FAQ

If your question isn't here, email support@backlinkmonitor.com - we update this page based on what users actually ask.

General

What is TraceLinker?

A backlink audit, monitoring, reclaim, and disavow tool with AI scoring. You upload (or import from GSC) a list of backlinks, get a 1-100 AI score per link with a one-sentence reasoning, and continuously monitor the ones you care about.

How is this different from Ahrefs / Semrush / Linkody?

Most tools surface metrics (DR, UR, Trust Flow). TraceLinker surfaces decisions: which links to pursue, which to disavow, which to reclaim, and what email to send. The AI reasoning column is the difference between "here's data" and "here's what to do." For deep comparisons see /blog/ahrefs-alternative, /blog/semrush-alternative, /blog/linkody-alternative.

Do you have a live link index like Ahrefs?

No. We deliberately don't. Building a global crawl forces $99-$499/month pricing. Instead, we let you bring data via CSV or GSC and focus our investment on AI workflows on top of that data.

Is there a free plan?

Yes. Permanent, no credit card required. 1 audit/month up to 100 links, 5 monitored links with weekly checks, 5 outreach drafts. Enough to test every workflow on real data.

Where can I see live pricing?

/pricing. Free, Pro $9/mo, Agency $29/mo. Annual billing saves ~17%.

Audits

How long does an audit take?

About 5 seconds per link including crawl and AI score. A 100-link audit is roughly 1 minute. A 1,000-link audit is 8-10 minutes. Audits run server-side - close the tab and an email arrives when finished.

What if I have 5,000 backlinks but I'm on Pro?

Pro caps audit size at 1,000 rows. Split your CSV into 5 audits of 1,000 rows each (Pro allows 5 audits/month, so this works exactly). Or upgrade to Agency for the 10,000-row cap.

Can I rerun an audit on the same CSV?

Yes. Click Rerun on the audit detail page. We re-crawl and re-score, creating a new audit row. Original is kept so you can compare snapshots.

Why does my score differ from Ahrefs DR?

Different methodology. Ahrefs DR is a global authority metric based on their link graph. Our score is a per-link evaluation based on context, anchor, source page signals, and topical fit. A site with DR 70 might score 60 here if the placement is bad, and a DR 30 site might score 85 if the placement is contextual gold.

Can I export audit results to CSV?

Yes. Audit detail page → Export → downloads audit-{id}.csv with every row, score, reasoning, toxicity, and actions. Re-importable.

Monitoring

How often does monitoring re-check links?

Depends on plan: Weekly (Free), Daily (Pro), Hourly (Agency). Set per-link or set a default in Settings.

What's a transition?

Change in monitoring status between two consecutive checks: alive → dead, alive → changed, etc. Triggers emails. See Core Concepts.

How many links can I monitor?

Free 10, Pro 100, Agency 1,000. Beyond 1,000, contact us for custom plans.

Can I monitor a link without first auditing it?

Yes. Monitoring → + Add link. Paste source/target manually. Useful for paid placements you want tracked the moment they go live.

Why do some dead flags turn out to be wrong?

Some sites are heavy SPAs that don't render links in initial HTML, or block our user agent. Click Mark false positive in the row - we re-verify with a different fetch strategy.

AI scoring

What model do you use?

DeepSeek deepseek-chat at temperature 0.1. We chose it for cost (50x cheaper than GPT-4 at comparable quality for this task). See AI Scoring Methodology for the full details.

Can I see the AI prompt?

Roughly, yes - the prompt structure is documented in AI Scoring Methodology. The exact wording isn't published but isn't a secret either.

Does my data train the AI?

No. DeepSeek's API has a no-training mode we use. Audit data is not sent for training to any model provider.

Can I adjust the scoring model?

Not on hosted TraceLinker. On self-hosted (open-source build), lib/ai.ts lets you swap models or adjust the prompt.

Why did the score change between two runs?

Either the source page changed (most common), or normal model variance (typically under 5 points). If it moves more than 10 without a source change, file a bug.

Outreach / Reclaim

Does TraceLinker send the email for me?

By default no - the auto-drafted email opens in your Gmail (or default mail client) with subject and body prefilled, and you click Send. Pro+ users can use Send via TraceLinker to send through our Resend integration with reply tracking.

What if the AI gets the contact email wrong?

Edit before sending. The reclaim worker tries multiple sources (mailto, contact page, hardcoded emails, author profile) but is fallible. Manual override is a single field.

Can I customize the outreach template?

Yes (Pro+). Settings → Outreach templates. Handlebars syntax with variables for source URL, anchor, target, etc.

What's a typical reclaim reply rate?

