Dofollow vs Nofollow Links: What Is the Difference for SEO?

Dofollow vs Nofollow Links: What’s the Difference for SEO?

The distinction between dofollow and nofollow links is one of the most fundamental concepts in link building, yet it is frequently misunderstood or overlooked.

Dofollow links are the default link type: they pass PageRank from the linking page to the linked page and directly contribute to the destination’s domain authority and keyword rankings. Nofollow links carry the rel=”nofollow” attribute instead.

Nofollow links carry the rel=”nofollow” attribute, which was originally a hard directive telling Google not to pass PageRank.

Understanding which type you are acquiring, and why it matters, is essential for evaluating whether a link building investment will actually improve your rankings.

How to Identify Dofollow vs Nofollow Links

Right-click any link on a webpage and select Inspect to open your browser’s developer tools.

Look at the anchor tag. A dofollow link looks like: <a href="https://example.com">anchor text</a>.

A nofollow link looks like: <a href="https://example.com" rel="nofollow">anchor text</a>.

In Ahrefs and Semrush, links are labelled as dofollow or nofollow in their backlink reports, allowing you to filter your own profile and competitor profiles by link type.

Two additional link attributes introduced alongside the 2019 nofollow update are worth knowing: rel=”sponsored” (used for paid or affiliate links) and rel=”ugc” (used for user-generated content such as forum posts and blog comments).

Both function similarly to nofollow in terms of equity transmission, and Google treats them as hints rather than hard directives.

For practical link building purposes, all three attributes indicate a link that is not reliably passing full equity.

Where Nofollow Links Appear Most Often

Nofollow is the default attribute applied to links in several common contexts. Most blog comment sections apply nofollow automatically to prevent comment spam from generating SEO value.

Wikipedia applies nofollow to all external links. Many major news publications and social media platforms apply nofollow to user-submitted links and some editorial links as a policy choice.

Press release distribution sites often apply nofollow as part of their terms to comply with Google’s guidelines on paid or mass-distributed links.

This means that links from some very high-authority sources, including Wikipedia and certain major news outlets, are nofollow by default.

Despite not passing direct equity in the traditional sense, these nofollow links from genuinely authoritative sources carry indirect SEO benefits:

• brand visibility
• referral traffic from engaged audiences
• and entity recognition signals that contribute to Google’s understanding of your brand’s authority in its subject area

The SEO Value of Nofollow Links

Nofollow links have genuine but limited SEO value, primarily through indirect mechanisms.

A nofollow link from a DR 90 publication that sends 200 monthly referral visitors builds brand exposure among a relevant audience that may lead to organic mentions, direct traffic, and secondary followed links as other writers encounter your brand through the original coverage.

The brand recognition and entity signals that accumulate from nofollow links on authoritative sources contribute to Google’s assessment of your brand’s credibility even without direct PageRank transfer.

However, deliberately pursuing nofollow links as a primary link building strategy is not an effective approach to improving rankings.

The direct equity benefit is too limited. Nofollow links should be welcomed when they occur naturally as part of genuine brand coverage and editorial mentions, but followed editorial links should dominate any deliberate acquisition programme.

Building the Right Mix

A natural backlink profile contains both dofollow and nofollow links in proportions that reflect organic editorial behaviour.

Roughly 70 to 85 percent of referring domains in a healthy profile are typically dofollow, with the remainder nofollow from social platforms, comment sections, and publications that apply nofollow as standard policy.

A profile that is 100 percent dofollow can look artificially constructed, since genuine editorial coverage inevitably includes some nofollow links from social shares, forum mentions, and Wikipedia references.

Build your link acquisition programme around maximising high-quality dofollow placements through niche edits, editorial guest posts, and digital PR campaigns.

Allow nofollow links to accumulate naturally through genuine brand activity: social sharing, community participation, press coverage.

Do not actively pursue nofollow links as a strategy, but do not remove them from your profile when they occur naturally, since they contribute to the diversity and naturalness of your overall link pattern.

Practical Implications for Link Building Decisions

When evaluating any specific link building opportunity, the dofollow vs nofollow question is an important but not always decisive factor.

A nofollow link from a DR 85 industry publication with 50,000 monthly visitors is worth more in aggregate impact (referral traffic, brand authority, indirect link earning) than a dofollow link from a DR 25 site with no organic traffic.

