TL;DR: Dofollow links pass ranking authority and count as a vote, while nofollow links tell Google not to pass any authority through.
In a nutshell
Every hyperlink is dofollow by default. Adding the rel=”nofollow” attribute (or rel=”sponsored” or rel=”ugc”) tells Google not to treat the link as an endorsement. Nofollow is standard for paid links, blog comments, and untrusted external destinations. For example, links inside a sponsored post or affiliate review should be marked nofollow or sponsored.
Quick answer: A dofollow link passes ranking authority from one page to another and counts as an endorsement in Google’s eyes. A nofollow link tells Google not to pass authority through that link. Most links are dofollow by default. Nofollow is added explicitly using the rel="nofollow" attribute, typically on user-generated content, paid links, and untrusted external destinations.
What Is the Difference Between Nofollow and Dofollow Links?
Nofollow and dofollow are two types of links that can be used in SEO and link building. These terms refer to how search engines treat backlinks to your website. While both types of links can be beneficial for SEO, understanding the difference between them is important for building a successful link profile and improving your search rankings.
At BrisTechTonic, we help businesses optimise their link building strategy by strategically using both nofollow and dofollow links. By understanding when and how to use each type of link, we can help improve your website’s SEO performance.
What Are Nofollow Links?
A nofollow link is a hyperlink that contains the rel="nofollow" attribute in its HTML code. This tells search engines not to follow the link and not to pass any link juice or authority to the linked page. Nofollow links are typically used when a website doesn’t want to vouch for or endorse the content of the linked page.
While nofollow links don’t directly contribute to SEO rankings, they can still be useful for generating traffic and increasing visibility. They are commonly used for:
- Paid Links: Google advises that paid links should have the nofollow attribute to avoid manipulation of search rankings.
- Comments: User-generated content in blog comments or forums often includes nofollow links to prevent spam.
- Social Media Links: Links from platforms like Twitter and Facebook are often nofollow, as they are not intended to pass link equity.
What Are Dofollow Links?
A dofollow link is a standard hyperlink that does not contain the rel="nofollow" attribute. Dofollow links allow search engines to follow the link and pass link juice (SEO authority) from the referring page to the linked page. These links are valuable for improving your website’s SEO because they help improve your page’s rankings in search results.
Dofollow links are commonly used for:
- Organic Backlinks: These are naturally acquired backlinks from authoritative websites that are not paid for.
- Editorial Links: Links from content such as blog posts, articles, and guides that are included for their relevance and value.
- Guest Posts: Links within guest blog posts that pass authority to the linked pages.
Why Do Nofollow and Dofollow Links Matter for SEO?
Both nofollow and dofollow links play important roles in a website’s SEO strategy:
- Dofollow Links: These links directly influence SEO by passing authority from the linking site to the linked page. Dofollow links help improve search rankings and visibility in SERPs, contributing to domain authority.
- Nofollow Links: Although nofollow links do not pass link equity, they still play an important role in building a diverse backlink profile. They can help generate referral traffic, increase brand exposure, and diversify your link profile, which can reduce the risk of Google penalties.
How to Use Nofollow vs Dofollow Links
When building backlinks and optimising your SEO, it’s important to use a combination of both nofollow and dofollow links. Here’s how we use each type of link in a balanced SEO strategy:
1. Use Dofollow Links to Build Authority
We focus on acquiring high-quality dofollow backlinks from authoritative websites in your industry. These backlinks pass SEO authority to your pages and improve their chances of ranking higher in search engine results.
2. Use Nofollow Links for Traffic Diversification
We also target nofollow links to diversify your backlink profile. Nofollow links can still drive valuable referral traffic to your website, and their inclusion in your link profile ensures that it looks natural to search engines. Our anchor profile guidance also applies here, balance is everything.
3. Keep User Experience in Mind
Ultimately, the goal is to build a well-rounded link profile that prioritises user experience and relevance. While dofollow links are valuable for SEO, nofollow links are important for engaging with users and creating trust with other websites and platforms.
How Nofollow vs Dofollow Affects SEO
Here’s how nofollow and dofollow links impact SEO:
- Improves Search Rankings (Dofollow Links): Dofollow links pass link juice, which helps improve the rankings of the linked page in search results.
- Increases Visibility and Traffic (Nofollow Links): Nofollow links can still help generate referral traffic from other websites, even though they don’t directly influence search rankings.
- Builds a Natural Link Profile (Both): A natural link profile includes a mix of nofollow and dofollow links. Using only dofollow links can look manipulative to search engines, while using only nofollow links may not provide enough authority to improve rankings. Strong external linking patterns matter.
Common Mistakes with Nofollow vs Dofollow Links
- Relying Too Heavily on Dofollow Links: Focusing solely on dofollow links can make your link profile look unnatural to search engines. We ensure that your link profile includes a healthy mix of both dofollow and nofollow links.
- Ignoring Nofollow Links: Nofollow links may not directly impact rankings, but they are important for referral traffic and overall link profile diversity. We make sure to include nofollow links when appropriate.
- Overuse of Nofollow Links in Paid Ads: Paid links should be nofollow, but overusing them can signal to search engines that your link building is manipulative. We ensure that paid links are appropriately marked as nofollow.
How We Help with Nofollow and Dofollow Links at BrisTechTonic
At BrisTechTonic, we help businesses build a natural and effective backlink strategy using both nofollow and dofollow links. Here’s how we can help:
- Backlink Strategy: We develop a comprehensive link building strategy that includes both nofollow and dofollow links to improve your website’s SEO.
- Content Creation: We create high-quality, shareable content that naturally attracts dofollow links while also focusing on diversifying your link profile with nofollow links.
- Outreach Campaigns: We run outreach campaigns to acquire high-quality dofollow backlinks from authoritative websites in your industry, while also considering the value of nofollow links for traffic generation.
External Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
Are nofollow links useful for SEO?
Yes, just not in the way dofollow links are. Since 2019, Google treats nofollow as a hint rather than a directive, which means some nofollow links may still pass small amounts of authority. More importantly, nofollow links from authoritative sites (Wikipedia, major publications) drive direct traffic, brand exposure, and discovery, even if they pass less ranking signal.
How do I check if a link is nofollow?
Inspect the link in your browser’s developer tools and look at the <a> tag’s rel attribute. If it includes "nofollow", it is a nofollow link. Browser extensions like NoFollow or MozBar highlight nofollow links automatically on any page.
Should I add nofollow to internal links?
Almost never. Internal links are how Google understands your site structure and how authority flows between your pages. Nofollow on internal links wastes crawl signal. The only common exception is internal links to non-essential pages like login or admin URLs.
What is the difference between nofollow, sponsored, and UGC?
All three are link attributes that signal something to Google. Nofollow says "do not endorse this link". Sponsored is specifically for paid links, ads, and affiliate links. UGC marks user-generated content links like blog comments and forum posts. Use the most specific attribute that applies.
Take this further
Link strategy is one of the most misunderstood parts of SEO. Knowing when nofollow matters, when it does not, and how to build a healthy mix of authoritative inbound links is core to long-term ranking growth.
Real example: how a Bristol accountancy firm got found in AI search through topical authority.
Ready to apply this to your own site? Book a free discovery call, or explore our SEO strategy service.