A Majestic SEO metric that evaluates backlink trustworthiness.
Do you ever worry that Google doesn’t quite trust the links pointing to your website? I know the feeling when you get a bunch of backlinks, but your authority score hardly moves. I want to share the crucial secret that measures the quality and safety of every link you earn.
I am going to explain exactly What is Trust Flow (TF)? and show you how to build a backlink profile that earns massive credibility. I will give you simple, actionable tips for improving your site’s quality signals across every platform and industry. This focus on trustworthy links will provide the powerful authority you need to rank.
What is Trust Flow (TF)?
Trust Flow (TF) is a third-party SEO metric, created by the tool Majestic, that predicts how trustworthy a website is based on the quality of its backlink profile. Think of it as a score that measures the link distance between your site and a list of manually reviewed, highly trusted seed sites on the internet. A high Trust Flow means your site is closely linked to very authoritative and legitimate sources.
I focus on Trust Flow because it’s a measure of link quality and relevance, not just quantity. A higher TF indicates that the authority being passed to your site comes from clean, reputable sources, which helps your overall ranking potential. I generally aim to increase my Trust Flow and keep it close to or higher than my Citation Flow (the metric that measures link volume).
Impact of Trust Flow Across CMS Platforms
Trust Flow is an external metric, so my strategy on every CMS is to create high-quality content that naturally attracts trustworthy links.
WordPress
On WordPress, I focus on creating comprehensive, authoritative content (like ultimate guides) that naturally attracts links from highly trusted industry blogs and research sites. I use the platform’s flexibility to showcase unique data and expertise, which are the types of content trusted sources link to. My high-quality content becomes a magnet for high-TF links.
Shopify
For my Shopify stores, I boost Trust Flow by securing links from reputable sources like consumer reports, high-authority review sites, and trusted niche blogs. I focus on promoting my unique, detailed product pages as authoritative sources. This ensures the trust signals flowing into my site support my commercial goals.
Wix
Wix users should focus entirely on securing a few high-quality, relevant links from local news sites, non-profit organizations, or reputable business partners. I strongly advise against using any automated link building services, as they provide low-quality links that lower the Trust Flow. Quality and relevance are key on a simpler platform.
Webflow
Webflow’s clean structure makes my site an excellent link target, and I leverage this by building dedicated resource pages (e.g., free templates, useful tools) that are worthy of strong, trusted links. I ensure my content is well-structured and unique, making it a natural fit for high-authority, relevant websites to reference.
Custom CMS
With a custom CMS, I meticulously track all incoming links using tools that calculate Trust Flow and ensure that my editorial team is only pursuing links from sites that are topically relevant and have a high TF themselves. This technical discipline ensures a consistently clean and high-quality link profile.
Trust Flow Application in Different Industries
I focus on securing links from the sources that Google’s algorithm has determined to be the most trustworthy within each specific sector.
Ecommerce
In e-commerce, I utilize Trust Flow by prioritizing links from official brand partners, major consumer news outlets, and highly-rated product comparison sites. I avoid links from generic coupon sites or low-quality directories. This ensures the authority passed is directly relevant to safe, reliable commercial transactions.
Local Businesses
For local businesses, I focus on earning links from local high-TF sources like the Chamber of Commerce, local university sites, or local government portals. These links pass massive, locally-relevant trust. I also ensure I get links from high-quality local directories, which the algorithm trusts for local business information.
SaaS (Software as a Service)
With SaaS, I prioritize links from highly trusted sources like technology reviewers, major business publications, and industry experts known for their authority. I ensure my software documentation pages are the targets of these links. This strong Trust Flow is crucial for high-ranking technical topics.
Blogs
For my blogs, I focus on earning links from established niche experts, industry-leading blogs, and academic papers related to my topic. I avoid low-quality guest posts and instead focus on creating unique data that other trusted sites will naturally want to cite. This organic, trusted linking increases my site’s overall Trust Flow.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Trust Flow a direct Google ranking factor?
Trust Flow is a metric created by a third-party tool (Majestic) and is not a direct Google ranking factor. However, it accurately reflects the quality of your backlink profile, which is a fundamental ranking signal for Google’s algorithms.
What is the difference between Trust Flow and Citation Flow (CF)?
Trust Flow (TF) measures quality and distance from trusted sites, while Citation Flow (CF) measures quantity and the sheer volume of links. Ideally, I want my TF to be close to or higher than my CF to show a healthy, quality-focused link profile.
What is a good Trust Flow score to aim for?
While this is relative to the industry, I aim for a Trust Flow score of 30 or higher for a competitive business. More importantly, I want my TF to be higher than my closest competitors’ scores.
How can I increase my Trust Flow safely?
I increase my Trust Flow by only pursuing links from websites that I know are reputable, relevant, and already have a high TF themselves. I focus on creating high-quality, link-worthy content that acts as a natural magnet for trusted sources.
