Nofollow Links
What a Nofollow Link Is
A nofollow link is a hyperlink with the attribute rel="nofollow", which tells search engines that the site does not vouch for the linked page. The attribute was introduced to discourage link spam, and it remains a clear signal that the link is not an endorsement.
The attribute applies to one link, not to a whole page. A setting that applies nofollow to every link on a page is a page-level directive, set in the meta robots tag, and it is covered in its own topic.
Sponsored and UGC: The Newer Attributes
Search engines also recognize two more values that describe why a link exists:
- sponsored marks links created as part of a paid placement, advertisement or affiliate arrangement.
- ugc, short for user-generated content, marks links that visitors post, such as those in comments and forum posts.
Values can be combined, for example rel="sponsored nofollow", when a link fits more than one description. Specific values give search engines more accurate information than a generic nofollow.
Hints, Not Commands
Search engines treat all three attributes as hints rather than strict instructions. A nofollow link may still be crawled, and its destination may still be discovered through other links. The attributes influence how the link is treated, including whether ranking signals pass through it, but they do not guarantee a specific result.
For this reason, nofollow is not a way to keep a page out of search. Links within your own site are a different matter, covered in internal linking. A link attribute does not control indexing. To keep a page out of results, a noindex directive or access restriction works better.
An Affiliate Blog With Reader Comments
A blog about small business software earns commission from some product links and allows reader comments. The affiliate links carry rel="sponsored", and links that readers post in comments carry ugc. The links to the blog’s own articles and to its sources remain ordinary links.
Each link is labeled for what it actually is, which keeps the signals accurate. Disclosure rules for paid links are a separate matter and depend on where the site operates.
Frequently asked questions
Does a nofollow link pass any ranking value?
It may or may not. Because the attribute is a hint, the outcome is not fixed, and search engines decide how to treat the link. A site should not rely on nofollow links to build ranking value, and should label each link honestly whatever the effect.
Should every external link be marked nofollow?
No. Sponsored and UGC values are meant for paid, advertising and user-submitted links, and nofollow is for links the site does not want to endorse. Ordinary links to sources and references are normally left unmarked, since they help readers and show where information came from.