Trust Flow and Citation Flow: What They Are and Why They Matter

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If you’ve been reading up on how to get your website to show up better in Google search results, you might have come across the terms “Trust Flow” and “Citation Flow.” These are two simple but useful ideas that can help you understand how strong your website looks to search engines. If you're wondering how long it might take to rank higher on Google, this article might be helpful: https://crowdo.net/blog/how-long-to-rank-in-google-2025/.

So, what are Trust Flow and Citation Flow?

Let’s start with Citation Flow. Think of this as a way to measure how many other websites link to yours. The more backlinks you have, the higher your Citation Flow. But here’s the catch: just having a lot of links doesn’t always mean your site is seen as trustworthy.

That’s where Trust Flow comes in. Unlike Citation Flow, Trust Flow looks at the quality of the sites linking to you. Are trustworthy websites linking to your content? If yes, your Trust Flow score will be higher. For example, a link from a well-known news site or a .edu page can increase your Trust Flow more than dozens of links from unknown pages.

So why do these numbers matter?

Google doesn’t just care about how many websites talk about you. It also wants to know if those websites are worth listening to. In short, a high Trust Flow tells Google your website is more reliable. And a high Citation Flow shows that your site is popular. When both are high—and especially when your Trust Flow isn't much lower than your Citation Flow—it’s a good sign.

But if your Citation Flow is way higher than your Trust Flow, that might mean your site has a bunch of low-quality or spammy backlinks. And that could hurt your chances of ranking better in search results.

You don’t need to stress too much about these numbers. They’re just one piece of the puzzle. But keeping an eye on them can help you get a sense of how your site looks to search engines. Focus on getting links from trusted, relevant sites, and you’ll start to see progress over time.

In the end, it’s all about building a site that people trust and want to visit—and that’s something worth aiming for.