Moz regularly surveys leading SEO experts to identify the ranking factors they consider most important. The following are the top nine factors, listed in order of priority:

1. Domain-Level Link Authority Features
2. Page-Level Link Metrics
3. Page-Level Keywords and Content
4. Page-Level Features (Excluding Keywords)
5. Domain-Level Brand Metrics
6. Page-Level Traffic/Query Data
7. Page-Level Social Metrics
8. Domain-Level Keyword Usage
9. Domain-Level Features (Unrelated to Keywords)

The following is a brief introduction to each factor:

1. Domain-Level Link Authority Features

Domain-level link authority is derived from a cumulative analysis of all links pointing to a specific domain. This analysis encompasses factors such as the number of distinct referring domains, the trustworthiness and authority of those domains, the rate at which new inbound links are acquired, and the thematic relevance of the linking domains. Simply put, the caliber of the sources linking to a website—and the nature of those connections—ultimately determines its search engine ranking.

(1) Case Study: Apple’s Official Website

  • Naturally cited and referenced by authoritative media outlets such as CNN and the BBC.
  • Technical blogs proactively link to its product pages.
  • The growth curve for external links spikes sharply whenever a new iPhone is released.

(2) Counter-Example: A Weight-Loss Supplement Website

  • Relies heavily on paid links originating from low-quality web directories.
  • A significant portion of its referring domains are thematically unrelated to the health and wellness sector.

2. Page-Level Link Metrics

If domain-level links are considered a parent-level metric, then page-level links can be viewed as a child-level metric. This category refers to links associated with a specific page—such as the quantity of links, their relevance, and the trustworthiness and authority of the links pointing to that page.

Case Study: The Wikipedia entry for “Machine Learning”

  • Cited on Stanford University course pages
  • Linked to by the Google Research blog
  • Cited as a reference in relevant academic papers

3. Page-Level Keywords and Content

Describes the usage of keywords/phrases within specific sections of the page’s HTML code (tags, <h1> tags, alt attributes, etc.).

(1) Case Study: HubSpot’s “Ultimate Guide to SEO”

<title>The Ultimate Guide to SEO in 2024 | HubSpot</title>
<h1>Practical SEO Strategies: From Zero to Mastery</h1>
<img alt="SEO Optimization Flowchart" src="...">

(2) Negative Example: An Over-Optimized Page

<title>Buy Mobile Phones | Affordable Phones | High-Value Phones | Phone Promotions</title>

4. Page-Level Features (Excluding Keywords)

The factors included here encompass page elements such as the total number of links on the page, the number of internal links, the number of “followed” links, the number of “nofollow” links, and other similar factors.

Case Study: The body text of a New York Times article page naturally features 18 authoritative outbound links.

  • Internal links utilize semantic anchor text.
  • Ad links are tagged with nofollow.

5. Domain-Level Brand Metrics

This factor encompasses the search volume for the website’s brand name, the number of mentions, social media presence, and other brand-related metrics.

Case Study: Nike

  • “Nike” garners an average of 4.5 million Google searches per month.
  • It boasts over 9 million followers on Twitter.
  • Forum users spontaneously engage in discussions regarding the “latest Air Force 1 models.”

6. Page-Level Traffic/Query Data

The elements of this factor include the click-through rate of pages in search results, the bounce rate of page visitors, and other similar metrics.

7. Page-Level Social Metrics

Social metrics include mentions, links, shares, likes, and other indicators derived from social media platforms. It is worth emphasizing that many SEO practitioners consider this to be a ranking factor—despite subsequent research suggesting otherwise—and Google has also explicitly stated that social signals are not part of its algorithm.

Case Study: NASA Mars Rover Page

  • Twitter retweets surpass 500,000.
  • Related discussion threads on Reddit garner 3.2k upvotes.
  • However, Google has explicitly stated that this does not affect rankings.

8. Domain-Level Keyword Usage

This refers to the manner in which keywords are utilized within a root domain or subdomain, as well as the potential impact this may have on search engine rankings.

(1) Case Study: bestbuy.com

  • The domain name incorporates the high-frequency commercial keyword “best.”
  • The subdomain deals.bestbuy.com reinforces the commercial intent.

(2) Negative Case Study：cheap-viagra-online.com

  • Contains hyphens and sensitive words.

9. Domain-Level Features (Unrelated to Keywords)

The primary elements of this factor in the investigation include the number of hyphens in the domain name, the number of characters in the domain name, and the domain name length.

refer to: https://moz.com/search-ranking-factors/