What is a Private Blog Network (PBN)?
PBN-guru, expired and auction domains expert. In SEO since 2018
A Private Blog Network (PBN) is a closed network of websites controlled by a single owner, used to transfer link equity to the main site in order to improve its positions in search results.
Such networks allow you to manage the quality, niche relevance, and anchor text of links, making them a powerful tool in an SEO specialist’s arsenal when used carefully and strategically.
How a PBN Works: Impact on Link Profile and Rankings
A PBN works like any other SEO links. You create a network of websites and place links from them to your project. Links can come both from articles and from the homepage of satellite sites. If building a PBN feels like too much work, you can always just redirect a domain to your project.
Key Principles of Building an Effective PBN
The most important thing is to properly hide your network from Google. To achieve this, sites are hosted on different providers, with varied registrars, and NS-servers are masked through Cloudflare.
The easiest setup is to deploy WordPress on these sites and upload articles in your niche, or keep the site’s original topic as it appeared in Web Archive. Another option is to fully restore the site from the Web Archive.
For strong results, you need to generate AI-based texts that don’t get flagged as unnatural by content analyzers. Add images, internal linking, and outbound links to authoritative websites.
It’s also useful to connect your PBN sites to different Google Search Console accounts.
How to Choose and Check a Domain for PBN
Choosing a domain for your PBN is the same process as selecting expired domains.
Link Profile
The most important factor is having lots of quality backlinks. Without them, there’s no point in acquiring the domain. I look for domains with at least 100 backlinks, which I check via Ahrefs.
History in WebArchive
Always check snapshots to ensure the domain is clean — no casino spam, adult content, or irrelevant topics. Avoid domains that were inactive for many years. The sooner it dropped, the better chance of restoring indexing.
Anchor List
Check the anchor list in Ahrefs or Semrush. Anchors often reveal if a site was spammed. I recommend starting with anchor checks first, since spammed sites will show messy anchor lists.
Where to Find Domains for PBN
Auctions
For international SEO, the best option is buying drops from auctions. The most popular one is GoDaddy. A good drop usually costs $400–600, but very strong ones can go for $4000 or more.
In the CIS market, you can use local auctions like expired.ru, or search via mydrop.io.
Spamzilla
This tool allows you to find both auction domains and instantly available ones. It mainly covers international domains and costs about $30/month.
Analyzing Backlinks of Niche Sites
Another method is compiling a list of high-quality niche sites and uploading them into Ahrefs or Semrush. Check the Linked Domains (Ahrefs) or Outbound Domains (Semrush) sections. This will give you a list of all domains the authority site links to. Export it and run a bulk check (e.g., GoDaddy Bulk Domain Checker) to see which domains are available.
For convenience, pre-filter by traffic <5 and DR/AS <30 — this eliminates most already-taken domains.
Screaming Frog
This method is similar to the above but works without paid tools. Enter an authority site into Screaming Frog, configure it to crawl only outbound links, and run a crawl. It takes time, but the result will be a list of all domains linked by that site.
How Much Does a PBN Cost?
Let’s say you want to build a network of 20 sites, half from auctions and half as new registrations.
- 10 auction domains — $4000 + $100/year renewals
- 10 new registrations — $100/year
- 2 hostings — $30/month
- Programmer’s fee — $250–500 (first month only)
- Content generation — $250/month
Total:
- First month: ~$4730
- Following months: ~$280
You can cut costs by generating texts yourself with ChatGPT or other AI tools. In the future, you can even create your own custom content-generation software.
How to Monetize Your PBN
You can use your PBN to promote your own projects or sell links from it. Many people do this through platforms like Kwork, but the quality of links there is often poor. A better option is advertising through SEO-focused Telegram channels.
Hosting for PBN
A key rule: for every 10 sites, use a new hosting provider. If all sites share one host and it goes down, Google can easily detect that they belong to the same owner. Choose hosting in different countries with unique IPs.
PBN vs Buying Links
PBNs are not cheap — they require time, expertise, and deep analysis. However, in the long run, they can be more effective than buying links.
In the West, one quality backlink costs $700–1000 and often lasts just one year before being removed. In tough niches like finance or gambling, prices are double. Will your link survive long-term? Will the site stay clean or turn into a link farm? Nobody guarantees this.
But with your own PBN, you control the quality, future, and content.
Conclusion: Are PBNs Still Needed in 2025?
There is no clear-cut answer. Google constantly updates algorithms and fights spam. But if you hide your PBN well, publish strong content, and maintain quality, chances of success are high. At the same time, be prepared that some sites won’t bring growth — you just need to keep expanding your network.
Help with PBNs and Expired Domains
I am always happy to help find expired domains on demand, build PBN networks, or provide training and consultations.
Contact me on Telegram.