Has Affiliate Links – QuinStreet is a yes/no signal that reports whether RankGear finds a recognized QuinStreet redirect API link in a page’s rendered body. It returns 1 when a matching link is present and 0 when it is not, and it confirms only that the URL pattern appears — not that the link works, points anywhere valid, or is properly disclosed.
| Factor ID | RG-AFF-011 |
|---|---|
| Family | Affiliate & ads |
| Measurement | Boolean presence (0 / 1) |
| Measured zone | Rendered, script-free page body |
What it measures
Has Affiliate Links – QuinStreet detects a recognized QuinStreet redirect API URL in the page. It is a detection of presence, not a judgment of quality or intent: the factor records that a QuinStreet redirect link exists on the page, nothing more.
How RankGear measures it
RankGear searches case-insensitively for HTTP or HTTPS links beginning hqx-qmp.quinstreet.com/hqxapi/qsctredirect/. A match returns 1 and no match returns 0. The check confirms only that the URL pattern appears in the rendered, script-free body — it does not follow the redirect, validate the destination, or evaluate disclosure.
What RankGear looks for
<!-- a QuinStreet redirect link leaves this pattern in the body -->
<a href="https://hqx-qmp.quinstreet.com/hqxapi/qsctredirect/...">Compare offers</a>
// match (case-insensitive), http or https:
// hqx-qmp.quinstreet.com/hqxapi/qsctredirect/| Value | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1 | A link beginning hqx-qmp.quinstreet.com/hqxapi/qsctredirect/ was found in the rendered, script-free body. |
| 0 | No matching QuinStreet redirect link was found. |
How to optimize it
Treat this as an observation about the page, not a target to hit. Use QuinStreet links only when they are relevant, transparent, and supported by accurate content, and mark commercial relationships appropriately. Presence of the link is not itself a goal — the priority is that any affiliate relationship on the page is disclosed and genuinely useful to the reader.
Important considerations
- Alternative QuinStreet URL formats may be missed — only the recognized redirect pattern is matched.
- Presence does not validate the destination; the link may be broken or point somewhere unexpected.
- A stale reference still counts — an outdated or unused link registers as a match.
- Disclosure requires separate review; the factor does not check that the commercial relationship is marked.
- This is a correlation-level signal within a measured result set, never a guarantee of ranking or a cause of it.
Related factors
Part of the Factors reference · how RankGear measures · glossary.