For honest, well-targeted reclaim outreach: 25-40% on legitimate placements. Lower (10-20%) for aggressive blast campaigns. The AI draft default is intentionally polite and short - higher reply rate than overly long, salesy templates.

Disavow

Should I disavow toxic links?

Only if you have a manual penalty or unnatural-link warning in Search Console, or your rankings dropped suspiciously. Google's Penguin algorithm largely handles bad links automatically. Disavow is a heavy hammer; most sites don't need it. See Disavow Toxic Links for the full guidance.

Does TraceLinker submit the disavow file to Google?

No. Google requires manual upload through their UI for security. We give you the file; you upload it.

Can I un-disavow a link later?

Google replaces the entire disavow file every upload. To "un-disavow," upload a new file without that entry. TraceLinker's Disavow page tracks history so you can rebuild based on a previous version.

Is the disavow file unlimited?

Yes - generation is free on all plans. Account-wide Disavow page (combining toxic candidates across all audits) is Pro+; per-audit downloads are available on Free.

Competitor analysis

How does competitor gap analysis work?

You upload a competitor's backlink CSV. We cross-check each domain against your own backlinks (audits + monitored), mark overlaps, rank the gap opportunities by AI-estimated value, and let you draft outreach pitches in one click.

Where do I get a competitor's backlink CSV?

From any tool that can export their backlinks (Ahrefs, Semrush, Moz). If you don't have a paid tool, free tier of Ahrefs/Semrush gives sample data, or use the Wayback Machine combined with manual scraping for very small profiles.

How many competitor audits do I get?

Pro 5/month, Agency 50/month. Free does not include competitor analysis.

Sharing and PDF

Can I share an audit with a client?

Agency tier only. Audits → Share generates a public URL with optional password and expiration. Clients view the audit read-only without an account.

What does the PDF look like?

Cover page with your branding, summary stats, one row per backlink, optional disavow appendix. Generates client-side via @react-pdf/renderer in under 2 seconds for 100-row audits.

Can I white-label the report?

Yes (Agency). Settings → Branding. Logo, brand name, brand color. All shared URLs and PDFs use your branding automatically.

Account / billing

Can I switch plans?

Yes. Upgrade is instant (prorated charge). Downgrade takes effect at end of current period.

Refund policy?

30-day no-questions-asked refund on first-time monthly subscriptions. Annual subscriptions: 30-day full refund window, partial after that on a case-by-case basis.

Can I cancel anytime?

Yes. Settings → Billing → Cancel. You stay on the paid tier until the period ends, then drop to Free. All data is retained.

Do you accept VAT invoicing?

Yes. Add your VAT number in Settings → Billing → Tax info before subscribing. Invoices include it automatically.

Is there a discount for annual billing?

Yes - effectively 2 months free (saves 17%). Pro $90/yr (vs $108 if monthly), Agency $290/yr (vs $348).

Can I get an enterprise plan?

Yes. enterprise@backlinkmonitor.com with usage details. Custom plans start around $200/month.

Self-hosting

Is TraceLinker open source?

Yes - the code is open source. You can self-host with your own Supabase, Stripe, and DeepSeek API keys. See the GitHub repo and the Guides section.

What does self-hosting cost?

Roughly: Supabase free or $25/mo, Stripe per-transaction, DeepSeek pay-as-you-go (~$3 per 10,000 audited links), Vercel free or $20/mo for hosting. For a personal-use install: under $30/month at moderate volume.

Why would I self-host instead of using your hosted product?

Compliance constraints (data residency, custom DPA), heavy customization (custom AI prompts, custom features), or cost optimization at very large scale. For most users, hosted is simpler and cheaper than running it yourself.

Privacy / data

Where is my data stored?

Hosted TraceLinker: Supabase (Postgres) in the EU, encrypted at rest. We're working on a multi-region option for US/Asia data residency.

Do you use my audit data for anything besides showing me?

No. We don't sell, share, or analyze user data outside of the immediate processing of the audit/monitor calls you trigger.

Can I delete my account?

Yes. Settings → Danger zone → Delete account. Hard-deletes all your audits, monitoring, drafts, and competitor audits. Irreversible.

GDPR DPA?

We have a standard DPA available on request. Email privacy@backlinkmonitor.com.

Bug reports / feature requests

Where do I report a bug?

GitHub issues on the public repo, or email support@backlinkmonitor.com. We respond within 1 business day on Pro+.

How do I request a feature?

Same channels as bug reports. We track requests in a public GitHub project; high-vote items get prioritized.

Is there a roadmap?

The public roadmap is in GitHub Projects. We don't commit to specific dates but you can see what's in flight, queued, and rejected with reasoning.

Next

• Quick Start - if you haven't run your first audit yet.
• Glossary - definitions of every term used in the docs.
• Plans & Pricing - the financial details.