{"id":172101,"date":"2024-02-13T09:53:32","date_gmt":"2024-02-13T14:53:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/?p=172101"},"modified":"2024-06-18T06:31:35","modified_gmt":"2024-06-18T11:31:35","slug":"remove-backlinks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Remove Backlinks (And Clean up Your Link Profile)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"intro-txt\">So, you\u2019ve got some bad backlinks? Maybe you\u2019ve paid for some shady links, or a competitor has targeted your website with <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/glossary\/link-spam\">link spam<\/a>. Whatever the cause, you\u2019ll want to know what to do next\u2014especially if you\u2019ve received a <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/glossary\/manual-action\">manual action.<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>In this article, I\u2019ll share how to remove backlinks and consider the different approaches for cleaning up your link profile\u2014depending on your circumstances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"intro-tok\" id=\"intro_tok\" style=\"display:none;\"><div class=\"intro-title\">Contents<\/div><a href=\"#\" class=\"expand-dots\"><span><\/span><span><\/span><span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"How to remove backlinks\u2014if you've got a manual action\" data-section=\"manual-action\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_6ifg36z6kx9r\"><\/a>How to remove backlinks\u2014if you\u2019ve got a manual action<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/support.google.com\/webmasters\/answer\/2648487?hl=en\">Google says<\/a> if you have a <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/glossary\/manual-action\">manual action<\/a> for <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/glossary\/unnatural-links\">unnatural links<\/a>, you should first try to remove the links from the other site and <em>then<\/em> disavow any that you can\u2019t get removed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"small\"><div class=\"quote-content\">&nbsp;\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cIf you have a manual action against your site for unnatural links to your site, or if you think you\u2019re about to get such a manual action (because of paid links or other link schemes that violate our <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/support.google.com\/webmasters\/answer\/35769\"><em>quality guidelines<\/em><\/a><em>), you should try to remove the links from the other site to your&nbsp;site.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><div class=\"quote-info clearfix\"><span class=\"quote-author\">Google Search Console Help<\/span> <span class=\"quote-author-job\"><\/span><\/div><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s an overview of what you need to do to remove backlinks if you have a manual action for unnatural links, according to Google:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2082\" height=\"396\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1-remove-backlinks.png\" alt=\"what-to-do-if-you-need-to-remove-backlinks\" class=\"wp-image-172124\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1-remove-backlinks.png 2082w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1-remove-backlinks-680x129.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1-remove-backlinks-768x146.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1-remove-backlinks-1536x292.png 1536w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1-remove-backlinks-2048x390.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2082px) 100vw, 2082px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Check GSC and start a backlink audit\" data-section=\"manual-action-1\">\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Check GSC for a manual action and start a backlink audit<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019ve got a manual action (also known as a manual penalty), you\u2019ll see it by logging into Google Search Console (GSC). Expand the <strong>Security &amp; Manual Actions <\/strong>tab and click on <strong>Manual actions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If there\u2019s an issue, you\u2019ll see a screen like&nbsp;this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1037\" height=\"471\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/manual-action-in-google-search-console-example.png\" alt=\"manual-action-in-google-search-console-example\" class=\"wp-image-172103\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/manual-action-in-google-search-console-example.png 1037w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/manual-action-in-google-search-console-example-680x309.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/manual-action-in-google-search-console-example-768x349.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1037px) 100vw, 1037px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Assuming you have a manual action, the first step is to list all the domains you want to remove.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Start by heading to Google Search Console, exporting all the links, and adding them to a spreadsheet. These are the links that Google sees, so there\u2019s no need to use a third-party tool at this&nbsp;point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1182\" height=\"222\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/export-external-links-example.png\" alt=\"export-external-links-example\" class=\"wp-image-172104\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/export-external-links-example.png 1182w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/export-external-links-example-680x128.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/export-external-links-example-768x144.