What’s The Difference Between A DoFollow And A NoFollow link?

Every link on the web falls into one of two camps: dofollow or nofollow. The difference comes down to a single snippet of HTML code, but its impact on your SEO can be significant.

A dofollow link passes link equity (ranking strength) from one page to another, telling search engines the linked page is worth trusting. A nofollow link contains a rel=”nofollow” attribute that tells Google (supposedly) not to pass that equity along.

That’s the quick answer, but there’s far more to it. Below, we’ll break down how each link type works, when to use them, and why nofollow links are more valuable than most people think. It’s something any experienced digital PR agency will tell you when building a balanced link profile.

What Is a DoFollow Link?

A dofollow link is the standard, default type of hyperlink on the web. Despite the name, there’s no actual “dofollow” attribute in HTML. A link simply becomes dofollow when it has no special rel attributes (such as nofollow, sponsored, or ugc) attached to it.

Here’s what a dofollow link looks like in HTML:

<a href=”https://example.com/”>Click here</a>

Because nothing is telling search engines otherwise, Google treats a dofollow link as a vote of confidence. It crawls the link, follows it to the destination page, and passes link equity (sometimes called “link juice” or ranking strength) from the linking page to the linked one.

This is why dofollow links sit at the heart of most link building strategies. When an authoritative, relevant website links to your content with a dofollow link, it signals to search engines that your page is trustworthy and worth ranking. The more quality dofollow links a page earns, the stronger its authority becomes in Google’s eyes.

That said, not all dofollow links carry equal weight. A link from a respected industry publication will do far more for your rankings than dozens from low-quality directories.

What Is a NoFollow Link?

A nofollow link is a hyperlink that includes the rel=”nofollow” attribute in its HTML code. This small piece of markup tells search engines not to pass link equity to the destination page, and that the link shouldn’t be treated as an endorsement.

Here’s what a nofollow link looks like in HTML:

<a href=”https://example.com/” rel=”nofollow”>Click here</a>

To a visitor reading your page, a nofollow link looks and behaves exactly like any other link. They can click it and land on the destination page as normal. The attribute only matters to search engines, which use it as a hint about how much trust to place in the link.

Google introduced the nofollow attribute back in 2005 as a way to combat comment spam, giving site owners a way to link out without vouching for the destination. In 2019, Google expanded the system with two related attributes: rel=”sponsored” for paid and affiliate links, and rel=”ugc” for user-generated content like comments and forum posts.

It’s also worth noting that Google now treats nofollow as a hint rather than a strict directive, meaning it may still choose to crawl or count some nofollow links.

When Should I Be Using NoFollow Links?

As a site owner, the general rule is simple: use nofollow (or one of its related attributes) whenever a link is paid for, unvetted, or something you don’t want to vouch for.

The clearest example is affiliate links, which should always be tagged with nofollow or sponsored. Untagged affiliate links can be seen as link spam and may earn your domain a penalty. The same goes for paid placements and sponsorships. If money changed hands, the link must be labelled, and Google prefers sponsored here, though nofollow is also acceptable.

You should also apply ugc or nofollow to links in user-generated content such as comments, forum posts, and reviews you don’t editorially control. And if you’re citing a source for context without wanting to imply approval, nofollow is the right call there too.

Just as important is knowing when not to use it. Don’t nofollow every outbound link in an attempt to hoard ranking strength, and never nofollow your internal links. Linking naturally to trustworthy, relevant external sources supports your site’s credibility, so let the context of each link guide your decision.

How to Check if a Link Is NoFollow

The easiest way to check any link is to inspect the page’s code. Right-click on the link in your browser and select “Inspect” (or “Inspect Element”). A panel will open showing the HTML for that link. If you can see rel=”nofollow” (or sponsored or ugc) inside it, the link is nofollow. If there’s no rel attribute at all, it’s dofollow.

If digging through code isn’t your thing, free browser extensions like NoFollow or Strike Out Nofollow Links will do the work for you, automatically highlighting nofollow links on any page you visit.

For checking links at scale, such as auditing your whole backlink profile, SEO tools like Ahrefs, Semrush, or Moz will show you which of your backlinks are dofollow and which are nofollow.

Summary of What’s the difference between a DoFollow and a NoFollow link

The difference between dofollow and nofollow links comes down to one small piece of HTML. Dofollow links are the default and pass link equity to the destination page, acting as a vote of confidence in the eyes of search engines. Nofollow links carry a rel=”nofollow” attribute that tells Google not to pass that equity along.

As a site owner, use nofollow (or sponsored and ugc) for affiliate links, paid placements, and user-generated content, and leave your editorial and internal links as dofollow. Both link types have a place in a healthy, natural backlink profile, so don’t dismiss nofollow links entirely.