Citation Flow (CF) is an SEO metric created by Majestic that predicts how influential a URL or domain might be based mainly on the number of backlinks pointing to it. The score goes from 0 to 100: the more links you have, the higher your CF is likely to be.
In plain language: Citation Flow is a “link power” score based on link quantity.
It does not directly measure link quality – that part is handled by another Majestic metric called Trust Flow (TF).
How Does Citation Flow Work?
Majestic crawls the web and builds a huge link graph. Based on this data, they assign each URL a CF score by looking at:
- How many links point to that URL
- How strong those linking URLs are (their own CF)
- How link equity “flows” through multiple levels of links
The exact formula is proprietary, but what you need to know is:
- More backlinks → usually higher CF
- Links from pages with high CF → boost your CF more
- CF is logarithmic, so going from 10 → 20 is easier than 40 → 50.
Citation Flow vs Trust Flow
CF is only one part of the picture. Majestic also uses Trust Flow (TF), which looks at link quality and trustworthiness, not just volume.
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Citation Flow (CF):
Focuses on quantity of links and how much “link juice” flows to your site. -
Trust Flow (TF):
Focuses on the quality and trust of those links, based on seed sites and trusted domains.
Some key points:
- A high CF but low TF can signal spammy or low-quality links.
- A balanced CF and TF often indicates a healthier backlink profile.
- Many SEOs look at the TF/CF ratio to quickly judge link quality.
Why Citation Flow Matters for SEO
Citation Flow is not a Google ranking factor. It’s a third-party metric from Majestic. But it’s still useful because it gives you a quick way to:
- Estimate how strong a site’s backlink profile might be
- Compare domains or URLs when doing link prospecting
- Spot domains with lots of links but little trust (possible link farms)
Used together with Trust Flow and other metrics (DA, DR, etc.), CF helps you:
- Prioritize which sites to get links from
- Avoid toxic or low-value backlinks
- Monitor the growth of your own link profile over time
What Is a “Good” Citation Flow Score?
There is no universal “good CF” number. It depends on your niche and competitors. But some rough guidelines:
- 0–10: Very weak / new sites
- 10–30: Typical small sites or blogs
- 30–50: Stronger, more established domains
- 50+ : Very powerful sites with large backlink profiles
What matters more is relative strength:
- How does your CF compare to top competitors?
- Are your best backlinks from sites with higher CF than yours?
How To Check Your Site’s Citation Flow
You can see CF for your domain or URL using tools that integrate Majestic data:
- Majestic Site Explorer (directly from Majestic)
- Other SEO dashboards and platforms that show CF / TF as KPIs
Basic process:
- Enter your domain or specific URL.
- View Citation Flow (CF) and Trust Flow (TF).
- Check the link profile chart to see how your links are distributed by CF/TF.
How To Use Citation Flow in Your SEO Strategy
1. Evaluate Potential Backlinks
When doing outreach or buying placements (e.g., sponsored posts):
- Prefer sites with decent CF and TF, not just high CF.
- Be careful with domains that have very high CF but very low TF – that’s often a sign of spammy links.
2. Audit Your Existing Backlink Profile
Look at your referring domains and:
- Sort them by CF to find the strongest “power” links.
- Compare TF vs CF to spot risky domains with bad ratios.
- Consider disavowing or removing links from domains with high CF / very low TF if they look clearly spammy.
3. Benchmark Against Competitors
Check CF for:
- Your domain
- 3–5 main competitors
Questions to ask:
- Who has higher overall CF?
- Which competitors have stronger linking domains by CF/TF?
- Can you get similar links from the same sites?
How To Improve Your Citation Flow
Improving CF basically means earning more (and stronger) backlinks. But you want to grow CF without killing TF.
1. Create Link-Friendly Content
Publish content that naturally attracts links:
- Detailed guides, tutorials, “how to” posts
- Data studies, surveys, original research
- Free tools, templates, calculators
The more people link to these assets, the more your CF will grow.
2. Build Links From Strong, Relevant Sites
Focus on methods like:
- Guest posts on reputable industry blogs
- Digital PR (newsworthy stories, data, or tools)
- Partnerships, mentions, and resource page links
Aim for sites that have higher CF and solid TF, so you boost quantity and quality.
3. Clean Up Toxic Links
Regularly review your backlinks and:
- Identify obvious spam (auto-generated blogs, irrelevant foreign sites, etc.)
- Try to remove or disavow the worst offenders
This won’t always reduce CF, but it helps maintain a healthy TF/CF balance and lowers risk of algorithmic issues.
Common Mistakes With Citation Flow
Treating CF as a Google Metric
CF is not used by Google. It’s just a helpful approximation. Don’t obsess over small CF changes – use it as a directional indicator, not absolute truth.
Chasing Quantity Over Quality
If you focus only on “more links = more CF”, you can quickly:
- Inflate CF with low-quality links
- Drag down TF
- Increase spam risk
Always think: “Will this link actually help my site long-term?”
Ignoring Context and Relevance
A link from a high-CF site in a completely unrelated niche may be weaker than a link from a smaller, highly relevant site. Relevance still matters a lot.
Final Thoughts on Citation Flow (CF)
Citation Flow is a simple but powerful metric to understand how much “link power” your site might have based on backlink quantity.
On its own, CF can mislead you. But combined with Trust Flow, competitor data, and basic common sense, it becomes a very useful:
- Filter for link prospects
- Signal of backlink growth
- Warning light for spammy link profiles
Use CF as a supporting signal, not the main goal. The real objective is still the same: build trusted, relevant, and useful links that support strong, sustainable rankings.
