20 Best Free Link Building Tools for SEOs (Expert-Tested 2025)

Jul 25, 2025

52.3% of marketers struggle with link building and consider it the most difficult part of SEO. That's why finding the right free link building tools can make all the difference between frustration and success. Ahrefs' backlink index comprises over 35 trillion backlinks, updated every 15-30 minutes. Without proper tools, tackling this vast field becomes nearly impossible.

However, there are excellent free link building tools that can help you identify opportunities, analyze competitors, and make your outreach process easier. You can discover broken links, reverse engineer competitors' backlink profiles, or automate personalized follow-ups (which can increase response rates by 40%) with the right tools to transform your link building strategy. This blog covers the 20 best free link building tools that boost results in 2025 and elevate your SEO.

20 Best Free Link Building Tools

Instead of manually working on your SEO strategy, choose among these free link building tools for better speed and accuracy.

1. Exploding Topics Free Dashboard

Exploding Topics Free Dashboard uses an advanced algorithm that monitors millions of unstructured data points to identify trends at their earliest stages. Unlike standard keyword tools, it combines sophisticated data analytics, machine learning, and human analysis to detect growth patterns before they peak.

The platform collects data from social media, search engines, online forums, news articles, e-commerce sites, and podcasts. What sets this tool apart is its human analyst team that validates trends, filters out short-lived fads, and provides qualitative insights alongside the quantitative data.

How Does it Help with Link Building?

By identifying rising keywords early, you create authoritative content before competitors, establishing your site as the original source.
Subsequently, other content creators who write about these emerging topics will likely cite your content as a reference.
Trend data is excellent material for creating infographics that earn organic inbound links from bloggers sharing them on their sites.

Free version includes

Allows up to 10 topic searches
Provides historical trend data ranging from 2 to 15 years
Displays basic trend graphs for visualizing topic growth
Offers top-level keyword and topic insights without detailed metrics

Pros VS Cons

Pros	Cons
It identifies keywords and topics that are just starting to trend, giving you a significant first-mover advantage for SEO and content creation.	The free dashboard restricts the number of searchable topics (only 10 searches), which limits deep exploration.
Being the first to cover a topic means others are more likely to cite your content as a source. This naturally builds backlinks, especially valuable for infographics or data-driven content.	Only shows historical trend data between 2 and 15 years, without predictive insights or future trend projections.
Trends are presented with simple, easy-to-read graphs, making it easier to spot upward momentum and use visual data in your content.	Free users can't access the full Trends Database, Trending Products section, Meta Trends, or detailed trend forecasts.

2. Check My Links Unique

This Chrome extension has a remarkable speed, capable of scanning approximately 50 links in just 8 seconds with normal internet connectivity. Unlike manual checking methods, it instantly colour-codes working links in green and broken ones in red, allowing you to identify issues at a glance. It provides specific error codes (404, 500, 403), helping you understand exactly why links aren't working.

How does it help with link building?

Identify broken links on industry blogrolls and resource pages, then email webmasters offering your relevant content as a replacement.
Use the Wayback Machine to see what content previously existed at broken link destinations, recreate similar content on your site, then approach sites linking to the dead page.
Check up to 10 different webpages simultaneously, significantly accelerating your broken link prospecting.

Free version includes

Fetches all links on the current webpage and displays their HTTP status codes (e.g., 200, 301, 404)
Shows total counts for valid links, redirected links, and broken links
Downloadable CSV report of all link types with one click
Supports local HTML files and works offline without sending data externally

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Fast, broken link detection: quickly highlights invalid links in red and valid ones in green, saving time for developers and content editors	No data export: lacks advanced exports (e.g., to CSV/spreadsheet) in free version
Clipboard export: easy to copy all broken links in one go for quick fixes	Page-limited scanning: only works one page at a time; full-site audits require manual effort
Browser-compatible: works in Chrome, Firefox, Edge, scans iframes, shadow DOM, local files, etc.	Can be slow on large pages: deep scans may take a long time
Privacy-friendly: minimal permissions, no user data collection

3. Google Search Operators

Google search operators are powerful commands and act as one of the free link building tools that spot hidden link building opportunities invisible to standard searches. These special characters and commands turn ordinary Google searches into precision tools for finding backlink prospects.

