Subdomain links vs root domain links? Are the less valuable?

[calf]

I am determining the value of links we get.

Is a link on a subdomain less valuable vs one on the root domain? How less valuable would you consider a subdomain link?

For example blog.site.com vs site.com/blog

What other metrics would you take into consideration for the value of a subdomain link?

[Yeeply.com]

Hello calf,

It's a bit of a trick question since there is no right or wrong answer - it depends whether you take a short or long-term perspective. That said, most people say Subfolder is best and this is what various Tweets and Facebook comments on a recent question on subfolder or subdomain in the Smart Insights Linked In Best Practices group showed.

But you can argue each case, particularly if you look beyond SEO at branding benefits you may get from a separate domain. Here are the pros and cons as I see them. What do you think?

SUBFOLDER

• • Google will crawl new blog posts typically within days of launch
• • Blog inherits the authority of parent site so can rank immediately for terms within posts
• • Backlinks and social mentions generated by the content on the blog can help other contain on the domain i.e. product pages rank more highly
• • Integrates better with main site for better user experience (although often will have a different design)
• • Easier to track with Google Analytics - a minor point - see end of post
• • Doesn't help generate external backlinks for which you control the anchor text, e.g. editorial links within blog copy

SUBDOMAIN

• • Maybe technically easier for some setups
• • Has some of the benefits of subfolder in inheriting parent domain authority and separate domain in providing backlinks to main site, but...
• • Needs to establish its own reputation through backlinks from other sites so...
• • Will not rank as highly or as quickly as a subfolder

+Info: http://www.searchenginejournal.com/subdomains-or-subfolders-which-are-better-for-seo/6849/