# Backlink Checker & API: Bulk Referring Domains & Anchor Text (`plainrows/backlink-checker`) Actor

Bulk backlink checker, SEO backlink checker, backlinks API & MCP tool, Ahrefs backlinks alternative. Check backlinks of domains/URLs: backlink profile, a row per backlink (anchor, dofollow, spam score) or referring domain for backlink analysis, backlink audit, competitor backlink gap. $0.035/target.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/plainrows/backlink-checker.md
- **Developed by:** [PlainRows](https://apify.com/plainrows) (community)
- **Categories:** SEO tools, AI, MCP servers
- **Features:** Limited permissions
- **Stats:** 25 total users, 22 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $1.20 / 1,000 backlink or referring domains

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## Bulk Backlink Checker & API: Referring Domains & Anchor Text

Check the **backlinks of any website or page**: linking URL, anchor text, dofollow/nofollow, domain rank, page rank, spam score, first and last seen dates. Or list its **referring domains** with backlink counts. A pay-per-use backlink checker and Ahrefs / Semrush backlink alternative, with no subscription.

It reads a live backlink index through a commercial data API instead of scraping an SEO tool's website: **results in seconds, no login, no blocked runs**, up to 10,000 rows per target. **You pay per row returned** plus a small fee per target looked up (see Pricing).

### Typical uses

- **Competitor backlink research**: see which sites link to a competitor, with which anchor, and which links pass authority (dofollow).
- **Link building prospecting**: list the referring domains of competing pages, sorted by rank, and contact the best ones.
- **Backlink gap**: list the referring domains of your site and of your competitors, then keep the sites that link to two or three competitors but not to you: the warmest outreach targets ([free n8n template](https://nadaho.github.io/plainrows/templates/backlink-gap-sheets.json)).
- **Backlink audits**: spot spammy, broken, lost or nofollow links pointing to your site.
- **Backlink profile tracking**: run in `summary` mode every month for your site and your competitors to chart backlinks, referring domains and domain rank over time ([free n8n template](https://nadaho.github.io/plainrows/templates/backlink-profiles-monthly-sheets.json)).
- **New and lost backlink monitoring**: set `linkChange` to `new` and `changedWithinDays` to 7, then schedule the run weekly: each run returns only the links gained that week (`lost` in `referringDomains` mode: the sites that stopped linking to you) ([free n8n template](https://nadaho.github.io/plainrows/templates/new-backlinks-weekly-sheets-slack.json): new links of your site and competitors to Google Sheets and Slack every Monday).
- **Automations and AI agents**: feed n8n, Make, Zapier, Google Sheets or an MCP client with structured JSON.

### What you get

**Backlinks mode** (one row per link):

| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| `sourceUrl`, `sourceDomain`, `sourceTitle` | The page that links to your target, its domain and title |
| `targetUrl` | The page of your target that is linked |
| `anchor`, `linkType` | Anchor text; link type (`anchor`, `image`, `redirect`, `canonical`...) |
| `dofollow`, `relAttributes` | Whether the link passes authority; its rel attributes (`nofollow`, `ugc`, `sponsored`...) |
| `sourceDomainRank`, `sourcePageRank` | Rank of the linking domain and page, 0 to 100 |
| `spamScore` | Spam score of the backlink, 0 to 100 |
| `firstSeen`, `lastSeen` | When the link was first and last found (ISO 8601, UTC) |
| `isNew`, `isLost`, `isBroken`, `isIndirect` | New in the latest crawl update; gone; pointing to a broken page; reaching the target through a redirect |
| `targetStatusCode`, `sourceLanguage`, `sourceServerCountry`, `sourcePlatformTypes`, `sourcePageExternalLinks`, `imageUrl` | Extra context on both pages |

**Referring domains mode** (one row per linking domain):

| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| `referringDomain` | The linking domain |
| `rankPassed` | Rank (0 to 100) this domain passes to your target through its links: high means strong links, not necessarily a big site |
| `backlinks`, `dofollowBacklinks`, `nofollowBacklinks`, `referringPages` | How many links (and pages) from that domain point to your target |
| `spamScore`, `brokenBacklinks` | Spam score of its links; links to broken pages |
| `firstSeen`, `lostDate`, `isLost` | When the domain first linked, and when it stopped |

