Number of Flickr Images counts how many Flickr photo URLs (www.flickr.com/photos/) appear in a page’s rendered body. It is a raw count of matching references — it does not verify that each one is a displayed image, unique, reachable, or properly licensed.
| Factor ID | RG-SOC-022 |
|---|---|
| Family | Social signals |
| Measurement | Count |
| Measured zone | Rendered, script-free page body |
What it measures
This factor counts the recognized Flickr photo URL prefixes found in the page body. It is a simple tally of how many times a Flickr photo reference appears — a proxy for how much a page draws on Flickr-hosted imagery, not a judgment of whether that imagery is present, appropriate, or licensed.
How RankGear measures it
RankGear counts case-insensitive HTTP or HTTPS occurrences of www.flickr.com/photos/ in the rendered, script-free body. It does not confirm that each reference is an image, that it is unique, that the resource is available, or that it is licensed for use.
What RankGear looks for
http://www.flickr.com/photos/...
https://www.flickr.com/photos/...
(case-insensitive; each matching occurrence adds 1 to the count)How to optimize it
Treat this as an observation of your imagery sourcing, not a target to inflate. Use Flickr-hosted material only when it is relevant and properly licensed. Where the licence requires it, provide attribution, and pair every image with descriptive alternative text, useful captions, and performance-conscious delivery. Adding more Flickr URLs to raise the count does nothing for the reader — rights and usefulness matter far more than the number itself.
Important considerations
- The count can include ordinary links to Flickr, not only displayed images.
- Repeated URLs count repeatedly — the same photo referenced twice adds two to the total.
- Other Flickr URL formats (for example short
flic.krlinks or non-/photos/paths) are not matched and are missed. - Rights, licensing, and usefulness to the reader matter more than the raw count.
- This is a descriptive signal that tracks with position within a measured result set. It does not, on its own, cause or guarantee a ranking — correlation is not causation.
Related factors
Part of the Factors reference · how RankGear measures · glossary.