Google search operators are entirely free to use; simply type them directly into Google's search box. No registration, subscription, or software installation required. Google processes approximately 3.5 billion searches daily, and you can access this massive index without spending a penny.

How does it help in link building?

Find guest posting opportunities using combinations like "intitle:write for us" + [your niche]
Locate resource pages with "inurl:resources" + [your industry]
Identify broken links on competitor sites using site: operator with Check My Links
Uncover competitor backlink sources through advanced operator combinations

Free version includes

Search exact phrases using quotes
Locate keywords in URLs

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Instantly narrows down billions of search results to find exactly what you need	Some operators (like link:) only show a limited sample of results
Accessible directly through Google's search box	Running multiple searches quickly may trigger CAPTCHA verification
Works with Google's massive index covering 92% of all search traffic	Some formerly useful operators have been deprecated over time
Completely free with no usage limits

4. Hunter.io

Email outreach is the backbone of effective link building campaigns. Hunter.io is one of the free link building tools that simplifies this process by helping you find the right people to contact when earning valuable backlinks. With its email finder, you can discover specific contact information using a person's name and company.

Moreover, this platform includes a Chrome extension that lets you find email addresses while browsing websites, plus a Google Sheets add-on that automatically adds discovered emails to your spreadsheets.

How does it help in link building?

Find direct contact information for resource page owners
Verify blogger email addresses before pitching guest posts
Create personalized follow-up sequences to improve response rates
Identify department-specific contacts at larger publications

Free version includes

50 credits per month, usable for searches, verifications, domain lookups, and finder tools
Discover and verify emails (both single & bulk)
Connect one email account, send cold emails to up to 500 recipients, with tracking (opens, clicks)
Export results (limited to 10 emails per domain)

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Intuitive interface requiring virtually no learning curve	Limited searches in the free version
Shows sources where emails were found for verification	Some companies use catch-all email policies that affect verification
Integrates with popular CRMs and marketing tools

5. HARO (Help A Reporter Out)

Journalists need expert sources just as much as you need quality backlinks. It connects your businesses directly with journalists seeking expert insights for their stories. This platform collaborates with prestigious publications like Forbes, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, TIME Magazine, and Business Insider. When your response gets selected, you receive media coverage and potentially a valuable backlink to your website.

How does it help in link building?

It works exceptionally well for businesses with genuine expertise seeking high-quality editorial links.
Business and finance categories receive the highest number of queries, though opportunities exist across multiple industries.
Monitor emails at distribution times, respond quickly with concise, expert insights, and focus on building lasting journalist relationships rather than just securing individual links.
It has direct connection to premium websites beyond the reach of standard outreach efforts, including national newspapers, industry publications, and professional journals.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Builds credibility by positioning you as a thought leader	Extremely competitive with hundreds of responses per query
Access to high-authority backlinks that significantly improve SEO	Requires quick action; responses should be sent within two hours of query publication
Creates authentic relationships with journalists	Time-consuming to craft effective pitches

6. BuzzStream Free Plan

It's complicated to manage link building relationships across multiple campaigns. Luckily, BuzzStream offers a collection of free link building tools alongside a trial period of their digital PR and link building platform that is perfect for teams looking for effective solutions.

It has a bunch of free link building tools, including an email research tool to find contact addresses, link building query generator for finding opportunities, and tools to extract domains from URLs.

How does it help in link building?

