Definition
Citation Flow is an indicator created by Majestic SEO that quantifies the volume of backlinks received by a site or web page. Unlike Trust Flow which evaluates quality, Citation Flow measures influence in terms of incoming link numbers. A high Citation Flow means many sites point to the analyzed domain, but this says nothing about link quality. This is why SEO experts systematically analyze the TF/CF ratio: a ratio close to 1 indicates a quality link profile, while a very low ratio may signal low-quality links.
Key Points
- Measures link quantity, not quality
- The TF/CF ratio is a key indicator of link profile health
- High CF without corresponding TF may indicate an artificial link profile
Practical Examples
Spammy link detection
A site shows a Citation Flow of 55 but a Trust Flow of only 8. This imbalance (TF/CF ratio of 0.15) reveals a backlink profile composed mainly of low-quality links to clean up.
Link building campaign tracking
After three months of campaigns on LemmiLink, an e-commerce site's CF goes from 22 to 34 while TF rises from 15 to 28, indicating healthy link profile growth.
Frequently Asked Questions
Citation Flow measures backlink quantity (raw popularity) while Trust Flow evaluates quality (reliability). A site can have high CF from thousands of forum or directory links but low TF because those links aren't reliable. Ideally both metrics should be balanced.
No, Citation Flow is a proprietary Majestic metric, not a Google ranking factor. However, it indirectly reflects a site's popularity. Google uses its own algorithms to evaluate links, but a healthy link profile (good TF/CF ratio) generally correlates with good rankings.
Go Further with LemmiLink
Discover how LemmiLink can help you put these SEO concepts into practice.
Last updated: 2026-02-07