Nofollow vs Dofollow Links: What's the Difference and Does It Matter?

The Basics: What Makes a Link Dofollow or Nofollow?: Nofollow Vs Dofollow

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The nofollow vs dofollow distinction comes down to a single HTML attribute. A standard hyperlink — sometimes called a "dofollow" link, though this isn't an official HTML term — looks like this in the page source:

<a href="https://example.com">anchor text</a>

A nofollow link includes the rel="nofollow" attribute:

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

When Google's crawler encounters a dofollow link, it follows it, indexes the destination page, and transfers PageRank (link equity) from the linking page to the destination. When it encounters a nofollow link, the original behavior was to ignore it entirely — not follow the link and not transfer any PageRank.

Google introduced nofollow in 2005 primarily to combat comment spam. Bloggers were being inundated with spam comments containing links designed to manipulate rankings. By making comment links nofollow by default, the incentive for comment spam largely disappeared.

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How Google's Treatment of Nofollow Changed in 2019 ve Nofollow Vs Dofollow

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Google's nofollow behavior shifted significantly in September 2019 when the company announced that it would treat nofollow as a "hint" rather than a directive. This was a meaningful change.

Under the original model, nofollow meant stop — Google would not follow the link and would not pass PageRank. Under the hint model, Google reserves the right to follow nofollow links and potentially count them for ranking purposes, while also using them for crawl discovery. The key phrase from Google's announcement was: "links with these attributes won't generally be used for ranking purposes."

"Won't generally be used" is doing significant work in that sentence. It implies that in some cases, nofollow links may be considered for ranking. Google doesn't elaborate on when this might apply, but the practical implication is that nofollow links from highly authoritative, relevant sites may carry more weight than previously assumed.

Google also introduced two new link attributes alongside this announcement:

• rel="sponsored" — intended for paid links, affiliate links, and other commercial arrangements

• rel="ugc" — intended for user-generated content like comments and forum posts

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These additions gave site owners more precision in communicating link context to Google, while preserving nofollow as a general-purpose signal for links you don't want to endorse.

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Do Nofollow Links Have Any SEO Value?

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Despite the conventional wisdom that "nofollow links don't count," there are several channels through which nofollow links contribute to SEO performance.

Referral traffic: A nofollow link from a high-traffic website drives visitors to your site regardless of its SEO attribute. Traffic from authoritative sources can itself influence rankings through behavioral signals — engagement metrics, time on site, and return visits.

Link profile diversity: A backlink profile composed entirely of dofollow links looks unnatural. Real-world link profiles from sites with genuine audiences contain a mix of dofollow and nofollow links. An unnaturally pure dofollow profile may attract algorithmic scrutiny.

Crawl discovery: Google may use nofollow links to discover and crawl new pages, even if it doesn't pass PageRank through them. For new content that hasn't yet accumulated other inbound links, a nofollow mention from a high-authority site can accelerate indexing.

Brand authority signals: Major publications — Wikipedia, Forbes, The New York Times, Reddit — predominantly use nofollow on external links. Being cited by these sources carries substantial brand authority even without direct PageRank transfer. Google understands brand mentions as part of its broader entity-based understanding of the web.

Indirect link acquisition: A nofollow mention from a prominent source increases visibility, which leads other site owners to discover your content and link to it organically with dofollow links. Many dofollow link acquisition chains start with a nofollow mention.

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Building a Natural Link Profile: The Right Mix

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The question isn't whether to pursue nofollow links — it's how to think about the balance in your profile. Most SEO professionals agree that a natural profile includes somewhere between 20 and 40 percent nofollow links, though this varies considerably by industry and link source types.

Sites that participate actively in social media, forums, or online communities will naturally accumulate more nofollow links because most platforms apply nofollow to external URLs. Sites that focus exclusively on editorial outreach tend to see higher dofollow proportions.

The right balance for your site depends on your profile's current composition, your niche's typical ratios, and the link-building activities you're most focused on. Using Ahrefs or SEMrush, you can see your current dofollow/nofollow ratio under the Backlinks section and compare it to your top competitors.

If your profile is skewed heavily toward dofollow links (above 90 percent), it may signal to Google that your links have been acquired rather than earned organically. Some diversity is healthy. If your profile is skewed heavily toward nofollow (above 60 percent), your link acquisition may be generating awareness but not enough PageRank-passing authority.

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When to Pursue Nofollow Links Deliberately

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Nofollow links are worth pursuing when the source is authoritative enough to provide meaningful secondary benefits — traffic, brand visibility, and downstream link acquisition.

Wikipedia: Incredibly authoritative and drives meaningful referral traffic. Getting cited as a reference on a relevant Wikipedia article is valuable despite its nofollow attribute.

Major news publications: Being cited in Forbes, Business Insider, TechCrunch, or similar publications builds brand authority and often leads to more links from other publishers who cite the original article.

Reddit and Quora: High-traffic communities where your content can drive significant referral traffic and discovery. An answer that goes viral on Reddit can produce hundreds of subsequent dofollow links from bloggers and journalists who discover the content through the platform.

Press releases: Press release links are typically nofollow (or sponsored), but the distribution to news aggregators and publisher networks can trigger genuine editorial coverage that produces dofollow links.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Should I disavow nofollow backlinks from low-quality sites?

Generally, no — Google already treats nofollow links with reduced weight, so they're unlikely to trigger penalties. Disavow files are best used for patterns of dofollow spammy links that you believe are actively harming rankings. Using the disavow tool for nofollow links is usually unnecessary effort.

Do social media links count as nofollow links?

Most major social platforms — Twitter/X, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram — apply nofollow to links in posts and profiles. These don't pass direct PageRank, but they drive traffic, build brand awareness, and accelerate content discovery. Social sharing correlates with link acquisition even if the social links themselves don't transfer equity.

If I'm paying for a sponsored post, should I use nofollow or sponsored?

Google's current guidelines specify rel="sponsored" for paid placements and affiliate links. Nofollow also satisfies the requirement, but sponsored is more descriptive and preferred. Either attribute communicates to Google that the link is commercial and prevents potential manual action for buying links without disclosure.