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1182px) 100vw, 1182px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Find the unnatural backlinks you want to remove\" data-section=\"manual-action-2\"><a id=\"post-172101-_d9k7e43a0lxf\"><\/a>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Find the unnatural backlinks you want to remove<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you\u2019ve got your domain list in your spreadsheet, you\u2019ll need to start a <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/backlink-audit\/\">backlink audit<\/a> to identify the unnatural links. In your backlink audit, you don\u2019t have to remove every spammy link, but it\u2019s a good idea to look for common patterns to identify what caused the penalty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"recommendation\"><div class=\"recommendation-title\">Tip<\/div><div class=\"recommendation-content\">\n\n\n\n<p>If you aren\u2019t confident in completing a backlink audit, ask a reputable <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/seo-consultant\/\">SEO consultant<\/a> or an <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/what-does-an-seo-agency-do\/\">SEO agency<\/a> to do one for&nbsp;you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>What constitutes an unnatural link, according to Google? In short, it\u2019s any link that is intended to manipulate rankings in Google\u2019s search results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Paid links<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Excessive link exchanges<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Automated linking<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Requiring links as part of your&nbsp;ToS<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Low-quality directory or bookmark site&nbsp;links<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Keyword rich low-quality links embedded in widgets<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Widely distributed links in the footers or templates of&nbsp;sites<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Forum comments with optimized links<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>For a current list, check <a href=\"https:\/\/developers.google.com\/search\/docs\/essentials\/spam-policies#link-spam\">Google\u2019s spam policies<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can use a tool like Ahrefs\u2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/site-explorer\">Site Explorer<\/a> to help find spammy or unnatural-looking links.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are a few checks you can&nbsp;make:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_gqq8u1vn3282\"><\/a>Are there any spammy-looking or over-optimized anchors?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>In Ahrefs\u2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/site-explorer\">Site Explorer<\/a>, you can check the <strong>Anchors<\/strong> report in the sidebar. If there\u2019s an issue\u2014it can be fairly obvious from this report. Here\u2019s an extreme example of easy-to-spot spammy-looking anchors in a digital marketing website\u2019s link profile that looks unnatural within the link profile\u2019s context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"872\" height=\"1128\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/anchor-text-report.png\" alt=\"anchor-text-report\" class=\"wp-image-172105\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/anchor-text-report.png 872w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/anchor-text-report-329x425.png 329w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/anchor-text-report-768x993.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 872px) 100vw, 872px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_9tzqtq73msjn\"><\/a>Assess the overall quality of the domains<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p><a id=\"post-172101-_qm8ei7uxrr21\"><\/a>Does it look like a site that Google would approve of based on their quality guidelines?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a id=\"post-172101-_pzosveu75d8s\"><\/a>Google has a whole section dedicated to defining link spam, but one of the core considerations is whether you\u2019ve paid for links to manipulate Google\u2019s rankings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Contact site owners to request removal\" data-section=\"manual-action-3\">\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_4e1hkv7s62um\"><\/a>Contact site owners to request they remove the&nbsp;links<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you\u2019ve identified the unnatural links, you\u2019ll need to collect the email addresses for these domains. Usually, there\u2019s a contact form or an email on the contact page, or you could try the <a href=\"mailto:firstname.lastname@theirdomain.com\">firstname.lastname@theirdomain.com<\/a> approach. You can also use a tool like <a href=\"https:\/\/hunter.io\/email-finder\">Hunter<\/a>, or simply run a quick search on social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You should then request that they remove the links from their&nbsp;site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s an example of the type of email you can use to request removal \u2013 keep it short and to the point, and remember to send it from an email address that has your domain name in the&nbsp;email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"small\"><div class=\"quote-content\">\n\n\n\n<p>Hi {site_owner\u2019s name},<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019m currently reviewing links on my website, and I need your help to remove this&nbsp;link:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>{Their_URL}<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It links to my website here:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>{Your_URL}<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When you have removed the link, I would be grateful if you could respond to this&nbsp;email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thank you,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>{Your name}<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>{firstname.lastname@yourwebsite.com}<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"sidenote\"><div class=\"sidenote-title\">Sidenote.<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>You can also ask site owners to add a nofollow tag to the links, but I\u2019ve often found getting them to remove the link is easier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you\u2019ve removed a few links, you can start updating your list. Some site owners will not reply to your email. Others will agree to remove the link but charge a fee for the link removal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this situation, John Mueller has&nbsp;said:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"small\"><div class=\"quote-content\">\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cIf there are some links that you can\u2019t remove yourself, or some that require payment to be removed, then having those in the disavow file is fine as&nbsp;well.