The 5 Best Link Building Agencies, and How to Choose a Link Building Agency

Choosing a link building agency is one of the riskiest decisions in marketing. The right link building agency earns links from outlets your buyers trust. The wrong one buys links from sites nobody reads, and you find out when your rankings drop.

Full disclosure: Prism PR is a link building agency, and we ranked ourselves first. I will explain why. But I also think buyers deserve an honest list, so the other four agencies here are ones whose work I respect, described using facts from their own websites, with the trade-offs included.

How we chose the best link building agencies

Every link building agency on this list meets four tests:

1. Earned, not bought. Links come from editorial outreach, digital PR, or content that publishers choose to link to. We excluded agencies that sell guest posts, link insertions, or private blog network (PBN) links as their core offer.
2. Proof you can check. Each agency publishes named clients or case studies with real numbers.
3. Transparency. Each agency explains how it works, and most publish their pricing or minimums.
4. A clean record. We looked for public lawsuits, regulatory actions, or scandals and found none for the agencies listed.

Why does choosing the right link building agency matter more now? Links from trusted outlets do two jobs. They help you rank in Google, and they shape what AI tools say about you. Muck Rack studied more than 25 million links cited by ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini and found that earned media made up 84% of AI citations, while paid and advertorial content made up 0.3%. A link building agency that buys placements on obscure sites is not building the kind of authority AI tools trust.

1. Prism PR: best for editorial links from national news outlets

Website: prismpragency.com
Based in: New York and Miami
Approach: Digital PR built on data-driven studies, pitched to real journalists
Pricing: Pay-for-performance. Studies from $1,999, and each do-follow editorial link is billed by the outlet’s domain rating. No links, no invoice. Full-service PR and linkbuilding starts at $7,500 per month.

Prism is a PR firm first and a link building agency second. We believe the hardest and most valuable part of link building is earning a link from an outlet like USA Today, CNBC, or Business Insider, and that is a PR job. It takes a story a reporter wants to write and the relationships to get it in front of them.

Our team is led by senior PR executives. I spent more than 25 years at top New York PR agencies and in-house at the NBA and NASCAR, and I was named a 2026 PR News Person of the Year in the Data and Digital PR Disruptors category.

Proof:

• More than 25,000 stories placed and 20,000 editorial backlinks earned, averaging 20.1 links per campaign at an average domain authority of 76.9.
• Social Catfish: 3,862 editorial backlinks at an average domain authority of 77.3, and 372% revenue growth.
• Seniorly: 317 stories with backlinks in 2025, and a key role in its acquisition by CareScout.
• Digital Ventures: 1,489 editorial backlinks in one year across four sites, which Centerfield then acquired.

What makes it different: You only pay for do-follow links from outlets rated DR 50 and above. Links from lower-rated sites cost nothing. We use no paid posts, guest posts, or link exchanges.

Best for: Brands that want links from the outlets their buyers read, and that want to see results before they pay for them.

Trade-off: Our model depends on newsworthy studies, so results come in campaigns rather than a fixed number of links each month.

2. Siege Media: best for content-led link building at scale

Website: siegemedia.com
Based in: San Diego, with offices in Austin, New York, Chicago, and San Francisco, according to its about page
Founded: 2012
Approach: Content marketing and digital PR designed to earn links on merit
Pricing: According to its digital PR page, digital PR starts around $12,000 to $15,000 per month. Its content marketing page lists an $8,000 monthly minimum on a 12-month contract.

Siege Media is one of the best-known content marketing agencies in the U.S., and a strong link building agency for brands that also need content. It builds content that earns links over time, and it says it never buys links or mentions on a client’s behalf.

Proof:

• Its Zendesk case study reports more than 10,675 links.
• Its case study for The Zebra reports more than 1,580 organic links.
• Its homepage shows client logos including Airbnb, Zillow, PayPal, and Zapier.

Best for: Mid-sized and enterprise brands, especially in SaaS and fintech, that want content and links from one partner.

Trade-off: High minimums, and a content-led approach that builds links gradually. Siege does not guarantee a number of links.

3. Fractl: best for data journalism campaigns

Website: frac.tl
Based in: Delray Beach, Florida
Founded: 2012
Approach: Data journalism campaigns, reactive PR, expert commentary, and interactive tools
Pricing: Not published as a rate card. Fractl’s own agency guide lists itself with a $5,000 minimum and projects ranging from $5,000 to $600,000.

