Replatforming, merging a subfolder or switching domains changes which URLs collect links. Capture anchors before the move, then compare after the index catches up.
Anchor Social research team ·
Order matters
Take the snapshot before launch day. Once old URLs start redirecting, reconstructing what linked where gets harder. Our index refreshes about monthly, so expect the post-move picture one to two cycles later. The seven-step runbook gives the pull and bucket method, and you need both ends of the move on file.
Before the move
Pull anchors and toppages for the old domain and save both files with the date
List the 50 pages that attract the most links; these need one-to-one redirects
Tag the anchor buckets once, using the same rules you will use afterwards
Export Search Console's Links report for the same day as a second opinion
Decide the canonical host and keep it consistent in sitemaps and hreflang
Note every URL pattern you are dropping, such as a /us subfolder
Record the Google update calendar for the month, such as the March 2024 core and spam updates, so a later ranking move is not blamed on the migration alone
What to expect afterwards
Redirects. They do the heavy lifting, and a 301 from old to new URL lets the old links keep working. Chains of three or four hops slow crawlers and are best flattened.
Anchor text does not change when a URL moves, because the text lives on the linking page. What changes is the destination count: your top-pages table will show the old host fading and the new one rising over a few monthly refreshes.
A common surprise is deleting the old platform too soon. Don't. Squarespace, Wix and similar hosts often hold the redirect rules, so cancelling the plan can remove them, and the links then point at a dead end until you rebuild the rules elsewhere.
Hreflang and canonicals deserve a look too. Mismatches are common. After a CRA to Next.js migration, for example, sites often end up with canonical tags that disagree with their hreflang sets, and links split across two versions of a page.
If numbers disagree after the move, check the troubleshooting table before assuming links were lost. A monthly refresh alone explains many gaps.
Give it time. Expect the first clean comparison about two monthly refreshes after launch, and write the date of each refresh in your sheet so a flat month is not mistaken for a stuck one. Ahrefs or Semrush can fill the gap with fresher crawls if you need an interim read.
Move types and what to watch
Move
Main risk
Check with
Platform change, same domain
Changed URL patterns, lost redirects
toppages pre and post, Search Console coverage
New domain
Links stay on the old host for months
anchors on both domains, monthly
Merging a blog into the main site
Two profiles collapse into one
Anchor shares before and after, by linking domain
Dropping a /us subfolder
Links to removed paths 404
toppages list of the subfolder's URLs
Snapshot the top pages before the switch
Use toppages to see which URLs collect the links. Two credits.