SEO professionals can organize expert roundups and manage multiple outreach contacts
Link builders can use specialized tools for tasks like extracting links from HTML or finding email addresses
Agencies can make the workflow smoother and track team performance during trial periods

Free version includes:

Chrome Extension (BuzzMarker): Allows users to scan sites for contact information and add prospects without leaving the browser
Free Trial Period: Access to the platform's core features for a limited time, which includes prospecting, outreach, and relationship tracking
Contact Discovery: Integration with Hunter.io to identify email addresses that might be difficult to locate

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Personalized email sequences with follow-up management	Steep learning curve for new users
Integration with external tools for enhanced functionality	Limited functionality in free tools compared to paid versions
No minimum term commitment required

7. Open Link Profiler

Open Link Profiler stands out and offers powerful free link building tools that provide in-depth insights into any website's backlink profile with just a URL search. It identifies potentially harmful or low-quality links affecting your search rankings and controls over-optimization by examining anchor text distribution.

How does it help in link building?

Analyzes competitors' backlink profiles to discover potential link sources
Identifies and disavows harmful links affecting your rankings
It finds your most linked pages to understand what content attracts backlinks naturally
Monitors new backlinks through email notifications

Free version includes:

The free version gives you unlimited domain searches without registration.
You can export extensive backlink data (up to 200,000 links per domain) in CSV format for custom analysis.
Additionally, the tool provides comprehensive filtering options to sort backlinks by industry, age, context, and more.

Pros and cons

Pros	Cons
Allows export of up to 200,000 backlinks per domain	May not remain free indefinitely, as noted by developers
Provides industry categorization of linking websites	Link context and industry statistics lack deeper analysis
Offers Link alerts for notifications about newly discovered links

8. Seobility Backlink Checker

Seobility Backlink Checker delivers detailed insights into your link profile without requiring a premium subscription. Along with other free link building tools, it evaluates your overall link profile quality, automatically refreshes your backlink data on a weekly basis and keeps track of recently gained or lost backlinks.

How does it help in link building?

Identifies your most valuable existing backlinks
Analyzes competitor link profiles for strategic opportunities
Monitors weekly changes in your backlink profile
Understands anchor text distribution to avoid over-optimization

Free version includes:

Analysis for one domain
Backlink profile overview
Link quality metrics
Follow/nofollow ratio statistics

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Detailed anchor text distribution analysis	Limited features in the free tier
Integration with other Seobility SEO tools	Basic plan restricts analysis to just one domain
Competitor backlink analysis capabilities	Requires signup after initial free checks

9. WikiGrabber

WikiGrabber finds quality backlinks by finding Wikipedia pages that need citations or contain broken links, and creates perfect opportunities for your content. It has a citation needed finder that locates statements requiring external references or verification.

How does it help in link building?

Review the results, showing pages needing citations or containing dead links.
Create content that serves as a legitimate reference for the Wikipedia article.
Despite being nofollow links, Wikipedia backlinks still provide substantial SEO value through referral traffic and natural link profile diversity.
Plus, Google's algorithm still considers these links valuable trust signals, albeit differently than dofollow links.

Free version includes:

WikiGrabber offers full functionality at no cost.
This tool allows unlimited searches across Wikipedia's database without registration requirements or usage restrictions.
Despite being free, it provides access to millions of relevant Wikipedia pages containing broken or dead links.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Completely free to use without registration	Requires high-quality, relevant content to successfully replace citations
Creates a natural backlink profile mixing nofollow/dofollow links	Editing Wikipedia requires understanding their strict editorial guidelines
Saves hours of manual searching across Wikipedia's vast ecosystem	May not quickly

10. Google Alerts

Quick monitoring creates valuable opportunities for strategic link building. Google Alerts is your personal web scout; it notifies you whenever your specified keywords appear in Google's search results. It allows you to receive notifications directly to your inbox with clickable links and alerts for daily, or weekly, based on your monitoring needs.

How does it help in link building?

