In the ever-evolving world of search engine optimization (SEO), generating high-quality backlinks, establishing brand authority, and driving targeted referral traffic is paramount. While modern SEO emphasizes highly selective guest posting, strategic article submission on official, free platforms remains a powerful, low-cost strategy for diversifying your backlink profile and increasing the reach of your content.
This comprehensive guide explains the benefits of this timeless strategy and presents an ultimate list of 20+ high-domain authority (DA) free article submission sites and Web 2.0 platforms that you should take advantage of in 2024 and beyond.
Why Article Submission Still Matters for Modern SEO
Article submission is the process of writing and publishing content on third-party websites, usually directories or community platforms, allowing you to include a link to your site. Although Google has cracked down on low-quality, spammy directories, submitting content to reputable, high-authority sites still offers significant SEO benefits:
1. High-Quality Backlinks (Domain Authority)
Primary goal. When you earn a link (even a “nofollow” in some cases) from a site with a high Domain Authority (DA) or Domain Rating (DR), it signals to search engines that your website is trustworthy and relevant. High-DA sites provide more “link juice”, which directly improves your site’s credibility and search rankings.
2. Referral Traffic
A well-placed, engaging article on a popular submission site exposes your content to a new, embedded audience. Readers who find your article valuable will click on the link in your author biography or article body, driving highly targeted traffic back to your main website.
3. Brand Authority and Expertise
Consistently publishing well-researched, expert content across multiple reputable platforms establishes you or your brand as a thought leader in your industry. This increases brand recognition and promotes trust, which indirectly helps in higher click-through rates (CTR) in search results.
4. Keyword Targeting and SERP Diversification
Each article you submit is a new piece of indexed content. This allows you to target long-tail keywords or specific variations that you may not have covered on your main blog, increasing your chances of ranking for a wider variety of search queries.
The Ultimate List: 20+ High-Authority Free Submission Sites
This list is divided into categories to help you select the platforms that best match with your content strategy, giving preference to sites known for high domain authority (DA) and strong community engagement.
Category 1: Web 2.0 & High-Authority Community Platforms
These sites offer incredibly high DA, making them invaluable for creating authoritative, well-formatted content that builds a powerful backlink foundation.
| S.No. | Website Name | Niche Focus | Key Features |
| 1 | Medium.com | General/All Niches | High DA (94+), huge built-in audience, great for thought leadership and long-form content. |
| 2 | LinkedIn Articles | Business/Professional | Exceptional for B2B, allows publishing directly to professional networks. High DA (99+). |
| 3 | Quora | Q&A / Expertise | Answer specific questions with in-depth articles, great for targeted, niche traffic. High DA (93+). |
| 4 | Tumblr | General/Micro-Blogging | High DA (86+), easy to use for quick content sharing and visually rich posts. |
| 5 | Blogger (Blogspot) | General/Web 2.0 | Google-owned platform, very high DA (100), offers a full blogging experience and total control. |
| 6 | Sites.google.com | Web 2.0/General | Simple website builder that’s excellent for creating authoritative content pages with high DA (96+). |
| 7 | Penzu | Journaling/Notes | High DA (75+), good for quick submission of content snippets and link placement. |
Category 2: Classic Article Directories (Choose Carefully)
While the landscape of classic directories has changed, these platforms still maintain strong authority and can be used sparingly for content distribution.
| S.No. | Website Name | Niche Focus | Key Features |
| 8 | EzineArticles | General | One of the oldest and most respected directories, strict editorial guidelines ensure quality. |
| 9 | HubPages | General/Niche Topics | Content is organized into “hubs.” Offers revenue share and high engagement opportunities. |
| 10 | ArticleBase | General/Business | High DA (75+), good for general business and marketing topics. |
| 11 | ArticleCube | General | Wide range of categories, relatively user-friendly submission process. |
| 12 | SooperArticles | General/Diverse | Known for a wide variety of topics and a simple interface. |
Category 3: Niche-Specific & Educational Platforms
Targeting sites focused on your specific industry can result in more relevant traffic and highly relevant backlinks, which Google values highly.
