Why Some Backlinks Have the Nofollow Attribute? Full Insights on Links

Table Of Contents

Introduction

If you have ever looked closely at the HTML code of a website, you may have noticed that some links contain a small but significant piece of text: rel=”nofollow”. At first glance, this might seem like technical jargon that only developers need to worry about. But in the world of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and digital marketing, understanding nofollow backlinks is absolutely essential.

Backlinks – also called inbound links or incoming links – are hyperlinks from one website pointing to another. They are one of the most important factors that search engines like Google use to determine the authority, credibility, and ranking position of a webpage. The more high-quality backlinks a page has, the more likely it is to rank well in search results.

However, not all backlinks are created equal. Some pass what is known as “link equity” or “link juice” – a kind of vote of confidence that can boost a page’s search ranking. Others do not. This is where the nofollow attribute comes into play.

In this article, we will explore everything you need to know about the nofollow attribute: what it is, why it exists, when and why websites use it, how it differs from other link types, and what it means for your SEO strategy. Whether you are a complete beginner or someone looking to deepen your understanding, this guide is written in plain language and packed with practical insights.

1. Understanding Backlinks: The Foundation

What Is a Backlink?

A backlink is simply a link on one website that points to another website. For example, if a popular news website writes an article and includes a link to your blog post, that is a backlink to your site. In the eyes of a search engine, this link is like a recommendation or a vote of trust.

Search engines like Google treat backlinks as signals of quality. If many reputable websites link to your page, Google interprets this as evidence that your content is valuable, trustworthy, and worth showing to users. This is a core part of how Google’s algorithm – originally built on a concept called PageRank – works.

Why Backlinks Matter for SEO

Backlinks influence your website’s authority and rankings in several ways:

They signal to search engines that your content is trustworthy and relevant.
They help search engine bots discover new pages on the web.
They can drive direct referral traffic from the linking website to yours.
They contribute to your domain authority, which is a measure of your overall site strength.

Not all backlinks carry the same weight, though. A link from a highly trusted, authoritative website is worth far more than a link from a low-quality or spammy website. And some links, by design, carry no weight at all. That is exactly where the nofollow attribute enters the picture.

2. What Is the Nofollow Attribute?

The Technical Definition

The nofollow attribute is a value applied to the “rel” (relationship) attribute of an HTML anchor tag. Here is what a standard link looks like in HTML:

<a href=”https://www.example.com”>Visit Example</a>

And here is what a nofollow link looks like:

<a href=”https://www.example.com” rel=”nofollow”>Visit Example</a>

The only difference is the addition of rel=”nofollow” inside the anchor tag. This small addition sends a powerful message to search engines: “I am linking to this page, but I am not endorsing it or vouching for its quality. Please do not count this link as a vote of confidence.”

Where Did the Nofollow Attribute Come From?

The nofollow attribute was introduced by Google in 2005. Its original purpose was to combat comment spam – a widespread problem at the time where spammers would post thousands of comments on blogs and forums, each containing links back to their own websites. These spammy comments existed purely to manipulate search engine rankings.

By introducing nofollow, Google gave website owners a way to tell search engines: “We did not create this link. We do not endorse the destination. Do not follow it or give it any SEO credit.” This drastically reduced the incentive for spammers to post links in comments, because those links would no longer provide any SEO benefit.

Key Insight: The nofollow attribute was born out of necessity – as a defense mechanism against link spam and manipulation of search rankings. Over time, its uses have expanded far beyond just comment sections.

3. How Search Engines Treat Nofollow Links

The Original Rule: Complete Ignorance

When nofollow was first introduced, Google’s stance was straightforward: they would not follow nofollow links, they would not crawl the pages they pointed to, and they would not count them when calculating a page’s ranking. In other words, nofollow links were completely ignored from an SEO perspective.

This was a clear and simple rule that gave webmasters a reliable way to manage their link profiles. If you didn’t want to pass link equity to another page – whether because you didn’t trust it, you were paid for the link, or it was user-generated content – you added nofollow, and that was the end of it.

Google’s 2019 Update: From Directive to Hint

In September 2019, Google made a significant announcement that changed how nofollow links are treated. Google updated its approach and reclassified nofollow from a directive (a strict instruction that must be followed) to a hint (a suggestion that Google may or may not choose to follow).

