Page Authority (PA) is a metric developed by Moz that predicts how well a specific web page is likely to rank in search engine results. Scored on a scale from 1 to 100, it evaluates a page's ranking potential based on the quantity and quality of links pointing to that individual page. Higher scores indicate a stronger backlink profile and greater predicted ranking ability.
Unlike Domain Authority, which measures the overall authority of an entire website, Page Authority focuses on a single URL. This distinction matters because individual pages on the same site can have dramatically different PA scores depending on how many external and internal links they have accumulated.
How Is Page Authority Calculated?
Moz calculates Page Authority using a machine learning model trained on search ranking data. The model evaluates several link-based factors specific to the individual page.
External link quantity. The number of unique domains linking to the specific page. More referring domains generally correlate with higher PA.
External link quality. Links from high-authority pages carry more weight than links from low-quality or spammy pages. A single link from a well-known publication can contribute more to PA than dozens of links from obscure directories.
Internal link strength. Internal links from other high-authority pages on your own site pass value to the target page. Strategic internal linking can meaningfully influence PA scores.
Spam signals. Moz's model identifies patterns associated with manipulative link building and discounts those links in the calculation.
The PA scale is logarithmic, meaning it is much easier to improve a score from 10 to 20 than from 50 to 60. Each incremental point at the higher end requires significantly more quality link signals.
What Is the Difference Between Page Authority and Domain Authority?
Page Authority and Domain Authority measure related but distinct concepts.
Page Authority evaluates a single URL's ranking potential based on its individual link profile. It answers the question: how strong is this specific page?
Domain Authority evaluates an entire domain's overall link equity. It answers the question: how strong is this website as a whole?
A site with high DA can still have individual pages with low PA if those pages have not earned their own backlinks. Conversely, a viral blog post on a low-DA site can have a high PA if it has attracted many quality links. According to Moz's documentation, PA is generally more predictive of individual page rankings than DA because it measures the signals closest to the URL competing in search results.
In practice, both metrics work together. A page benefits from its own backlinks (reflected in PA) and from the broader authority of the domain it sits on (reflected in DA). When assessing a page's ranking potential, consider both scores alongside the competitive landscape for your target keywords.
How Do You Improve Page Authority?
Improving Page Authority centers on building the link signals that Moz's model evaluates.
Earn quality backlinks. Create content that other sites want to reference and link to. Original research, comprehensive guides, unique data sets, and expert analysis are the content types that consistently attract backlinks. Research from Backlinko found that the top-ranking Google result has an average of 3.8 times more backlinks than positions two through ten.
Strengthen internal linking. Identify high-PA pages on your site and add contextual internal links from them to pages you want to boost. This passes link equity within your own domain and is one of the fastest ways to influence PA.
Remove or disavow toxic backlinks. Spammy or manipulative links can drag down PA. Use Moz's Link Explorer or Google Search Console's links report to identify problematic links, then use Google's Disavow Tool for those you cannot get removed.
Promote linkable content. Publishing strong content is only half the equation. Outreach to journalists, bloggers, and industry publications increases the likelihood that your content gets discovered and linked to.
Update and improve existing content. Refreshing outdated pages with current information, better formatting, and additional depth can attract new links and maintain existing ones that might otherwise decay as content ages.
What Are the Limitations of Page Authority?
Page Authority is a useful benchmarking tool, but it has several important limitations.
It is not a Google metric. Google does not use PA in its algorithm. A page with PA 15 can outrank a page with PA 60 if it better matches search intent, has stronger topical relevance, or demonstrates superior E-E-A-T signals.
It does not account for content quality. PA measures link signals only. It says nothing about whether the page's content actually answers the user's query, which is ultimately what determines rankings.
It is relative, not absolute. A PA of 40 does not guarantee any specific ranking position. PA is best used comparatively, evaluating your page against competitors for the same keyword to understand relative link strength.
It fluctuates regularly. Moz updates its index monthly, and PA scores can shift by several points between updates even when nothing about your page or its backlinks has changed. This happens because the model recalibrates against the broader web.
It ignores topical relevance. Two pages with identical PA scores can rank very differently if one is on a site with deep topical authority in the subject area and the other is on a generalist site. Topical signals matter for rankings but are not captured in the PA metric.
When Should You Use Page Authority?
Page Authority is most valuable as a competitive analysis and benchmarking tool. Use it to compare your pages against ranking competitors for target keywords. If competing pages have significantly higher PA, you know that earning backlinks will be part of your ranking strategy.
Track PA over time for your most important pages to ensure your link building efforts are having an impact. But always pair PA analysis with content quality evaluation, technical health checks, and keyword relevance assessments for a complete picture of ranking potential.