Dofollow vs Nofollow Links: What They Are and Why They Matter for SEO

Not all backlinks are created equal. A link from a major news outlet that passes full authority to your site is fundamentally different from a link in a blog comment that search engines are told to ignore. The difference comes down to a single HTML attribute: rel.

Understanding dofollow and nofollow links—and their newer siblings ugc and sponsored—is essential for building a backlink profile that actually moves the needle on your rankings.

What Is a Dofollow Link?

A dofollow link is any standard hyperlink that doesn't include a rel="nofollow" attribute. There's no actual rel="dofollow" attribute in HTML—"dofollow" simply means the absence of a nofollow directive.

<!-- This is a dofollow link -->
<a href="https://example.com">Example Site</a>
 
<!-- This is also a dofollow link -->
<a href="https://example.com" rel="external">Example Site</a>

When a search engine crawler encounters a dofollow link, it:

1. Follows the link to the destination page
2. Passes link equity (often called "link juice") to the destination
3. Counts it as a vote of confidence for the linked page

Dofollow links are the backbone of Google's PageRank algorithm. Each one acts as a recommendation, telling search engines, "I trust this page enough to link to it."

What Is a Nofollow Link?

A nofollow link includes rel="nofollow" in the anchor tag. This was introduced by Google in 2005 to combat comment spam.

<!-- This is a nofollow link -->
<a href="https://example.com" rel="nofollow">Example Site</a>

When a search engine encounters a nofollow link, it:

1. May or may not follow the link (as of 2019, Google treats nofollow as a "hint" rather than a directive)
2. Generally does not pass link equity to the destination
3. Does not count as a ranking vote in most cases

The 2019 Change: From Directive to Hint

Before September 2019, rel="nofollow" was a strict directive—Google would not follow or credit the link. After the update, Google treats nofollow as a hint, meaning it may choose to follow the link or attribute some value to it at its discretion.

This was a significant shift. It means nofollow links aren't completely worthless for SEO—they may contribute some authority, especially from highly trusted sources.

The Full rel Attribute Family

In 2019, Google introduced two additional link attributes alongside the nofollow change:

rel="sponsored"

Identifies paid or sponsored links. Use this for:

• Paid advertisements
• Sponsored content
• Affiliate links
• Any link that exists because of a commercial agreement

<a href="https://example.com" rel="sponsored">Our Partner</a>

rel="ugc"

Identifies user-generated content links. Use this for:

• Blog comments
• Forum posts
• User profile links
• Community-submitted content

<a href="https://example.com" rel="ugc">User's Website</a>

Combining Attributes

You can combine these attributes:

<!-- Sponsored link that's also nofollow -->
<a href="https://example.com" rel="nofollow sponsored">Ad</a>
 
<!-- User-generated link that's also nofollow -->
<a href="https://example.com" rel="nofollow ugc">Forum Link</a>

How Search Engines Treat Each Type

| Attribute | Passes Link Equity | Followed | Penalty Risk If Misused | | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | | (none — dofollow) | Yes | Yes | N/A | | rel="nofollow" | Generally no (hint) | Maybe | Low | | rel="sponsored" | No | Maybe | High if undisclosed paid links aren't tagged | | rel="ugc" | No | Maybe | Low |

Why Nofollow Links Still Matter

Even though nofollow links generally don't pass direct link equity, they provide significant value:

1. Referral Traffic

A nofollow link on a high-traffic site still sends visitors to your page. Traffic is traffic, regardless of the link attribute.

2. Brand Awareness

Being mentioned on major platforms—even with nofollow links—increases brand visibility and recognition.

3. Natural Link Profile

A backlink profile that's 100% dofollow looks unnatural. Real websites accumulate a mix of dofollow and nofollow links organically.

4. Indirect SEO Benefits

When a nofollow link drives traffic to your content and those visitors then share or link to it from their own sites, you gain dofollow links indirectly.

5. The "Hint" Factor

Since Google treats nofollow as a hint, some nofollow links from authoritative sources may still influence rankings.

The Ideal Dofollow/Nofollow Ratio

There's no magic ratio, but the data from large-scale backlink studies suggests natural profiles look like this:

| Metric | Typical Range | | :--- | :--- | | Dofollow | 60–80% of total backlinks | | Nofollow | 20–40% of total backlinks |

Red Flags

• 95%+ dofollow — Suggests artificial link building. Natural sites always acquire some nofollow links from social media, forums, and directories.
• 70%+ nofollow — May indicate the site struggles to earn editorial links. Most high-authority backlinks are dofollow.
• Sudden ratio shifts — A rapid change in your dofollow/nofollow ratio can trigger algorithmic scrutiny.