In practical terms, this means that Google now reserves the right to follow nofollow links, crawl the destination pages, and potentially use those links as signals when ranking content – even if the nofollow attribute is present. Google made it clear they would use all available information to better understand the web.

This update surprised many in the SEO community. While nofollow links still carry significantly less (often zero) link equity in most cases, the 2019 change introduced an element of uncertainty. Google might, at its discretion, choose to consider a nofollow link as a ranking signal.

What This Means in Practice

For most website owners, the practical impact of the 2019 change is minimal. Nofollow links are still widely treated as non-passing links, and the SEO community generally advises treating them as such in your strategy. However, this change highlighted an important truth: Google’s interpretation of HTML attributes is not always black and white.

It also introduced two new, more specific link attributes designed to give webmasters more granular control. We will discuss those shortly.

4. Why Websites Use the Nofollow Attribute

There are several legitimate and important reasons why a website might add the nofollow attribute to its links. Understanding each of these reasons helps demystify why you encounter nofollow links so frequently across the web.

Reason 1: Combating Comment and Forum Spam

This was the original use case and remains one of the most common. Whenever a website allows users to post comments, submit forum posts, or write reviews that include links, there is a risk of spam. By automatically adding nofollow to all user-submitted links, site owners eliminate the SEO incentive for spammers.

Most major blogging platforms, content management systems, and forum software automatically apply nofollow to user-generated links by default. WordPress, for example, adds nofollow to all comment links automatically. This is a sensible default because the site owner has no way to personally vet every link submitted by a user.

Practical Example: If you run a blog and allow comments, your website is almost certainly adding nofollow to any links posted by commenters. This is healthy and recommended behavior.

Reason 2: Paid or Sponsored Links

Google has always been clear that paid links – links that are given in exchange for money, products, services, or any other form of compensation – must be disclosed. If a company pays a blogger to write a post and include a link, that link should be marked as nofollow (or with the newer “sponsored” attribute, discussed later).

The reason is straightforward: paid links are not organic endorsements. Google’s entire ranking philosophy is built on the idea that links represent genuine recommendations. Paid links can corrupt this system by allowing wealthy companies to simply buy their way to the top of search results. The nofollow attribute (or sponsored attribute) is Google’s way of maintaining the integrity of its ranking signals.

Failing to disclose paid links can result in a Google penalty – a serious consequence that can cause a website to drop dramatically in search rankings or even be removed from search results entirely.

Reason 3: Untrusted or Unverified Content

Sometimes a website wants to link to an external page but is not ready to vouch for its quality or accuracy. Perhaps the site is linking to a source for reference purposes but is not certain the source is fully trustworthy. In these cases, adding nofollow is a cautious but responsible move.

For example, a fact-checking website might link to a source they are debunking. They want readers to see the original claim, but they certainly do not want to endorse or recommend that source. Nofollow allows them to link without passing any SEO endorsement.

Reason 4: Widgets, Embeds, and Site-Wide Links

Some websites create widgets – small embeddable tools like calculators, clocks, or review badges – that other websites can place on their pages. These widgets often contain a link back to the creator’s website. Google has stated that these types of links should carry the nofollow attribute, because they are not genuine editorial endorsements.

Similarly, site-wide links (links that appear in the footer or sidebar of every page on a website) can sometimes look unnatural to search engines if they pass full link equity. Adding nofollow to these links keeps a site’s link profile clean and natural-looking.

Reason 5: Affiliate Links

Affiliate links are links that earn the website owner a commission when a visitor clicks through and makes a purchase. Because these links are commercial in nature and not purely editorial recommendations, many SEO guidelines recommend marking them as nofollow or sponsored.

Without nofollow, affiliate links can create the appearance of paid links in disguise, which could attract scrutiny from Google. Adding nofollow keeps the site’s practices transparent and compliant with Google’s Webmaster Guidelines.

Reason 6: Login and Internal Tool Pages

Sometimes websites link to internal pages like login screens, shopping carts, or admin dashboards that they do not want indexed by search engines. Adding nofollow to these links helps signal to search engine bots that there is no need to crawl or index these pages, preserving crawl budget for more important content.