| S.No. | Website Name | Niche Focus | Key Features |
| 13 | Academia.edu | Academic/Research | High DA (93+), perfect for research, white papers, or detailed technical guides. |
| 14 | SelfGrowth.com | Personal Development | Strong platform for articles on wellness, motivation, and self-help. High DA (64+). |
| 15 | DZone | Technology/Software | High DA (84+), ideal for developers, engineers, and tech-focused content. |
| 16 | Write.as | Writers/Creative | Simple, distraction-free publishing with a focus on writing and content. |
| 17 | Wattpad | Fiction/Creative Writing | Massive audience, useful for brands tied to storytelling or creative arts. High DA (92+). |
Category 4: PDF & Document Sharing Platforms
Repurposing your best articles into professional PDF documents (like guides or reports) and submitting them here can earn you links from highly authoritative sources.
| S.No. | Website Name | Niche Focus | Key Features |
| 18 | Scribd | Document Sharing | High DA (93+), upload PDFs, presentations, and long-form documents. |
| 19 | SlideShare (LinkedIn) | Presentations/Documents | High DA (98+), excellent for sharing slide decks or visually rich content. |
Category 5: Instant Approval & Quick Links
These sites often provide instant approval, making them useful for quick link indexing and visibility, although DA may vary.
| S.No. | Website Name | Niche Focus | Key Features |
| 20 | JustPaste.it | Quick Notes | High DA (91+), ultra-fast publishing for simple text and links. |
| 21 | Telegra.ph | Instant Publishing | High DA (90+), anonymous, instant article posting with clean formatting. |
The Modern Article Submission Strategy: Quality Over Quantity
In 2025, eliminating duplicate content on just 50 low-quality sites is a recipe for Google getting fined. Modern strategy is about quality, relevance and originality.
1. Do Not Duplicate Content
Google hates duplicate content. For high-authority sites (like Medium or LinkedIn), re-use your article. Rewrite the introduction and conclusion, change the title, and adjust the structure. If you syndicate an existing article, be sure to use a canonical tag on the submitted article pointing to the original source.
2. Focus on Deep Niche Value
Your article on the submission site should be a valuable, standalone piece of content that actually helps the reader. This reduces the chance of content being marked as spam or low-quality.
3. Perfect the Author Bio
Your author bio is your most important tool. It should:
- Establish expertise: Briefly state your credentials.
- Include calls-to-action (CTA): Tell readers exactly what to click (“Visit my website for the complete guide” or “Download the free template here”).
- Use keywords: Naturally weave a key phrase or two into your bio anchor text.
4. Strategic Internal Linking
Place your backlink naturally in the text of the article, not just in the author biography. The link must be relevant – meaning that the surrounding text logically justifies a link back to your resource.
- Bad example: “Click here for more information on SEO tips.”
- Good example: “For a deeper dive into advanced backlink strategies, consult our comprehensive [link to your site] SEO guide.”
5. Track and Monitor Performance
Use Google Analytics to track referral traffic from each site. The sites that drive the most traffic (low bounce rate, more time on page) are the sites you should prioritize for future submissions.
A Note on DA, DR, and Link Types
- Domain Authority (DA) / Domain Rating (DR): These metrics (from Moz and Ahrefs, respectively) are estimates of a site’s link equity. Give preference to sites with DA/DR more than 60.
- Do-follow vs. no-follow: While a “do-follow” link passes through authorization directly, links from platforms like Medium and Quora are often “no-follow.” That’s absolutely fine! No-follow links are essential to a natural, diverse backlink profile and still bring valuable referral traffic and brand mentions.
Article submission, when done intelligently and strategically on high-quality platforms, is not just any old SEO tactic. It’s a fundamental method for content amplification, brand building and establishing authority – all at the powerful price of FREE. Start working your way through the list above, prioritizing quality content over quantity, and watch your SEO metrics soar.