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><div class=\"quote-info clearfix\"><div class=\"quote-photo\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"John Mueller\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/john-mueller-google.png\"><\/div><div class=\"extra-box\"><span class=\"quote-author\">John Mueller,<\/span> <span class=\"quote-author-job\">Search Advocate, <\/span><\/div><\/div><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Disavow any links you can\u2019t remove\" data-section=\"manual-action-4\">\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_k5dw0q2ksc3t\"><\/a>Disavow any links you can\u2019t remove<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019ve tried to get the backlinks removed, but they can\u2019t be removed, then you should <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/google-disavow-links\/\">disavow the links<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/search.google.com\/search-console\/disavow-links\">Google says<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"small\"><div class=\"quote-content\">&nbsp;\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cWe recommend that you only disavow backlinks if you believe that there are a considerable number of spammy, artificial, or low-quality links pointing to your site, and if you are confident that the links are causing issues for&nbsp;you.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><div class=\"quote-info clearfix\"><span class=\"quote-author\">Google Search Console Help<\/span> <span class=\"quote-author-job\"><\/span><\/div><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>In a <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20220106103717\/https:\/\/twitter.com\/JohnMu\/status\/1479038061275226112\">now-deleted tweet<\/a>, John Mueller confirmed this by saying if you paid for links and can\u2019t remove them, disavow them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you choose the disavow route, please heed these words of caution from Gary Illyes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"small\"><div class=\"quote-content\">\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cWe said multiple times that the disavow tool is a very heavy gun. And if you don\u2019t know what you are doing, you can shoot yourself in the foot with&nbsp;it.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><div class=\"quote-info clearfix\"><div class=\"quote-photo\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Gary Illyes\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/google-gary-illyes.jpg\"><\/div><div class=\"extra-box\"><span class=\"quote-author\">Gary Illyes,<\/span> <span class=\"quote-author-job\">Webmaster Trends Analyst,  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\" target=\"_blank\">Google<\/a><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>There\u2019s a risk with a disavow that you can tank your site\u2019s rankings by disavowing the wrong links. So it\u2019s important to be sure that the links you\u2019re adding to the disavow file are causing issues for your&nbsp;site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Google also <a href=\"https:\/\/support.google.com\/webmasters\/answer\/2648487?__hstc=20629287.57e7bd95bd4900ae1d1ba7b76587b39e.1692108714070.1705329078096.1706619298694.20&amp;__hssc=20629287.1.1706619298694&amp;__hsfp=501235727\">provides detailed guidelines<\/a> for preparing your disavow .txt file, which you should follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you\u2019ve got a list of domains that you think are unnatural, you should format your disavow file in this&nbsp;style:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title>\n# Two pages to disavow\nhttp:\/\/spam.example.com\/stuff\/comments.html\nhttp:\/\/spam.example.com\/stuff\/paid-links.html\n\n# One domain to disavow\nDomain:shadyseo.com\n<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<p>Then it\u2019s just a matter of uploading your .txt file to <a href=\"https:\/\/search.google.com\/search-console\/disavow-links\">this page<\/a> in&nbsp;GSC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"sidenote\"><div class=\"sidenote-title\">Sidenote.<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>If you already have a disavow file, download it and update it instead. If you try to upload a new one, it will overwrite the old one instead of adding to&nbsp;it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1456\" height=\"1262\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/disavow-links-to-your-site.png\" alt=\"disavow-links-to-your-site\" class=\"wp-image-172106\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/disavow-links-to-your-site.png 1456w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/disavow-links-to-your-site-490x425.png 490w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/disavow-links-to-your-site-768x666.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1456px) 100vw, 1456px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Request a review\" data-section=\"manual-action-5\">\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_37vma28xw9nb\"><\/a>Request a review<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you\u2019ve tried removing as many unnatural links as possible and uploaded your disavow file to GSC, you can request a review. You can do this by clicking the button <strong>Request review<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"930\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/manual-actions-unnatural-links-to-your-site-exampl.png\" alt=\"manual-actions-unnatural-links-to-your-site-example\" class=\"wp-image-172107\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/manual-actions-unnatural-links-to-your-site-exampl.png 2048w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/manual-actions-unnatural-links-to-your-site-exampl-680x309.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/manual-actions-unnatural-links-to-your-site-exampl-768x349.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/manual-actions-unnatural-links-to-your-site-exampl-1536x698.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>If Google decides you\u2019ve done a good enough job, they\u2019ll remove the manual action. If not, you may have to repeat the process until the manual action is removed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a id=\"post-172101-_o5ecl9ueuyrn\"><\/a><\/p><div class=\"further-reading\"><div class=\"reading-title\">Further reading<\/div><div class=\"reading-content\">\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/glossary\/reconsideration-request\">What is a reconsideration request<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/FeryKaszoni\/status\/1756065638080991694?s=20\">Fery Kaszoni - How to remove a Google manual penalty with one reconsideration request<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"Should you remove backlinks if you don\u2019t have a manual action?\" data-section=\"n-manual-action\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_ngxctnfmk1hd\"><\/a>Should you remove backlinks if you don\u2019t have a manual action?