Converts unlinked brand mentions into backlinks by contacting webmasters
Finds broken backlink opportunities through competitor monitoring
Discovers content theft to request proper attribution
Identifies industry trends for creating link-worthy content
Locates resource pages through strategic keyword combinations

Free version includes:

Google Alerts is entirely free without subscription requirements.
Each Gmail account can create up to 1,000 different alerts that allow monitoring across various keywords.
No premium tier exists, all features are available without payment.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Completely free service with no usage limits	Doesn't track social media mentions
Identifies guest posting opportunities when combined with specific keywords	Often delivers irrelevant results that require manual filtering
Helps discover unlinked brand mentions for backlink opportunities

11. Scraper Chrome Extension

The Scraper Chrome Extension acts as one of the best free link building tools that extract and organize website data with remarkable speed and turns hours of manual work into minutes of automated collection. This tool utilizes XPath for increased precision when extracting web elements.

How does it help in link building?

It excels at extracting SEO-relevant elements from competitors' websites.
With "Scrape Similar tool”, you can grab all similar elements on the page.
This makes it perfect for analyzing competitor navigation structures, extracting blog headings for content research, or gathering links for backlink analysis.

Free version includes:

The Scraper extension is entirely free to use with no usage limitations.
It doesn't require registration or account creation, making it accessible for immediate use after installation.
The tool operates locally within your browser without cloud capabilities, ensuring your extracted data remains private and secure.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Extracts data in approximately 10 seconds	Limited documentation makes troubleshooting difficult
Transfers information directly to spreadsheets	More suitable for intermediate to advanced users
Automates the collection and structuring process	Requires knowledge of XPath programming language

12. ChatGPT

Artificial intelligence has changed how we approach link building tasks. ChatGPT is a helpful assistant that can speed up various parts of your link acquisition process, from outreach to content creation.

How does it help in link building?

Generates first drafts of outreach emails so you can personalize
Overcomes creative blocks when developing link-worthy content concepts
Analyzes search intent and develops content outlines for guest posts
Creates strategic variations of outreach messages for A/B testing

Free plan includes:

Basic access to GPT-3.5 capabilities
Unlimited conversations with standard response speed
Knowledge database updated beyond its initial 2021 cutoff
No direct SEO metrics like search volume or keyword difficulty

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Generates multiple outreach email variations quickly	Often produces content lacking originality and creativity
Helps overcome writer's block with fresh content idea	Cannot replace human expertise and E-E-A-T requirements
Serves as an excellent brainstorming partner for SEO strategies	Requires thorough fact-checking before publication

13. Internal Link Juicer

Internal linking complements your external link building efforts. Internal Link Juicer being one of the free online link building tools, simplifies this process through intelligent automation of contextual links within your WordPress website.

It offers blacklist and whitelist options that give full control over where links appear and maintains fast loading times through efficient link indexing.

How does it help in link building?

Internal Link Juicer excels for content-heavy WordPress sites with hundreds of published articles.
It eliminates the hassle of manually interlinking each post to relevant content.
It maintains maximum control over linking with minimal intervention.
Above all else, the plugin is best for bloggers, affiliates, and businesses seeking to optimize their internal link structure without sacrificing site performance.

Free version includes:

Automatic internal linking for posts and pages only
Intelligent gap management for anchor text variation
Basic statistics dashboard with sorting and filtering
Link blacklisting for different posts and pages
Exclusion of headlines and strong text from linking

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Saves time by automating a typically tedious process	Initial setup can be time-consuming when configuring keywords
Provides varied and natural anchor text distribution	Premium version is relatively costly
Offers granular control over link placement and frequency	May cause minor layout impacts on content

14. Link Building Strategy Template

Strategic planning differentiates successful link building campaigns from ineffective ones. A link building strategy template provides structure and direction for your outreach efforts, ensuring consistent results rather than random attempts.

How does it help in link building?