Reason 7: Social Media and Large Platforms

Almost all major social media platforms – including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Reddit – apply nofollow to outbound links by default. These platforms host millions of user-generated links daily, and they have no way to evaluate or endorse each one. By applying nofollow universally to user-created links, they protect themselves from liability and ensure that their platforms are not used as link-building schemes.

This is worth knowing if you are building a link-building strategy. A link shared on social media will not directly boost your SEO in the traditional sense, even if it drives a lot of traffic.

5. The New Link Attributes: Sponsored and UGC

As mentioned earlier, Google’s 2019 update did more than just reclassify nofollow as a hint. It also introduced two brand-new link attribute values: “sponsored” and “ugc” (User Generated Content). These new attributes give webmasters a more precise language for describing the nature of their links.

The Sponsored Attribute

The sponsored attribute is designed specifically for paid links, advertising links, and affiliate links. If you receive payment or compensation in any form in exchange for a link, Google now recommends using rel=”sponsored” instead of rel=”nofollow”.

<a href=”https://www.partner.com” rel=”sponsored”>Our Partner</a>

Using “sponsored” is more informative than simply using “nofollow” because it tells Google exactly why the link exists. This helps Google maintain the integrity of its ranking algorithm and ensures transparency between advertisers, publishers, and search engines.

The UGC Attribute

The UGC attribute stands for User Generated Content. It is designed for links that appear in comments, forum posts, community discussions, reviews, and any other content that was created by a visitor or user rather than the site owner.

Like “sponsored,” the UGC attribute gives Google more context about the origin of the link. If Google sees a link marked as UGC, it understands that the site owner did not personally create or endorse that link – it came from a community member.

Can You Use Multiple Attributes Together?

Yes! Google supports combining these attributes. For example, if a link is both paid and user-generated (unlikely but theoretically possible), you could write:

You can also use all three values: nofollow, sponsored, and ugc together if needed. This flexibility allows webmasters to be as precise as possible in describing their link relationships.

Summary Table of Link Attributes:• rel=”dofollow” (default) – Passes full link equity. An editorial endorsement.• rel=”nofollow” – General signal that the link should not be followed or counted.• rel=”sponsored” – Paid, advertising, or affiliate links.• rel=”ugc” – Links from user-generated content like comments or forums.

6. Dofollow vs Nofollow: The Core Difference

What Is a Dofollow Link?

You may have seen the term “dofollow” used in SEO discussions. Technically, “dofollow” is not a real HTML attribute – it is simply the absence of nofollow. When a link has no rel attribute restriction, search engines follow it and count it as a standard, link-equity-passing backlink by default. The SEO community coined the term “dofollow” as an informal way to distinguish regular links from nofollow links.

Every link on the internet is either dofollow (by default) or nofollow (explicitly marked). If you see someone referring to a “dofollow backlink,” they simply mean a regular link that passes SEO value.

Which Is Better for SEO?

For SEO purposes, dofollow backlinks are generally more valuable because they pass link equity – that boost to your domain authority and page rankings. If you are building backlinks as part of an SEO strategy, you naturally want to earn as many high-quality dofollow links as possible.

However, nofollow links are not entirely without value. They can still:

Drive real, human visitors to your website through referral traffic.
Increase brand awareness and visibility even without SEO credit.
Contribute to a natural, diverse link profile that looks authentic to search engines.
Potentially be considered by Google as indirect ranking signals (given the 2019 update).

A healthy, natural backlink profile for any website will contain both dofollow and nofollow links in a realistic ratio. A profile made up entirely of dofollow links can look artificially constructed and may raise red flags with search engines.

7. The Impact of Nofollow Links on SEO Strategy

Should You Pursue Nofollow Backlinks?

This is one of the most common questions in SEO circles. The answer depends on your goals. If you are purely chasing ranking improvements, then dofollow links from authoritative sites are your primary target. But if you have a holistic digital marketing strategy, nofollow links still have a meaningful role to play.

Consider the following scenario: a major newspaper writes about your company and includes a link to your website. Even if that link is nofollow (as many media links are), the exposure, the brand authority, and the referral traffic can be enormously valuable. The indirect benefits often outweigh the direct SEO value.

