What it is:
Domain age refers to the length of time a website's domain name has been registered and active on the internet. It’s important to distinguish between two dates:
The registration date (when the domain was first purchased), and
The indexing date (when Google first found content on it and began indexing pages).
Google doesn’t necessarily give credit just because a domain has existed for a long time. What matters more is how long the domain has been actively used with quality, crawlable content.
Why it matters for SEO:
In practice, older domains tend to rank better—not because of age alone, but because they’ve had more time to build authority. Over time, they naturally accumulate backlinks, content history, and user signals. A domain that’s been live for five years and has steadily grown its content and backlink profile will usually outrank a brand-new domain, assuming all else is equal.
Google’s former Head of Webspam, Matt Cutts, once stated that the difference between a six-month-old domain and a one-year-old domain isn’t significant—but in competitive niches, even small trust signals can stack up. Age by itself won’t win rankings, but in combination with other signals (like backlinks and consistency), it becomes a credibility booster.
What you can do:
If you're starting fresh with a brand-new domain, don't stress over its age. Focus on building a solid foundation:
Publish original, useful content regularly.
Avoid domain-hopping or restarting SEO from scratch.
Keep your domain live and content-rich—don't let it sit dormant.
If buying an aged domain, check its backlink profile and penalty history to avoid inheriting SEO problems.
Bottom line:
Domain age is a minor direct ranking factor but a major indirect one. What you’ve done with the domain over time matters far more than just how long it’s existed.