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>If you don\u2019t have a link-based manual action but you have links you want to remove, this is where it can become a gray area\u2014and different SEOs will have different opinions on whether or not to remove backlinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s an example of a blogger who says he had lots of \u201cspammy\u201d links but did nothing\u2014and saw no negative impact:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I started this site When Its spam scored 75 in Moz. Since then I just published articles, and I did not create any backlinks, No disavow or remove any links. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/wVBCI0HJL7\">pic.twitter.com\/wVBCI0HJL7<\/a><\/p>\u2014 Fahim Foysal Prince (@FahimFoysalFFP) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FahimFoysalFFP\/status\/1685158483661139968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 29,&nbsp;2023<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s another example where <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/author\/patrick-stox\/\">Patrick Stox<\/a> showed the <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/impact-of-links\/\">impact of disavowing links<\/a> on Ahrefs\u2019 blog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1426\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/impact-of-disavowing-links.jpg\" alt=\"impact-of-disavowing-links\" class=\"wp-image-172108\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/impact-of-disavowing-links.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/impact-of-disavowing-links-477x425.jpg 477w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/impact-of-disavowing-links-768x684.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/impact-of-disavowing-links-1536x1369.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This shows that disavowing links without a manual action can potentially reduce your site\u2019s organic traffic and that links still play a significant role in rankings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/posts\/chris-haines-seo_seos-how-do-you-deal-with-low-quality-activity-7154066182667464704--xMY?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop\">I asked SEOs on LinkedIn<\/a> how they deal with low-quality links, most said they either do nothing or disavow them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1378\" height=\"976\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/how-do-you-deal-with-spammy-links-llinkedin-poll.png\" alt=\"how-do-you-deal-with-spammy-links-llinkedin-poll\" class=\"wp-image-172109\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/how-do-you-deal-with-spammy-links-llinkedin-poll.png 1378w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/how-do-you-deal-with-spammy-links-llinkedin-poll-600x425.png 600w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/how-do-you-deal-with-spammy-links-llinkedin-poll-768x544.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1378px) 100vw, 1378px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The poll showed that only 8% of SEOs remove low-quality backlinks from the source. Most preferred to either do nothing or disavow them. This is not surprising because, as we\u2019ve already seen, removing backlinks is not easy and takes&nbsp;time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The approach of \u201cI do nothing\u201d may surprise some, but with <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/facan\">Fabrice Canel<\/a> of Bing announcing <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.bing.com\/webmaster\/september-2023\/Bing-Webmaster-Tools-to-Remove-Disavow-Links-Feature-in-October-2023\">in 2023<\/a> that they\u2019re retiring Bing\u2019s disavow links feature, it seems likely Google will follow suit&nbsp;soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Fabrice said:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"small\"><div class=\"quote-content\">\n\n\n\n<p><em>\u201cWe can now differentiate between natural and unnatural links, and we can ignore or discount the latter without affecting the former.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><div class=\"quote-info clearfix\"><div class=\"quote-photo\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fabrice Canel\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1516261574185.jpeg\"><\/div><div class=\"extra-box\"><span class=\"quote-author\">Fabrice Canel,<\/span> <span class=\"quote-author-job\">Principal Program Manager, <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.bing.com\/webmaster\/september-2023\/Bing-Webmaster-Tools-to-Remove-Disavow-Links-Feature-in-October-2023\" target=\"_blank\">Bing Webmaster Tools<\/a><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>So the question really is\u2014how much do you trust search engines to make the right decision?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let\u2019s consider the following scenarios:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1763\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/removing-backlinks-decision-tree-with-no-manual-pe.png\" alt=\"removing-backlinks-decision-tree-with-no-manual-penalty\" class=\"wp-image-172110\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/removing-backlinks-decision-tree-with-no-manual-pe.png 2048w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/removing-backlinks-decision-tree-with-no-manual-pe-494x425.png 494w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/removing-backlinks-decision-tree-with-no-manual-pe-768x661.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/removing-backlinks-decision-tree-with-no-manual-pe-1536x1322.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a id=\"post-172101-_qmruhiyog9im\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. No manual action, but have seen a serious drop in traffic<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Start with a <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/backlink-audit\/\">backlink audit<\/a> to see if there is any issue with the links if you believe you are at&nbsp;risk<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A drop in traffic could be caused by many things, not just links\u2014check your technical SEO for any issues or any <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/google-algorithm-updates\">Google algorithm updates<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If there is a serious issue with links that you believe may violate Google\u2019s quality guidelines, then you can remove or disavow them. Run a <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/site-audit\">Site Audit<\/a> crawl to eliminate any <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/technical-seo\/\">technical SEO<\/a> issues.