Building a Natural Link Profile

Search engines have become extremely sophisticated at identifying unnatural link-building practices. One major red flag is a backlink profile that is unnaturally clean – made up almost entirely of dofollow links from perfectly optimized anchor text. Real websites accumulate links organically, and organic link profiles always contain a healthy mix of nofollow and dofollow links.

In fact, if your site has no nofollow links at all, some SEO experts would consider that suspicious. Natural link profiles look messy and diverse – links from forums, comments, social media, directories, media, blogs, and partner sites – each with different attributes and anchor text.

Link Building Tactics and Nofollow

When evaluating link-building opportunities, you should always check whether a site passes dofollow links or adds nofollow. Some common tactics and their typical link types include:

Guest blogging on reputable sites – Usually dofollow (high value).
Blog comments – Usually nofollow (low direct SEO value).
Social media shares – Almost always nofollow.
Press releases – Often nofollow from major distribution services.
Wikipedia links – All external links are nofollow.
Forum signatures – Often nofollow.
Directory listings – Varies; many quality directories pass dofollow.
Resource page links – Often dofollow if curated editorially.

Understanding which tactics yield dofollow versus nofollow links helps you allocate your time and effort more strategically.

8. How to Check If a Backlink Is Nofollow

Method 1: Inspect Element in Your Browser

The simplest way to check whether a specific link is nofollow is to right-click on it in your browser and select “Inspect” or “Inspect Element.” This opens the browser’s developer tools and highlights the HTML of that link. Look for the rel=”nofollow” attribute in the anchor tag.

Method 2: View Page Source

You can also press Ctrl+U (or Cmd+U on Mac) to view the full source code of any webpage. Then use Ctrl+F to search for “nofollow” to quickly identify all nofollow links on that page.

Method 3: SEO Tools

Professional SEO tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, Moz, and Majestic can analyze your entire backlink profile and clearly identify which links are dofollow and which are nofollow. These tools are invaluable for large-scale link audits and competitive research.

When analyzing a competitor’s backlink profile, for example, you can filter to see only their dofollow links from high-authority domains – giving you a clear shortlist of sites worth targeting for your own link-building efforts.

Method 4: Browser Extensions

There are several free browser extensions – such as MozBar, Ahrefs SEO Toolbar, and SEOquake – that automatically highlight nofollow links on any page you visit. These are great for quick, on-the-fly checks as you browse the web.

9. Common Misconceptions About Nofollow Links

Misconception 1: Nofollow Links Are Completely Worthless

This is perhaps the most common misconception in SEO. While nofollow links do not directly pass link equity in the traditional sense, they are not worthless. They can drive traffic, build brand awareness, contribute to a natural link profile, and – since the 2019 update – may even be used as hints by Google in ranking decisions.

A nofollow link from a website with millions of visitors can send thousands of people to your site. That kind of exposure has enormous real-world value that transcends its direct SEO impact.

Misconception 2: You Should Always Avoid Building Nofollow Links

Some people interpret the lower SEO value of nofollow links to mean that they should be avoided entirely. This is incorrect. A link-building strategy that only pursues dofollow links will produce an unnatural-looking backlink profile. Nofollow links from reputable, high-traffic sources are genuinely valuable and should absolutely be part of your strategy.

Misconception 3: Nofollow Prevents Bots from Visiting the Page

This is a subtle but important clarification. Nofollow tells search engines not to follow the link for ranking purposes and not to pass link equity. However, it does not completely prevent search engine bots from ever visiting the destination page. Googlebot may still crawl a nofollow link – especially following the 2019 hint update. If you need to prevent a page from being indexed, use the noindex tag or robots.txt instead.

Misconception 4: Adding Nofollow to Internal Links Is Always Good

Some website owners add nofollow to internal links in an attempt to concentrate link equity on their most important pages. This practice – once called “PageRank sculpting” – has become much less effective. Google has clarified that it does not recommend using nofollow on internal links for this purpose, and doing so can actually cause PageRank to be wasted rather than redirected. There are better ways to signal page importance, such as proper site architecture and internal linking strategy.

