How to Check Backlinks in Google Search Console

Joshin Joseph

Backlinks are one of the most important ranking factors in SEO. If you want to improve your website’s authority and Google rankings, you need to monitor who is linking to your site.

Google Search Console (GSC) provides a free and reliable way to check your backlinks directly from Google’s data. In this guide, you’ll learn exactly how to check backlinks in Google Search Console and how to use that information to improve your SEO strategy.

How to Find External Backlinks in Google Search Console

Follow these simple steps to check backlinks in Google Search Console:

Step 1: Log in to Google Search Console

Go to your Google Search Console account and select your website property.

Step 2: Click on “Links”

In the left sidebar menu, scroll down and click on Links.

Step 3: Review the “External Links” Section

Under External Links, you will see:

Top linked pages – Pages on your website that receive the most backlinks
Top linking sites – Websites that link to you
Top linking text – Anchor text used in backlinks

Click on “More” to view detailed backlink data.

Step 4: Export Your Backlink Data

You can click Export External Links to download the backlink report in CSV or Google Sheets format for deeper analysis.

This report helps you understand which pages are attracting links and which websites are sending authority to your domain.

How to Analyze Backlinks for SEO Improvement

Checking backlinks is only the first step. You also need to analyze them properly.

1. Identify Your Most Linked Pages

If your homepage has the most backlinks, that’s normal.

But if a service page has many links, it could be a strong ranking opportunity.

2. Review Top Linking Sites

Look at the quality of websites linking to you:

Are they relevant to your industry?
Are they trusted directories?
Are they spammy or low-quality sites?

High-quality backlinks improve rankings. Poor-quality links can hurt SEO.

3. Check Anchor Text Distribution

Anchor text shows how other websites describe your site.

Healthy backlink profiles usually include:

Branded anchors (your company name)
URL anchors
Natural phrases like “visit website”

Too many exact-match keywords can look unnatural to Google.

4. Improve Weak Pages

If important pages have very few backlinks, consider:
Internal linking from blog posts
Outreach campaigns
Directory submissions
Guest posting

Final Thoughts

Google Search Console makes it easy to check backlinks for free. While it doesn’t provide as much data as premium tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush, it shows the most important links recognized by Google.

Make it a habit to review your backlink report every month. Monitoring your external links helps you: