What Is Nofollow? The Link Attribute Explained
DICTIONARY · SEO

What Is a Nofollow Link?

Nofollow is a link attribute indicating that a link should not be treated as an endorsement.

In plain English

It was introduced to fight comment spam and became the standard way to link somewhere without vouching for it. Since 2019 Google treats it as a hint rather than a strict instruction.

It now sits alongside two more specific attributes: sponsored for paid or affiliate links, and ugc for user-generated content.

What to know

Not an endorsement
Signals that you are linking without vouching for the destination.
A hint, not a rule
Search engines may still consider the link when it is useful to do so.
Three attributes
nofollow for general cases, sponsored for paid, ugc for user submissions.
Still valuable
A nofollow link from a large site still brings visitors and visibility.

Why it matters

Getting attributes right protects you. Paid and affiliate links that are not marked can be treated as link schemes, and that is a site-level risk taken for very little gain.

Common mistakes

×Leaving affiliate links unmarked.
×Nofollowing internal links in an attempt to sculpt authority.
×Dismissing nofollow links as worthless when they still bring traffic.
×Using nofollow where noindex was the actual requirement.

FAQs

Do nofollow links help SEO?

Indirectly. They bring visitors and awareness, and they may still be considered.

Which attribute for affiliate links?

Sponsored. It is the one specifically intended for paid and affiliate relationships.

WRITTEN BY TARIQ SALLAM
Marketing Consultant. Entrepreneur. Content Creator.

I'm a marketing consultant, entrepreneur and content creator. I help businesses grow through practical marketing, websites, SEO, content and AI.

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