10. Nofollow in the Context of Link Building Best Practices

Creating Content That Earns Natural Links

The most effective long-term SEO strategy is to create content so valuable, informative, and unique that other websites naturally want to link to it – without any outreach or incentive. These organic, editorial links are almost always dofollow and represent the highest quality of backlink you can earn.

When your content earns natural links, you do not have to worry about whether the links are nofollow or dofollow. The focus shifts from link hunting to value creation.

Diversifying Your Link Sources

Smart SEO practitioners understand that link diversity is key. Getting links from many different types of websites – blogs, news outlets, academic institutions, community forums, industry directories – creates a robust and credible backlink profile. Even if some of these links are nofollow, the overall pattern signals to Google that your site is genuinely recognized and referenced across the web.

Avoiding Black Hat Link Schemes

The history of SEO is filled with tactics that tried to game the system – buying links in bulk, participating in link farms, exchanging links en masse, or using private blog networks (PBNs) to manufacture dofollow links artificially. Google has consistently cracked down on all of these practices.

The nofollow attribute plays an important role in keeping the link ecosystem clean. When used correctly – on paid links, user-generated content, and untrusted links – it helps maintain the integrity of Google’s ranking signals. When websites ignore this and pass link equity through paid or sponsored links without disclosure, they risk severe penalties.

11. Real-World Examples of Nofollow Usage

Wikipedia

Wikipedia applies nofollow to every external link on the platform. Despite being one of the most authoritative websites in the world, Wikipedia has made a deliberate policy decision to not pass link equity to the pages it references. This is partly to prevent Wikipedia from being manipulated by people trying to gain SEO benefits from Wikipedia citations.

Interestingly, many SEO studies have found that pages linked from Wikipedia still benefit indirectly – not from direct link equity, but from increased visibility, referral traffic, and the credibility signal that comes from being referenced on one of the world’s most trusted websites.

News Websites

Many major news and media websites apply nofollow to their outbound links by default. News organizations link to thousands of sources and external pages, and they cannot personally vouch for the quality of every site they reference. Nofollow allows them to provide citations and references without creating unintended SEO endorsements.

E-Commerce Product Reviews

On e-commerce platforms that allow user reviews, any links posted within reviews are typically marked as nofollow or UGC. The platform has no control over what reviewers might link to, and they do not want to pass SEO credit to potentially spammy or irrelevant external pages.

YouTube

Links in YouTube descriptions and comments are nofollow. YouTube handles billions of user-submitted links and cannot evaluate each one for quality. By applying nofollow universally, YouTube ensures that its platform cannot be abused as a link-building tool.

Conclusion

The nofollow attribute might seem like a minor technical detail, but as we have explored throughout this article, it plays a fundamental role in how the internet’s link ecosystem operates. It was created to fight spam, evolved to address the commercial realities of digital advertising, and continues to be refined as search engines become more sophisticated.

Understanding why some backlinks have the nofollow attribute is not just an academic exercise – it has real implications for your SEO strategy, your link-building efforts, and how you manage the links on your own website. Whether you are a blogger trying to comply with Google’s guidelines, a business owner building authority through backlinks, or a developer managing a website’s technical SEO, the principles in this article will serve you well.

Here are the core takeaways from this guide:

The nofollow attribute tells search engines not to follow a link or count it as an SEO endorsement.
It was introduced in 2005 to combat comment spam and has since evolved into a family of attributes including “sponsored” and “ugc.”
Websites use nofollow for many valid reasons: user-generated content, paid links, untrusted sources, affiliate links, and more.
In 2019, Google reclassified nofollow from a directive to a hint, giving itself discretion to use nofollow links as signals.
Nofollow links still have value through referral traffic, brand awareness, and contributing to a natural link profile.
A healthy SEO strategy embraces both dofollow and nofollow links rather than avoiding the latter entirely.

Final Thought: In SEO, quality, relevance, and authenticity always win in the long run. Whether a link is nofollow or dofollow, the best way to earn powerful backlinks is to create exceptional content that genuinely helps people – and let the rest follow naturally.

About the Author

Jay Patel is the Founder of XSquareSEO, a full-service SEO agency with experience in on-page SEO, eCommerce SEO, link building, technical SEO, SaaS SEO, and local SEO. For more information, feel free to contact us.

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