building.

The focus should be on:

• Quality over quantity — One link from a relevant, authoritative site beats 100 from random blogs
• Natural acquisition — Links you earn through great content
• Relevance — Links from sites in your niche

This makes verification even more important. You don’t need 500 spammy links. You need 20 solid ones that actually work.

Wrapping Up

The days of typing link:website.com into Google and getting useful backlink data are long gone. But honestly? The tools available today are much better than that old operator ever was.

For your own sites: Google Search Console is free, official, and your starting point. Supplement with Ahrefs Webmaster Tools for a more complete picture.

For competitor research: Budget for a real SEO tool, or use free tiers strategically.

And whatever backlink data you find — verify it before celebrating. Reports look great until you discover half the links are nofollow, missing, or pointing to pages that don’t exist anymore.

Trust, but verify. Or better yet: stop trusting, start verifying.