Quick answer: A “dofollow” link is simply a normal link with no special attribute, so search engines can follow it and count it as a vote for the page it points to. A nofollow link carries rel="nofollow", which asks search engines not to pass ranking credit. Since 2019 Google treats nofollow as a hint rather than a strict rule, and it has added rel="sponsored" for paid links and rel="ugc" for user-generated content. Use nofollow or sponsored on paid and untrusted links, leave editorial links as normal links, and do not dismiss nofollow links when they bring real visitors.
What a link attribute is
Every link on the web is an HTML anchor tag. A plain link looks like this:
<a href="https://example.com/">Example</a>
A nofollow link adds a rel attribute:
<a href="https://example.com/" rel="nofollow">Example</a>
The visitor sees no difference. Both links are clickable. The attribute is a message to search engines about how you want the link treated.
“Dofollow” is not a real attribute
There is no rel="dofollow" in HTML. People use the word as shorthand for any link without nofollow, sponsored or ugc. If you see a plugin or guide asking you to add “dofollow” to a link, it is doing nothing useful. A normal link is already a followed link.
Why nofollow exists
Google, Yahoo and Microsoft introduced nofollow in 2005 to fight comment spam. Spammers were dropping links into blog comments, forums and guestbooks to gain PageRank. Nofollow gave site owners a way to say, “I do not vouch for this link.” Blogging platforms such as WordPress began adding it automatically to links in comments.
Over time nofollow also became the standard way to mark paid links and advertising, which Google’s guidelines say must not pass ranking credit.
What changed in 2019 and 2020
In September 2019 Google announced two important changes. We covered them in our article on rel sponsored, but here is the short version:
- Two new attributes.
rel="sponsored"marks links that are advertisements, sponsorships or other paid placements.rel="ugc"marks links in user-generated content, such as comments and forum posts. - Nofollow became a hint. Google said it would treat nofollow, sponsored and ugc as hints about which links to consider in ranking, rather than strict instructions to ignore them. From 1 March 2020, Google also began treating nofollow as a hint for crawling and indexing.
In practice, Google may now choose to use a nofollow link to understand the web better, for example to discover a page or learn about its topic. It still does not want paid links to pass credit, and marking them properly protects you.
You can combine attributes, such as rel="nofollow ugc". Existing nofollow links do not need changing. Nofollow is still accepted for paid links, though sponsored is now preferred.
Nofollow vs dofollow: side by side
| Followed (normal) link | Nofollow link | |
|---|---|---|
| HTML | No rel value, or none of the three | rel="nofollow" |
| Passes ranking credit | Yes, as a normal editorial vote | Treated as a hint, generally not counted |
| Used for | Editorial links you trust | Paid, untrusted or unverified links |
| Brings visitors | Yes | Yes |
| Can help discovery | Yes | Possibly, as a hint |
When to use each attribute
Leave links followed when
- You are linking to a source you trust and recommend
- You link to your own pages (internal links should almost always be followed)
- The link is editorial and you received nothing for it
Use rel=”sponsored” (or nofollow) when
- Someone paid for the link, in money, products, services or anything of value
- The link is part of an advert, sponsored post or affiliate programme
- You received a free product in return for a review that includes links
Use rel=”ugc” (or nofollow) when
- Links appear in blog comments, forum posts or reviews written by users
- You have not checked or vouched for those links
You might choose to remove nofollow for trusted, long-standing community members whose links you know are genuine.
Use nofollow when
- You need to link to a page but do not want to endorse it
- None of the more specific attributes fit
Should you nofollow internal links?
Generally no. Years ago some SEOs added nofollow to internal links like “login” or “terms” to channel PageRank toward key pages, a practice called PageRank sculpting. Google changed how it handles nofollow in 2009, so sculpting no longer works as intended. If you do not want a page in search results, use a noindex tag instead. Keep internal links followed so search engines can crawl your site freely.
Do nofollow links help SEO?
Directly, much less than followed editorial links. Indirectly, they can be valuable:
- Traffic: a nofollow link from a popular article, forum thread or news site can send real visitors and leads.
- Discovery: under the hint model, Google may use the link to find and understand your page.
- Visibility leads to followed links: people who find you through a nofollow mention may later link to you editorially.
- Natural profile: a real backlink profile includes a mix of followed and nofollow links. A profile with only followed links can look engineered.
Many big platforms nofollow outbound links by default, including Wikipedia, most social networks and large publishers in some sections. Links from these sites still have value for traffic and reputation.
Do followed links always help?
No. A followed link from a spammy, irrelevant or paid source can do nothing or even put your site at risk of a manual action for unnatural links. What matters is relevance and editorial judgment. Our guide to link building explains how to earn the kind of links that count, and our backlink audit guide shows how to review links you already have.
How to check whether a link is nofollow
- Inspect the page: right-click the link in Chrome or Firefox and choose Inspect. Look for
rel="nofollow",sponsoredorugcin the code. - View source: search the page source for the URL of the link.
- Browser extensions: SEO toolbars such as MozBar can highlight nofollow links on a page.
- Backlink tools: tools like Ahrefs, Majestic, Moz Link Explorer and SEMrush label links by attribute in their reports.
- Search Console: the Links report lists sites linking to you, though it does not show attributes.
Practical guidance for business sites
- Keep internal links and editorial outbound links followed.
- Mark every paid, sponsored or affiliate link with sponsored or nofollow. This includes links in guest posts you pay to publish. See our note on guest blogging for how to do it within the guidelines.
- Let your CMS add ugc or nofollow to comment links automatically.
- When building links, judge an opportunity by relevance and audience, not just by whether the link is followed.
- Use descriptive anchor text on links you control, without stuffing keywords.
FAQ
Is it bad to have lots of nofollow backlinks?
No. They are a normal part of any link profile. They will not harm your site.
Should I ask a site to change a nofollow link to followed?
Only if the link is editorial and you have a good relationship with the site. Never pay to have the attribute removed, as that turns it into a paid link.
Do Bing and other search engines treat nofollow the same way?
Bing also supports the nofollow attribute. Each engine has its own approach, so mark links accurately and let them decide.
Do I need to update old nofollow links to sponsored?
No. Google has said existing nofollow links on paid placements are fine.
Links that earn their place
Understanding nofollow and followed links helps you build links the right way and mark the ones you place on your own site correctly. If you want help with links, content and the rest of your search visibility, see how we help businesses get found.