**Anchor texts mode** (one row per anchor text):

| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| `anchor` | The anchor text used in links to your target (`null` groups the links without text: images, redirects) |
| `backlinks`, `referringPages` | How many links (and pages) use this anchor |
| `referringDomains`, `dofollowReferringDomains` | How many domains link with this anchor, and how many of them without nofollow |
| `rankPassed`, `spamScore`, `brokenBacklinks` | Rank passed through these links; their spam score; links to broken pages |
| `firstSeen`, `lostDate`, `isLost` | When the anchor first appeared, and when it disappeared |

Use it to audit an anchor profile (branded vs exact-match vs generic anchors), spot over-optimization or spammy anchors pointing to you, and see which anchors competitors earn.

**Summary mode** (one row per target: the totals of its backlink profile):

| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| `domainRank` | Rank of the target in the backlink index, 0 to 100 |
| `backlinks`, `dofollowBacklinks` | Total backlinks, and those without nofollow |
| `referringDomains`, `dofollowReferringDomains`, `referringMainDomains` | Linking domains, those with dofollow links, root domains |
| `referringPages`, `referringIps`, `referringSubnets` | Linking pages, IP addresses and subnets (link diversity) |
| `spamScore`, `targetSpamScore` | Spam score of the backlinks, and of the target itself |
| `brokenBacklinks`, `brokenPages` | Links to pages that answer with an error, and those pages |
| `topLinkTlds`, `topLinkCountries`, `linkTypes`, `linkPlatformTypes` | Backlinks by TLD, country, link type and platform of the linking site (top 10 each) |
| `crawledPages`, `externalLinks`, `internalLinks`, `serverCountry`, `cms`, `firstSeen` | Context on the target |

Use it to compare the backlink profiles of many domains in one run (your site against competitors, a list of link prospects or of domains to buy).

Every row also has `target` (what you checked), `targetType` (`domain` or `url`), `totalAvailable` (how many backlinks or referring domains exist for the target with your filters, before your row limit), `found`, `observedAt` and `schemaVersion`. Missing values are always `null`, never guessed.

### Input

```json
{
  "targets": ["backlinko.com", "https://ahrefs.com/blog/"],
  "mode": "backlinks",
  "maxResultsPerTarget": 100,
  "sortBy": "rank",
  "dofollowOnly": false,
  "onePerDomain": false,
  "includeLostLinks": false,
  "includeSubdomains": true,
  "linkChange": "any",
  "changedWithinDays": 30
}
```

- **targets**: up to 1,000 per run. A domain (`example.com`) or subdomain covers the whole site; a URL with a path (`https://example.com/blog/post`) covers that page only. `www.` and `https://` are handled for you.
- **mode**: `backlinks` (one row per link), `referringDomains` (one row per linking domain), `anchors` (one row per anchor text, same price per row) or `summary` (one row per target with the totals of its profile; **maxResultsPerTarget** and **sortBy** are ignored).
- **maxResultsPerTarget**: 1 to 10,000 (default 100). Big sites have millions of links: you get the first rows in your sort order.
- **sortBy**: `rank` (strongest first, default: linking domain rank in backlinks mode, rank passed in referring domains and anchors modes), `newest` (most recently found first), or `backlinks` (referring domains or anchors with the most links first).
- **dofollowOnly**: skip nofollow links. **onePerDomain**: keep one link per linking domain. **includeLostLinks**: also return links that disappeared. **includeSubdomains**: count links to the target's subdomains too.
- **linkChange**: `any` (default), `new` (only links or referring domains first seen in the last **changedWithinDays** days) or `lost` (`referringDomains` mode only: sites whose last link to the target was lost in that window). Anchors and summary modes refuse it (set it back to `any`).

