---
title: "PageRank"
description: "Google's original algorithm that assigns a numerical importance score to web pages based on the quantity and quality of links pointing to them, treating each link as a 'vote' of confidence."
url: "https://skribra.com/glossary/page-rank"
type: "glossary-term"
category: "SEO Fundamentals"
updated: "2026-06-09"
---

# PageRank

**Definition.** Google's original algorithm that assigns a numerical importance score to web pages based on the quantity and quality of links pointing to them, treating each link as a 'vote' of confidence.

**In short.** PageRank is the foundational link-scoring algorithm Google uses to decide which pages are important. More high-quality backlinks = higher PageRank = better ranking potential.

## Key points

- PageRank is logarithmic — a page with PageRank 5 is not 5x but exponentially more authoritative than PageRank 4
- Google no longer publishes public PageRank scores but the algorithm still runs internally as part of a much larger ranking system
- PageRank flows through links — each outbound link on a page passes a fraction of that page's PageRank to the linked page
- PageRank dilution: adding more outbound links to a page distributes its PageRank thinner across all linked destinations

## How PageRank Works

PageRank was invented by Larry Page and Sergey Brin at Stanford in 1996 and became the foundation of Google Search[1]. The algorithm treats every link from one page to another as a vote — the more votes (links) a page receives, and the higher the PageRank of the pages voting, the higher its own PageRank. The system is recursive: a link from a high-PageRank page is worth far more than a link from a low-PageRank page. This is why earning [backlinks](https://skribra.com/glossary/backlink) from authoritative domains (high [Domain Authority](https://skribra.com/glossary/domain-authority) sites) matters so much for SEO.

## PageRank and Modern SEO

While Google retired the publicly visible PageRank toolbar in 2016, the underlying algorithm still powers Google's internal link-based ranking signals[1][2]. Modern proxies for PageRank include Moz's [Domain Authority](https://skribra.com/glossary/domain-authority), Ahrefs' Domain Rating, and URL Rating (page-level). These third-party metrics are not identical to PageRank but correlate with it. Practically speaking, building more [quality backlinks](https://skribra.com/glossary/backlink) from authoritative pages still increases a page's ability to rank — the link equity transferred is PageRank under a different name.

## PageRank Flow and Internal Linking

PageRank doesn't just travel through external [backlinks](https://skribra.com/glossary/backlink) — it flows through [internal links](https://skribra.com/glossary/internal-linking) too[2]. A highly-linked homepage passes PageRank to the pages it links to; those pages pass it further. This is why [pillar pages](https://skribra.com/glossary/content-pillar) linked from the homepage rank more easily than orphaned blog posts with no internal links. Deliberate [Internal Linking](https://skribra.com/glossary/internal-linking) architecture — ensuring your most important pages receive the most internal links — is one of the highest-ROI technical SEO optimizations you can make without building a single external link.

## Related terms

- [Domain Authority](https://skribra.com/glossary/domain-authority): A third-party score (0–100) developed by Moz that predicts how likely a website is to rank in search engine results pages based on its backlink profile.
- [Backlink](https://skribra.com/glossary/backlink): A hyperlink from one website pointing to a page on another website, used by search engines as a signal of authority and trust.
- [Internal Linking](https://skribra.com/glossary/internal-linking): Links from one page on your website to another page on the same website — used to help users navigate, distribute link equity (PageRank) between pages, and signal to search engines the relative importance and topical relationships of your content.
- [Link Equity](https://skribra.com/glossary/link-equity): The SEO value and ranking power passed from one page to another through hyperlinks — sometimes called 'link juice' — determining how much of a linking page's authority is transferred to the pages it links to.

## Sources

1. [Ahrefs — Google PageRank: What It Is and How It Works](https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-pagerank/)
2. [Google Search Central — How Google Search Works](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/how-search-works)

## Machine-readable index

- HTML version of this page: https://skribra.com/glossary/page-rank
- Site index for agents: https://skribra.com/llms.txt
- Sitemap: https://skribra.com/sitemap.xml
- Public REST API: https://skribra.com/api/v1
- OpenAPI specification: https://skribra.com/openapi.json