Ahrefs DR4, explained
Last updated: November 6, 2026
Ahrefs is moving Domain Rating to a new version called DR4. If you have checked a site recently and seen two numbers, or a score that looks different from what you remember, this is why. Here is what we know, in plain terms.
What is DR4?
DR4 is the next version of Ahrefs' Domain Rating, the 0 to 100 score for how strong a site's backlink profile is. The current version is now called DR3. Ahrefs' free Domain Rating API lets you ask for either one: DR3 is still the default, and DR4 is available alongside it.
What changed from DR3
DR3 mostly looks at how many unique sites link to you and how strong those sites are. According to coverage of Ahrefs' announcement, DR4 changes two things:
- Links from sites with real search traffic count for more. A link from a site that Ahrefs estimates gets organic visitors from Google carries more weight than a link from a site nobody visits.
- Subdomains are scored on their own. A subdomain no longer simply inherits the strength of its main domain.
The practical effect is that links from low-traffic sites, such as many directories, link farms and abandoned blogs, are worth a lot less. The same coverage reports that the number of sites with a rating roughly halved, from about 287 million under DR3 to about 132 million under DR4.
When does it happen?
Ahrefs added DR4 to its free API in October 2026. Reports say Ahrefs previewed DR4 on November 5, 2026 and plans to make it the standard score across its tools on December 1, 2026. Until then, you can compare both versions side by side.
DR3 vs DR4: real examples
We checked a few sites through the Ahrefs API on November 6, 2026:
| Site | DR3 | DR4 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| github.com | 97 | 96 | -1 |
| ahrefs.com | 91 | 92 | +1 |
| rezi.ai | 72 | 73 | +1 |
| jacobjacquet.com | 2 | 2.1 | +0.1 |
Established sites with links from popular, well-visited sites barely move. The sites that drop hardest are the ones whose links come mostly from places with little or no search traffic. One directory site reported falling from 71 to 24.
Should you worry if your DR drops?
Not by itself. Domain Rating is an Ahrefs metric, not a Google one, so a lower DR4 does not change your rankings or remove any of your links. What it does change is how your site compares to others in Ahrefs, which matters if you sell links, buy links based on DR, or report DR to clients.
If your DR4 is much lower than your DR3, it is a useful signal: a large share of your links probably come from sites that get little real traffic. Earning links from sites people actually visit is what moves DR4, and it is also what tends to help in search.
How to check both
Enter any domain on MyDomainRating.ai. You will see the DR4 score in blue with the DR3 score right next to it, so you can see exactly how much a site moves between versions. It is free and needs no account.