### Output example

Real row from a run on 2026-10-07 (target `backlinko.com`, backlinks mode, default sort by domain rank):

```json
{
  "target": "backlinko.com",
  "targetType": "domain",
  "found": true,
  "sourceUrl": "https://apps.apple.com/us/app/seoquake-go/id1184890971",
  "sourceDomain": "apps.apple.com",
  "sourceTitle": "‎SEOquake Go on the App Store",
  "targetUrl": "https://backlinko.com/tools/seo-checker",
  "anchor": "App Support",
  "linkType": "anchor",
  "dofollow": true,
  "relAttributes": [],
  "sourceDomainRank": 100,
  "sourcePageRank": 7,
  "spamScore": 20,
  "firstSeen": "2019-06-17T23:37:10.000Z",
  "lastSeen": "2025-10-06T10:16:44.000Z",
  "isNew": false,
  "isLost": false,
  "isBroken": false,
  "isIndirect": true,
  "targetStatusCode": 200,
  "sourceLanguage": "en",
  "sourceServerCountry": "US",
  "sourcePlatformTypes": [
    "ecommerce"
  ],
  "sourcePageExternalLinks": 30,
  "imageUrl": null,
  "totalAvailable": 885847,
  "observedAt": "2026-10-07T13:15:07.795Z",
  "schemaVersion": "1.0"
}
```

A target with no backlink returns one free row: `{"target": "...", "targetType": "domain", "found": false, "totalAvailable": 0, ...}`.

### Pricing

Pay per use, no subscription. See the **Pricing** tab for current prices. Two events:

- **Backlink or referring domain returned**: one per row in your dataset, cheaper on higher Apify plans.
- **Target looked up**: a flat fee per domain or URL checked, because each lookup in the backlink index has a fixed cost. When you ask for more than 1,000 rows for one target, each extra block of 1,000 rows is one more lookup.

**Example: 1 target, 1,000 backlinks** = 1 lookup ($0.035) + 1,000 rows: **$2.04 on the Starter plan, $1.64 on Scale, $1.24 on Business** (prices of the Pricing tab on October 15, 2026: $0.002, $0.0016 and $0.0012 per row).

The same 1 target and 1,000 backlinks cost **$3.03 to $10.02** on the Starter plan with the three most-used backlink checkers of the Store search (their public prices on October 27, 2026); a few smaller ones cost less, and one of the three is cheaper for a one-row summary per domain ($0.025 against our $0.037).

**Summary mode: 1 target** = 1 lookup + 1 row: **$0.037 on the Starter plan** ($0.035 + $0.002), so 100 domains compared = $3.70.

A target with no backlink found is charged its lookup fee only (its `found: false` row is free). Invalid targets, duplicates and lookups that fail are never charged. The run never spends more than the maximum cost you set: it stops before a lookup it could not pay for.

**Free Apify plan:** each run checks up to 2 targets with up to 20 rows each, and 5 runs per day (UTC) look up data, so you can check the output; later runs that day look nothing up and return one free row per target saying so. A paid Apify plan removes these limits.

### Use it from code, automations or AI agents

**API (one call, results returned directly):**

```bash
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/plainrows~backlink-checker/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"targets": ["backlinko.com"], "maxResultsPerTarget": 50, "dofollowOnly": true}'
```

**n8n, Make, Zapier:** use the Apify integration, pick `plainrows/backlink-checker`, and send the rows to Google Sheets, Airtable, your CRM or a database.

**AI agents (MCP):** add `https://mcp.apify.com?tools=plainrows/backlink-checker` to Claude, Cursor or any MCP client. The agent gets a typed tool and pays per lookup and per row.

### What this is not

- **Not Ahrefs, Semrush or Moz data.** Ranks and spam scores come from an independent backlink index (DataForSEO), on their own 0 to 100 scale; they do not match Ahrefs DR or Moz DA exactly, and link counts differ between tools.
- No traffic or keyword rankings: rows are backlinks, referring domains, anchor texts or backlink profile totals.
- Not affiliated with Ahrefs, Semrush, Moz or Google.

### Run summary

Each run stores a summary in the key-value store (`OUTPUT`): targets checked, lookups charged, rows billed, targets with no backlinks, total backlinks available per target, duplicates and invalid targets, and anything skipped because of the free-plan or budget limit.

