Definition
A nofollow link carries a rel attribute, nofollow, sponsored or ugc, that tells search engines not to treat it as an editorial endorsement.
Nofollow link explained
Google recognizes three rel values for qualifying links:
- rel sponsored: for advertisements and paid placements.
- rel ugc: for user-generated content such as comments and forum posts.
- rel nofollow: for other cases where you don't want your site associated with, or crawling from, the linked page.
Google says links marked with these attributes will generally not be followed. It also says paid links must be qualified this way; buying or selling links that pass ranking credit breaches its spam policies. Links without any of these attributes are informally called dofollow links.
Nofollow links still have value. They can send real visitors, build brand awareness, and appear on the forums, review sites and news pages that AI assistants read and cite. A natural backlink profile includes a mix of followed and nofollowed links, so there is no need to avoid a relevant opportunity just because the link is nofollow.
Example
Your brand sponsors an industry newsletter that links to your site. The publisher marks the link rel sponsored, as Google requires for paid placements. It passes no ranking credit but still brings in readers who become leads.
Why it matters
Understanding link attributes keeps paid partnerships compliant and helps you value links for the traffic and visibility they bring, not only ranking credit.
Related service
Link Building
Editorial links and mentions from relevant publications, earned with research and digital PR.
White-hat link building servicesSources
- Google Search Central: Qualify your outbound links to Google (updated 10 Dec 2025)
- Google Search Central: Spam policies for Google web search (updated 28 Aug 2026)
Published by Vidern, founded and led by Malhar Shah. Updated .
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Related terms
- BacklinkA backlink is a link from another site to yours; relevant, editorial backlinks tell search engines that others vouch for your content.
- PBN (Private Blog Network)A PBN (private blog network) is a group of websites controlled by one party and used to create links to other sites to manipulate search rankings.
- Guest postingGuest posting is writing an article for another website, usually with a byline and a link back to your own site.
- Brand mentionA brand mention is any reference to your company, product or founder by name on another website, forum, video or AI answer, whether or not it links to you.