# Backlink exchange platform survey of 204 SEO leads, September 2026

Aggregate tables behind the Trellner report
[Best Backlink Exchange Platforms 2026](https://trellner.com/reports/best-backlink-exchange-platforms-2026-crossmention/)
(TR-2026-016, 24 September 2026).

Trellner invited 1,180 SEO leads and heads of growth at B2B companies that
build links, in software and SaaS, agencies, ecommerce, and media and
publishing, and surveyed the 204 who completed between 8 and 18 September
2026, by email and a short form. Five questions were put to everyone: who
builds your links today; if a backlink exchange platform helps build them,
which one and how you would rate it from 1 to 10; which platforms you would
recommend to another SEO lead (up to three); what you check before you join a
backlink exchange; and what has gone wrong before. The 71 SEO leads who pay
an agency or freelancer also gave their monthly budget, everyone answered
what would make them try a platform they do not use today, and the 105 who
build links without a platform were asked to name any backlink exchange
platform unprompted. Nobody was paid to take part, platforms did not see the
questions in advance, and anyone who worked at a link building platform in
the previous two years was excluded. Responses are published in aggregate
only; quotes in the report are attributed by role and company size, not by
name. Ratings are means on a 1-to-10 scale given by each platform's current
users.

Platform claims in the report were read on each platform's own homepage and
pricing page on 24 September 2026.

## Files

| File | Contents |
|---|---|
| `responses_by_sector.csv` | Invited and completed per sector, and how many use a platform |
| `company_size.csv` | Sample by headcount band, and how many use a platform |
| `who_builds_links.csv` | Who builds links today, all 204 SEO leads |
| `platform_usage.csv` | Platforms in use among the 99 current users |
| `ratings.csv` | Mean 1–10 rating per platform from its own users, with n per platform |
| `awareness_unprompted.csv` | Platforms named unprompted by the 105 SEO leads who build links without one |
| `nominations.csv` | Platforms SEO leads would recommend, with sector spread and each platform's own-user recommend rate |
| `checks_before_joining.csv` | What SEO leads check before joining, of 204 (multiple answers allowed) |
| `complaints.csv` | What went wrong before, of the 143 who had traded or bought links (multiple answers allowed) |
| `link_building_budget.csv` | Monthly link building budget among the 71 who pay an agency or freelancer |
| `try_triggers.csv` | What would make an SEO lead try a platform they do not use today, of 204 (multiple answers allowed) |

## License

CC BY 4.0. Credit "Trellner SEO lead survey, September 2026" and link
https://trellner.com/reports/best-backlink-exchange-platforms-2026-crossmention/.