### FAQ

**How do I check the anchor text profile of a website?**
Run in `anchors` mode with **sortBy** `backlinks`: one row per anchor text pointing to the site, with how many backlinks and referring domains use it, most used first. Same price per row as backlinks.

**How do I compare the backlink profiles of several websites?**
Put all the domains in **targets** and run in `summary` mode: one row per domain with total backlinks, referring domains, domain rank, spam score and broken links, for one lookup and one row each.

**How do I see who links to a website?**
Enter the domain in **targets** and run in `backlinks` mode: one row per linking page with anchor text, dofollow flag, ranks and dates. Use `referringDomains` mode for one row per linking website.

**Can I check the backlinks of a single page?**
Yes: give the full URL with its path (`https://example.com/blog/post`); a bare domain covers the whole site.

**How do I find new or lost backlinks?**
Set **linkChange** to `new` and **changedWithinDays** to the period you want (for example 30) for new links or referring domains; in `referringDomains` mode, `lost` lists the sites that stopped linking to you in that period. Without it, sort by `newest` to see the most recently found links first, and turn on **includeLostLinks** to also get links that disappeared (`isLost: true`).

**How do I monitor new and lost backlinks every week?**
Save your input as a task with `"linkChange": "new"` and `"changedWithinDays": 7`, and add a weekly schedule in Apify (Schedules > Create): every Monday you get only the links your site (or a competitor) gained that week. A second task in `referringDomains` mode with `"lost"` lists the sites that stopped linking to you. Set **maxResultsPerTarget** above what a site gains in a week: rows past it are not in this run and fall outside next week's window (the run warns you). Cost on the Starter plan: 1 lookup ($0.035) + $0.002 per new link, so one site with up to 100 new links a week is at most $0.24 a run, about $1 a month. A week with nothing new costs only the lookup.

**Is this Ahrefs or Moz data?**
No. Ranks and spam scores come from an independent backlink index (DataForSEO) on their own 0-100 scale, so they do not match Ahrefs DR or Moz DA.

**How many backlinks can I get?**
1 to 10,000 per target and run (**maxResultsPerTarget**), strongest first by default.

**Can I check backlinks in bulk, for many domains at once?**
Yes: this is a bulk backlink checker. Put up to 1,000 domains or URLs in **targets** (one per line) and they are checked in one run, each row tagged with its target. Each target costs one index lookup plus the rows you get (see Pricing), so for a quick overview of many sites use `referringDomains` mode or **onePerDomain** with a small **maxResultsPerTarget** (e.g. 20). To get only the totals of thousands of sites (domain rank, spam score, number of backlinks and referring domains, one row per site, about $0.002 per site on the Starter plan for 1,000 sites instead of one $0.035 lookup per site; prices of its Pricing tab on October 19, 2026), use our [Domain Authority Checker](https://apify.com/plainrows/domain-authority-checker). The free Apify plan is limited to 2 targets per run and 5 runs with data per day.

### For AI agents

- **Use when:** You have one or more domains or URLs and need their backlinks (linking page, anchor, dofollow, domain rank, spam score, first and last seen), their referring domains, their anchor texts or a one-row backlink summary per target, or only the links gained or lost in the last N days for weekly monitoring.
- **Do not use for:** A quick authority score for a long list of domains (use plainrows/domain-authority-checker), organic traffic and ranking keywords of a domain (use plainrows/domain-seo-overview) or keyword volumes (use plainrows/keyword-search-volume). Data comes from the DataForSEO backlink index, not from Ahrefs or Semrush.
- **Input JSON (minimal):** `{"targets": ["backlinko.com"]}`
- **Output fields:** `target`, `targetType`, `found`, `sourceUrl`, `sourceDomain`, `sourceTitle`, `targetUrl`, `anchor`, `linkType`, `dofollow`, `relAttributes`, `sourceDomainRank`, `sourcePageRank`, `spamScore`, `firstSeen`, `lastSeen`, `isNew`, `isLost`, `isBroken`, `isIndirect`, `targetStatusCode`, `sourceLanguage`, `sourceServerCountry`, `sourcePlatformTypes`, `sourcePageExternalLinks`, `imageUrl`, `referringDomain`, `rankPassed`, `backlinks`, `dofollowBacklinks`, `nofollowBacklinks`, `referringPages`, `brokenBacklinks`, `lostDate`, `totalAvailable`, `observedAt`, `schemaVersion`, `referringDomains`, `dofollowReferringDomains`, `domainRank`, `referringMainDomains`, `referringIps`, `referringSubnets`, `brokenPages`, `targetSpamScore`, `crawledPages`, `externalLinks`, `internalLinks`, `topLinkTlds`, `topLinkCountries`, `linkTypes`, `linkPlatformTypes`, `serverCountry`, `cms`, `message`
- **Price per result:** $0.002 per `backlink-result` on the Starter plan, plus $0.035 per `target-checked` (other plans: see the pricing table)
- **Median run time:** 4 s (successful runs of the last 30 days)
- **Success rate (30 days):** 100% of 82 public runs