Allows agencies to manage multiple client campaigns simultaneously
Best for in-house SEO teams establishing consistent processes
Helps businesses in structured link building

Free version includes:

Most free link building templates come as downloadable spreadsheets requiring manual updating.
These include sections for prospect organization, outreach tracking, and link acquisition monitoring.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Creates consistency across team members and campaigns	Initial setup can be time-consuming when configuring all components
Provides clear metrics for performance evaluation	Requires regular updates as SEO best practices evolve
Helps set realistic expectations regarding timelines

15. Backlink Blacklist Tool

Choose among the best free online link building tools to protect your website. The Backlink Blacklist Tool helps you identify potentially dangerous links that could trigger Google penalties before they damage your rankings. This free online link building tool offers extensive database access over 60,000 blacklisted domains to verify your backlinks and clearly explains why they have been blacklisted.

How does it help in link building?

First, gather your backlink profile from tools like Ahrefs or Semrush. Second, copy these links and paste them into the Blacklist Tool.
Review any flagged links to understand why they're problematic.
For identified toxic links, either contact site owners for removal or use Google's disavow tool as a last resort.

Free version includes:

The tool is entirely free without requiring registration or credit card information.
Users can check unlimited backlinks against the database without restrictions.
Currently, there is no premium version and all features are available at no cost.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Prevent Google penalties from toxic backlinks	Database requires regular updates to remain effective
Shows evidence supporting blacklisting decisions	Cannot remove or disavow links automatically
Identifies specifically why links are problematic	Manual action still needed after identification

16. Google Footprints

SEO footprints find hidden link building opportunities that most SEOs never discover. These "digital imprints" are identifiable markers that help you find targeted backlink prospects through strategic Google searches. This tool finds extremely specific backlink sources within your industry and combines with Google search operators for precise results.

How does it help in link building?

SEO footprints excel for discovering diverse link opportunities
Finds guest posting opportunities through "write for us" or "submit article"
Locates resource pages via strategic keyword combinations
You can identify niche forums using platform-specific footprints like "Powered by vBulletin"
Discover broken links on educational sites using "site:.edu inurl: blog"

Free version includes:

SEO footprints require no payment, simply pair Google search with strategic operators.
This approach uses Google's massive index without subscription costs.
Indeed, every footprint is indexed by Google and freely searchable.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Uncovers opportunities that competitors miss	Requires time investment to build quality links
Works across numerous website types (forums, blogs, wikis)	Manual outreach still needed after identification
Finds highly relevant niche-specific prospects	Quality control remains essential for avoiding toxic links

17. Check My Links

Broken link detection is an effective tactic for technical SEO and link building. Check My Links stands out among free link building tools for its simplicity and effectiveness in uncovering link opportunities.

It gives color-coded results that highlight valid links in green and broken ones in red and error code identification (404, 500, 403) to understand why links fail. Moreover, it has a remarkable speed that scans about 50 links in just 8 seconds with normal internet connectivity.

How does it help in link building?

Finds broken links on competitor resource pages and blogrolls
Pre-publishes content checks to prevent SEO penalties
Regularly maintains site to identify and fix broken internal links
Discovers broken external links for replacement opportunities

Free version includes:

Check My Links is entirely free with no premium tier or usage limitations.

The latest version requires just 1.31MiB of space.

Its accessibility makes it a staple in many SEO toolkits.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Exceptional scanning speed that saves substantial time	Occasionally flags functioning links as broken, particularly with redirects
Prioritizes quick-loading links first, leaving slower ones for last	Limited documentation makes troubleshooting challenging
Simple, user-friendly interface requiring minimal technical knowledge	Some websites block the tool during numerous rapid checks
Ability to check multiple pages simultaneously

18. Ahrefs Free Backlink Checker

Ahrefs Free Backlink Checker has one of the best free link building tools that gives you a glimpse into their industry-leading database, considered the second largest after Google itself. You can get a view of the top 100 backlinks pointing to your domain and details on anchor text distribution. Moreover, it updates every 15 minutes so you get fresh backlink data rather than outdated information.

How does it help in link building?