How to Check if a Link Is Dofollow or Nofollow

Method 1: Browser Inspect

Right-click the link and select "Inspect Element." Look at the <a> tag:

<!-- Dofollow — no rel="nofollow" -->
<a href="https://example.com">Link Text</a>
 
<!-- Nofollow -->
<a href="https://example.com" rel="nofollow">Link Text</a>

Method 2: Browser Extensions

Several browser extensions highlight nofollow links on any page:

• NoFollow Simple (Chrome/Firefox)
• SEO Minion
• MozBar

Method 3: Backlink Analysis Tools

Tools like Ahrefs, MOZ, and Majestic show the dofollow/nofollow status of every backlink pointing to your site, along with aggregate ratios.

Method 4: Check <meta> Tags

Some sites apply nofollow at the page level:

<!-- All links on this page are nofollow -->
<meta name="robots" content="nofollow">

This overrides individual link attributes—even if an <a> tag doesn't have rel="nofollow", the page-level meta tag makes all links nofollow.

Common Sources of Dofollow Links

These sources typically provide dofollow links:

• Editorial mentions — News sites, blogs, and magazines linking to your content naturally
• Guest posts — Author bio or contextual links on reputable sites
• Resource pages — Curated lists of tools, guides, or references
• Business directories — Established directories (not spammy ones)
• Partner sites — Legitimate business partnerships
• Broken link building — Replacing dead links on other sites with your content

Common Sources of Nofollow Links

These sources typically add nofollow to outgoing links:

• Social media — Twitter/X, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram (all nofollow)
• Wikipedia — All external links are nofollow
• Blog comments — Most CMS platforms nofollow comment links by default
• Forums — Reddit, Quora, Stack Overflow (nofollow or ugc)
• Press releases — Most distribution services nofollow links
• User profiles — Platform profile links are typically nofollow

Link Building Strategies by Link Type

Building Dofollow Links

Content-driven strategies:

• Create original research and data that others want to cite
• Write comprehensive guides that become reference material
• Build free tools that earn natural editorial links
• Produce visual assets (infographics, charts) that others embed with attribution

Outreach strategies:

• Guest posting on relevant, authoritative sites
• Broken link building — find dead links on other sites and offer your content as a replacement
• The Skyscraper Technique — find popular content, create something better, reach out to sites linking to the original
• HARO (Help a Reporter Out) — provide expert quotes to journalists

Maximizing Nofollow Link Value

Even though nofollow links don't directly pass equity, you can maximize their impact:

• Target high-traffic platforms — A nofollow link on a page with 100K monthly visitors drives meaningful referral traffic
• Optimize anchor text — Even on nofollow links, relevant anchor text provides context
• Be genuinely helpful — Forum answers and blog comments that provide real value attract clicks
• Build brand mentions — Consistent mentions across platforms increase brand search volume, which is a ranking signal

Tracking Your Backlink Profile

Monitoring your dofollow/nofollow distribution should be part of your regular SEO routine:

What to Track Monthly

• Total backlinks (dofollow vs nofollow count)
• New links acquired this month
• Lost links this month
• Dofollow/nofollow ratio trend
• Referring domains (unique sites linking to you)
• Anchor text distribution

What to Investigate

• Any single domain sending more than 100 links to your site
• Links from irrelevant industries or languages
• Sudden spikes in either dofollow or nofollow links
• Links with exact-match anchor text from unknown sources

Nofollow in Internal Links

One often-overlooked topic: should you ever use nofollow on your own internal links?

Short answer: Almost never.

In the past, "PageRank sculpting"—using nofollow on low-priority internal links to direct more equity to important pages—was a common tactic. Google's John Mueller has confirmed this doesn't work as intended. Using nofollow on internal links simply wastes link equity.

The only valid use case is for internal links to login pages, registration forms, or other pages you explicitly don't want indexed.

Conclusion

Dofollow links pass authority and directly influence rankings. Nofollow links don't—at least not directly—but they drive traffic, build brand awareness, and contribute to a natural-looking backlink profile that search engines trust.

The healthiest approach is to earn both types naturally through great content and genuine relationships. Focus on creating link-worthy content, and the right ratio will follow.

Want to see your dofollow/nofollow breakdown? WebScore tracks your complete backlink profile, showing exactly which links are dofollow, nofollow, ugc, and sponsored—updated with every scan.