### More PlainRows tools

Same pay-per-result pricing, same clean JSON, built to chain together in n8n, Make, Zapier or AI agents.

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- **E-commerce and travel:** [Amazon Product Search Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/amazon-product-search) · [Amazon Keyword Research (Search Volume & Reverse ASIN)](https://apify.com/plainrows/amazon-keyword-research) · [Google Shopping Prices Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/google-shopping-prices) · [Google Hotels Prices Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/google-hotels-prices) · [Google Hotels Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/google-hotels-scraper) · [Tripadvisor Reviews Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/tripadvisor-reviews) · [Trustpilot Reviews Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/trustpilot-reviews)
- **Marketplaces and classifieds:** [Property Finder Scraper (UAE)](https://apify.com/plainrows/propertyfinder-scraper) · [Redfin Scraper (US Homes for Sale)](https://apify.com/plainrows/redfin-scraper) · [Otomoto Scraper (Polish Car Listings)](https://apify.com/plainrows/otomoto-scraper) · [Otodom Scraper (Poland Property)](https://apify.com/plainrows/otodom-scraper) · [Imovirtual Scraper (Portugal Property)](https://apify.com/plainrows/imovirtual-scraper) · [Standvirtual Scraper (Portugal Cars)](https://apify.com/plainrows/standvirtual-scraper) · [Immoweb Scraper (Belgium Property)](https://apify.com/plainrows/immoweb-scraper) · [Blocket Scraper (Sweden)](https://apify.com/plainrows/blocket-scraper) · [FINN.no Scraper (Norway)](https://apify.com/plainrows/finn-scraper) · [coches.net Scraper (Spain Cars)](https://apify.com/plainrows/coches-net-scraper) · [2dehands Scraper (Belgium)](https://apify.com/plainrows/2dehands-scraper) · [Storia Scraper (Romania Property)](https://apify.com/plainrows/storia-scraper) · [Autovit Scraper (Romania Cars)](https://apify.com/plainrows/autovit-scraper) · [FINN.no Car Scraper (Norway Cars)](https://apify.com/plainrows/finn-cars-scraper) · [DBA Scraper (Denmark)](https://apify.com/plainrows/dba-scraper) · [Tori.fi Scraper (Finland)](https://apify.com/plainrows/tori-scraper)
- **Content and media:** [Google News Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/google-news-scraper) · [YouTube Search Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/youtube-search-scraper) · [YouTube Search API (JSON)](https://apify.com/plainrows/youtube-search-api) · [YouTube Comments Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/youtube-comments-scraper) · [Google Images Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/google-images-scraper) · [Website Screenshot API](https://apify.com/plainrows/website-screenshot) · [PDF to Markdown Converter (PDF to Text for AI & RAG)](https://apify.com/plainrows/pdf-to-markdown) · [Google Maps Reviews Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/google-maps-reviews) · [Google Reviews Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/google-reviews-scraper) · [App Store & Google Play Reviews Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/app-reviews-scraper) · [App Store & Google Play App Details Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/app-details-scraper) · [Google Play Reviews Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/google-play-reviews-scraper) · [App Store Reviews Scraper](https://apify.com/plainrows/app-store-reviews-scraper)

**Compared with other APIs:** [Ahrefs API alternative](https://nadaho.github.io/plainrows/ahrefs-api-alternative/) · [Backlinks API](https://nadaho.github.io/plainrows/backlinks-api/) · [Semrush API alternative](https://nadaho.github.io/plainrows/semrush-api-alternative/)

### Support

Missing a field or found a bug? Open an issue on this page. Issues are read and answered.