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_8kodgwrnt027\"><\/a>2. A third-party tool says you have \u201ctoxic\u201d links<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JohnMu\">John Mueller<\/a> said the concept of \u201ctoxic\u201d links is made up, and his advice was to move on to more serious SEO&nbsp;tools:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps:\/\/twitter.com\/JohnMu\/status\/1533697837703348224?s=20\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If you have used a third-party tool to categorize links in this way, it doesn\u2019t mean that the links are necessarily bad for your website<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If there is a serious issue with links that you believe may violate Google\u2019s quality guidelines, then you can remove or disavow them<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_p2xq7pvx4ilt\"><\/a>3. You have many low DR links on your site you don\u2019t recognize<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If you have a lot of low <strong>Domain Rating<\/strong> (DR) links that you don\u2019t recognize, it\u2019s usually nothing to be worried about<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Low-authority websites can and do naturally link to your website\u2014just because they are low DR, it doesn\u2019t mean that they should be removed or are \u201cbad\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If you are determined to remove or disavow, always manually review the sites in question before pulling the trigger<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In most cases, no action is required. Google and other search engines will deal with these types of&nbsp;links.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_28zl0ay9hwfq\"><\/a>4. You paid for links and don\u2019t have a manual penalty but have seen a drop in traffic<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If you\u2019ve paid for links but <em>haven\u2019t<\/em> got a link-based manual penalty, the best thing at this stage is probably to do nothing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If you can\u2019t sleep at night due to the guilt of your paid links, then you can disavow or remove them, but in most cases, consider what else could be the issue&nbsp;first.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Run a <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/site-audit\">Site Audit<\/a> crawl to check for technical SEO issues before you take any action with links. Do a backlink audit to work out if there is a link-based issue.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_tkhbrjebslyx\"><\/a>5. You\u2019re the victim of a link-based negative SEO attack<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If you believe there are many spammy, artificial, or low-quality links pointing to your site, and you believe they are causing issues.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In basic attacks, Google should be able to understand what is and isn\u2019t a natural link. For more advanced attacks, you may need to remove or disavow.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>If you are at all unsure, always seek advice from an SEO professional before removing or disavowing any&nbsp;links.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-172101-_9apfl2x25ih3\"><\/a>Final thoughts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Removing backlinks isn\u2019t most people\u2019s idea of fun\u2014it often involves the same amount of blood, sweat, tears, and toil as building links, but minus the dopamine hit of getting a high DR&nbsp;link.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By contrast, a disavow can be updated quickly, so if you know what you\u2019re doing, it\u2019s not hard to see why some SEOs opt for this option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And, of course, the simplest option is to kick back, relax, and do nothing\u2014but to do so, you have to have faith in Google\u2019s algorithms to figure it all out\u2014but do&nbsp;you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Got more questions? Ping me <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/chris_at_b449\">on X<\/a> \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this article, I\u2019ll share how to remove backlinks and consider the different approaches for cleaning up your link profile\u2014depending on your circumstances. Google says if you have a manual action for unnatural links, you should first try to remove<span class=\"ellipsis\">\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more\">Read more \u203a<\/div>\n<p><!-- end of .read-more --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":178,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[335],"tags":[],"coauthors":[437],"class_list":["post-172101","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general-seo","odd"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How To Remove Backlinks (And Clean up Your Link Profile)<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"So, you\u2019ve got some bad backlinks? Whatever the cause, here&#039;s how to handle removal and disavowal.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How To Remove Backlinks (And Clean up Your Link Profile)\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"So, you\u2019ve got some bad backlinks?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SEO Blog by Ahrefs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Ahrefs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-02-13T14:53:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-06-18T11:31:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1-remove-backlinks.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Chris Haines\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@chris_at_b449\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ahrefs\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Chris Haines\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/9afb394ccc6e0e19c199d26984a8b0b2\"},\"headline\":\"How To Remove Backlinks (And Clean up Your Link Profile)\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-02-13T14:53:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-06-18T11:31:35+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/\"},\"wordCount\":2403,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/how-to-remove-backlinks-and-clean-by-chris-haines-general-seo.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"General SEO\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/\",\"name\":\"How To Remove Backlinks (And Clean up Your Link Profile)\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/remove-backlinks\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/1-remove-backlinks.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-02-13T14:53:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-06-18T11:31:35+00:00\",\"description\":\"So, you\u2019ve got some bad backlinks? 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