As a link building agency, Fractl helped popularize the idea of earning links with original research and data stories, the same idea at the heart of our own work.

Proof:

• Its homepage features a client testimonial reporting more than 500 links and 251% year-over-year growth in SEO traffic.
• It also reports a 1,100% increase in organic search traffic over 36 months for Recovery Brands.
• Client logos include Discover, ADT, Indeed, and Adobe.

Best for: Brands that want national coverage built on original research and creative campaigns.

Trade-off: Campaign-based results can be uneven from month to month.

4. Page One Power: best for steady, reportable link building

Website: pageonepower.com
Based in: Boise, Idaho
Founded: 2010, according to its about page
Approach: Manual outreach to vetted publishers
Pricing: Not published. Its link building service page says it offers no packages or tiers.

Page One Power has worked as a dedicated link building agency for more than 15 years. It says it uses 100% manual outreach and no link networks or PBNs, and each campaign has a dedicated U.S.-based project manager.

Proof:

• Its case studies page reports 604 links and a 197% increase in search impressions for A Case for Women.
• The same page reports 74 links and a 270% year-over-year increase in U.S. organic traffic for YorkTest.
• Its homepage names clients including Healthline, Hyatt, and QuickBooks.

Best for: Brands that want consistent, SEO-focused link building with clear reporting.

Trade-off: This is SEO outreach rather than PR, so expect fewer links from national news outlets. One of its published case studies includes guest-post links.

5. Rise at Seven: best for creative, fast-moving digital PR

Website: riseatseven.com
Based in: Offices in Manchester, London, and New York
Approach: Search-first digital PR, including reactive PR on breaking news and data studies across all 50 states for U.S. clients
Pricing: According to its U.S. digital PR page, from $6,800 a month to more than $100,000 a month.

Rise at Seven is one of the most awarded digital PR agencies in the industry, and a creative link building agency for consumer brands. Its reactive service, Rise Live, is built to land coverage on breaking stories quickly.

Proof:

• Its about page cites 79 global awards, including seven UK Search Awards and seven European Search Awards.
• Its U.S. page names clients including Amazon, SIXT, Kroger, and HubSpot.
• The same page describes a campaign for BetUS that generated 143 links.

Best for: Consumer and retail brands that want high-volume, creative digital PR.

Trade-off: The agency’s roots and most of its case studies are in the U.K. and Europe.

Comparison: the best link building agencies at a glance

How to choose a link building agency

Whichever link building agency you consider, ask these five questions before you sign:

1. Where will my links come from? Ask the link building agency for examples of links it earned in the last 90 days. If the sites are unfamiliar to you, they are probably unfamiliar to your buyers too.
2. Are any of the links paid? Google’s spam policies treat buying or selling links for ranking purposes as link spam. Ask directly whether the agency pays for placements, guest posts, or link insertions.
3. What happens if you do not deliver? Most link building agencies bill a retainer either way. A pay-for-performance model shifts that risk to the agency.
4. Who will do the work? Ask who will pitch reporters on your account, and how much experience they have.
5. Will the links help in AI search? Links from trusted news outlets help in Google and AI answers. Links from low-quality sites rarely help in either.

The bottom line

The best link building agency for you depends on your budget and goals. If you want content at scale, Siege Media is a strong choice. If you want creative data campaigns, look at Fractl or Rise at Seven. If you want steady SEO outreach, Page One Power has a long record.

If you want editorial links from the national outlets your buyers read, and you want to pay only for the links you get, that is exactly what we built Prism to do. Start with our pay-for-performance linkbuilding pilot, see the results in our case studies, or schedule an intro meeting.

Frequently asked questions

What does a link building agency do?

A link building agency earns links from other websites to yours. The best agencies earn them through editorial outreach and digital PR, so the links come from sites your buyers trust.

How much does a link building agency cost?

Published starting prices for a link building agency on this list range from a $5,000 project minimum to $12,000 or more per month. Prism’s pay-for-performance model starts with a $1,999 study and bills only for the links secured.

Is it safe to hire a link building agency?

Yes, if the link building agency earns links rather than buying them. Google’s spam policies treat buying or selling links for ranking purposes as link spam, which can hurt your rankings.

What is the difference between digital PR and link building?

Digital PR earns news coverage, usually with a link. Link building is the broader goal of earning links. Digital PR is one of the most effective ways to do link building because news outlets are among the most trusted sites on the web.

How long does link building take to work?

Links usually take weeks to months to show their full effect on rankings, depending on your site and competition.