Performs quick competitive analysis to understand competitor link profiles
Identifies high-authority domains linking to your competitors
Analyzes anchor text distribution to avoid over-optimization
Gets a snapshot of your site's backlink health before investing in paid tools

Free version includes

Total backlink count and referring domains
Domain Rating (DR) showing site authority
View of top 100 backlinks to your site
Basic anchor text distribution

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Access to one of the largest backlink databases in the industry	Limited to only 100 backlinks per domain in the free version
Detailed metrics like Domain Rating provide valuable insights	No access to historical backlink data
Shows sources where backlinks were found for verification
Color-coded interface for easy data interpretation

19. BuzzSumo Free Tools

BuzzSumo is one of the best free tools that identify popular content and potential backlink sources without requiring a premium subscription. It focuses on content performance analysis. BuzzSumo also offers a 30-day free trial of their Suite plan that includes complete access to core features without restrictions.

How does it help in link building?

This tool identifies websites linking to specific content, allowing you to track backlinks to your articles
Finds brand mentions without links, creating opportunities to request proper attribution
Uncovers domains linking to competitors' content for outreach targets

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
30-day trial gives full access to premium features	Limited daily searches in the free version
Identifies unlinked mentions for easy backlink requests	Trial period ends after 30 days, requiring paid upgrade
Discovers what content naturally attracts social shares

20. Moz Link Explorer Free Tier

Moz Link Explorer offers free link building tools and valuable insights through its free tier, providing access to professional-grade backlink data without financial investment. This tool has a database containing 45.5 trillion links, 8.7 trillion URLs, and 1 billion domains.

How does it help in link building?

Identifies potentially harmful links
Prioritizes crawling high-value links based on a machine-learning algorithm designed to mimic Google's index.

Free version includes

Domain Authority® and Page Authority scores to evaluate site strength
Spam Score to identify potentially harmful links
Inbound link count and linking domain statistics
Anchor text analysis for optimization insights
Recently discovered and lost linking domains tracking
Competitor backlink gap identification

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Access to Moz's proprietary metrics like Domain Authority	Limited to only 10 queries per month with free account
User-friendly interface requiring minimal technical knowledge	Restricted to viewing only 50 rows of data per query
Weekly backlink updates for current data	Free users can only see the top ten pages on a site

Conclusion

There are multiple free link building tools that eliminate the struggle with SEO and help in achieving consistent results. These 20 free link building tools provide everything you need to identify opportunities, analyze competitors, and simplify your outreach process without overspending.

You need to be strategic for effective results. Your outreach efforts are important for finding contact information and managing relationships. Therefore, combine several complementary resources based on your specific goals and niche and start with tools matching your immediate needs, then expand your toolkit as your link building efforts grow more sophisticated.

FAQ

How to build backlinks for free?

You can build high-quality backlinks for free using these proven methods:

Guest Posting: Write value-rich articles for niche blogs that accept guest contributions.
HARO (Help a Reporter Out): Pitch expert quotes to journalists in exchange for backlinks.
Link Roundups: Reach out to blogs that publish weekly or monthly "best content" lists.
Broken Link Building: Find broken links on relevant sites and suggest your content as a replacement.
Skyscraper Technique: Create a better version of a high-ranking article and ask the original backlink sources to update their link.
Quora, Reddit, and Niche Forums: Share helpful answers and include contextual links to your content.
Blog Commenting: Add thoughtful comments on industry blogs. While often nofollow, they can still bring traffic and visibility.

What are free tool backlinks?

Free tool backlinks are backlinks you earn by:

Creating and offering a free tool, calculator, or template (e.g., an SEO audit tool, ROI calculator, or content calendar).
Other websites link to your tool as a resource to help their audience.

How to build 100 backlinks in 30 days or less?

To build 100 backlinks in 30 days, focus on daily outreach and content promotion. Pitch guest posts, respond to HARO queries, and share helpful content on Quora, Reddit, and niche forums. Create a free tool or downloadable and promote it. Use email outreach to replace broken links with your content. Consistency is key. Try to aim for 5–10 link opportunities every day.

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