# Actor input Schema

## `targets` (type: `array`):

One per line. A domain ("example.com", also covers its subdomains) or a subdomain gives the backlinks of the whole site; a full URL with a path ("https://example.com/blog/post") gives the backlinks of that page only. Up to 1,000 targets per run. Free Apify plan: 2 targets per run, 20 rows each, 5 runs with data per day (paid plans: no limit). Example: \["backlinko.com", "https://moz.com/learn/seo"].

## `mode` (type: `string`):

Backlinks: each linking page with anchor, dofollow, ranks and dates. Referring domains: each domain that links to the target, with its number of backlinks. Anchor texts: each anchor used in links to the target, with how many backlinks and referring domains use it (anchor profile audit, over-optimization checks). Summary: one row per target with its total backlinks, referring domains, domain rank, spam score, broken links and top link countries and TLDs (compare many domains at once; maximum rows is ignored). Example: "referringDomains" to list each site that links to the target.

## `maxResultsPerTarget` (type: `integer`):

Each row returned is billed; targets with more backlinks are cut at this number (best-ranked first by default). Above 1,000, each extra block of 1,000 rows adds one lookup fee (see Pricing). Example: 500.

## `sortBy` (type: `string`):

Order of the rows, which also decides which rows you get when a target has more than the maximum. Not used in summary mode. Example: "newest" to see the most recent links first.

## `linkChange` (type: `string`):

For weekly or monthly monitoring: schedule this Actor with "new" and N = the schedule interval to get only the backlinks (or referring domains) gained since the last check. "lost" works in referringDomains mode: sites that stopped linking to the target (their last link was lost) in the last N days. A target with nothing in the window costs only its lookup. Raise maxResultsPerTarget if a target gains more links than that in N days. Example: "new" with N = 7 on a weekly schedule.

## `changedWithinDays` (type: `integer`):

Window used when "Only new or lost links" is not "All links": 7 for a weekly schedule, 30 for a monthly one. Example: 7.

## `dofollowOnly` (type: `boolean`):

Skip nofollow links. In referring domains mode, only domains with dofollow links are listed and counts cover dofollow links only. Example: true.

## `onePerDomain` (type: `boolean`):

Backlinks mode: keep only the best link from each linking domain (handy to scan a large profile). Example: true.

## `includeLostLinks` (type: `boolean`):

Also return links that were found before but are gone now (isLost = true). Off: live links only. Example: false.

## `includeSubdomains` (type: `boolean`):

For a domain target, also count links pointing to its subdomains (www, blog, shop...). Example: false to count only links to the exact domain.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "targets": [
    "backlinko.com",
    "moz.com"
  ],
  "mode": "backlinks",
  "maxResultsPerTarget": 100,
  "sortBy": "rank",
  "linkChange": "any",
  "changedWithinDays": 30,
  "dofollowOnly": false,
  "onePerDomain": false,
  "includeLostLinks": false,
  "includeSubdomains": true
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

## `referringDomains` (type: `string`):

No description

## `summary` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "targets": [
        "backlinko.com",
        "moz.com"
    ],
    "maxResultsPerTarget": 100
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("plainrows/backlink-checker").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "targets": [
        "backlinko.com",
        "moz.com",
    ],
    "maxResultsPerTarget": 100,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("plainrows/backlink-checker").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "targets": [
    "backlinko.com",
    "moz.com"
  ],
  "maxResultsPerTarget": 100
}' |
apify call plainrows/backlink-checker --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,plainrows/backlink-checker"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/L1bTsLKS6XoVPd6U3/builds/TU3FIakyTOS9OIDUH/openapi.json