Context and source quality matter alongside technical link attributes.

That said, when comparing two equally authoritative and relevant sources, the followed link is always preferable to the nofollow.

And when budgeting for deliberate link acquisition through a managed link building service, ensure that the placements you are paying for are verified followed links on pages with genuine organic traffic.

A service that cannot confirm the follow status of its placements is not providing the equity transfer that link building investment is designed to produce.

Common Misconceptions About Nofollow and Dofollow

One common misconception is that a site should try to achieve a specific dofollow-to-nofollow ratio.

There is no universal ideal ratio, and attempting to manipulate the mix by deliberately acquiring nofollow links to balance out a followed profile is wasted effort.

The ratio in a natural profile reflects editorial reality: most followed links come from content sites that do not apply nofollow to editorial links, while nofollow links accumulate from social platforms, forums, and publications with blanket nofollow policies.

Allow your ratio to reflect genuine editorial behaviour rather than trying to engineer it.

Another misconception is that a single high-authority nofollow link is worthless.

A nofollow mention in a Wikipedia article, a Forbes article, or a BBC news piece has real value through brand visibility, referral traffic, and entity recognition signals, even without the direct PageRank transfer that a dofollow link from the same source would provide.

The distinction that matters for investment decisions is: when spending budget on deliberate link acquisition, spend it on verified dofollow placements.

When evaluating the total value of your link profile, count both dofollow and nofollow links from authoritative sources as valuable assets in the broader sense.

Sponsored and UGC Attributes: The Modern Picture

The rel=”sponsored” attribute, introduced in 2019, is the correct attribute to apply to paid placements, affiliate links, and any link where a commercial arrangement exists.

It tells Google the link is commercial in nature and should be treated accordingly.

The rel=”ugc” attribute applies to user-generated content links in forums, comment sections, and community platforms.

Both are treated as hints like nofollow, meaning Google may pass some equity through them in certain contexts but does not treat them as standard editorial endorsements.

For link building programme management, the practical implications are straightforward.

Links you acquire through editorial outreach, whether niche edits, guest posts, or digital PR, should be followed with no rel attribute.

If you are running affiliate or referral programmes, those links should carry rel=”sponsored”.

User-generated content on your own site should carry rel=”ugc” where relevant. Keeping these distinctions clear in your own link building practice ensures that the links you earn and build send the right signals and do not inadvertently misrepresent the nature of the relationship to Google’s systems.

Sources

External Sources

1

Google Search Central Blog Preventing Comment Spam (Nofollow Attribute)

Google’s original 2005 nofollow announcement — the definitive source establishing what nofollow means and why it was introduced to prevent equity passing through user-submitted links.

2

Moz What Are Dofollow Links?

Moz’s dofollow link guide — confirming dofollow as the default link type that passes PageRank from the linking page to the destination, the equity-carrying link that deliberate acquisition targets.

3

Google Search Central Blog Evolving Nofollow: New Ways to Identify the Nature of Links

Google’s 2019 nofollow update — confirming the rel=”nofollow” attribute was originally introduced to combat spam and how its treatment evolved from directive to hint.

4

Ahrefs Nofollow Links: Do They Matter for SEO?

Ahrefs’ nofollow analysis — what it means to understand which link type you are acquiring and why the distinction matters for evaluating any link building opportunity.

5

Google Search Central Blog rel=sponsored and rel=ugc — New Link Attributes

Google’s documentation on rel=”sponsored” and rel=”ugc” introduced alongside the 2019 update — both functioning similarly to nofollow for equity purposes.

Internal References

6

LinkPanda Nofollow Links: Do They Help Your SEO?

The full analysis of nofollow link value — brand visibility, entity recognition, and the 2019 hint update that created nuance in how equity flows through nofollow placements.

7

LinkPanda Dofollow Links: Why They’re the Foundation of SEO Authority

Why dofollow editorial placements are the deliberate acquisition priority — and how to verify follow status before counting any placement in your acquisition metrics.

8

LinkPanda Types of Backlinks: Which Ones Help SEO and Which to Avoid

Where dofollow and nofollow sit within the full backlink taxonomy — and how follow status interacts with other quality factors to determine the value of any placement.