Guest posts vs PBN links: which is safer?

What is a guest post?

A guest post is an article you publish on another real website, with a link back to your site inside helpful content. Because the site has its own audience, the link looks natural and can bring visitors as well as SEO value. See how I handle guest posts on niche blogs.

What is a PBN?

A PBN, or private blog network, is a group of websites, often built on expired domains, that exist mainly to link to other sites. They usually have thin content and little or no real traffic.

Google’s Google spam policies do not use the word PBN, but they define link spam as creating links primarily to manipulate rankings and list “creating low-value content primarily for the purposes of manipulating linking and ranking signals” as an example. A typical PBN fits that description.

How do guest posts and PBN links compare?

Guest posts win on risk, lifespan and extra value, while PBN links only look cheaper at first.

Are paid guest posts allowed by Google?

Paid links are allowed by Google when they carry rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow", according to its Google guide to qualifying outbound links. Links paid for only to pass ranking credit fall under link spam, so the safest guest posts are the ones that would make sense even without the link.

Which one should you choose?

Choose relevant guest posts, brand mentions and content that earns links. That is the approach I use for clients, and it is why I do not offer PBN links. For the bigger picture, read the full link building guide.

Example: two sites, two strategies

Frequently asked questions