No-follow links

No-follow Links and SEO

The main reason for making a backlink no-follow is to avoid redirecting authority to another website. Because of this, the value of the page is not reduced when an outgoing link (read: backlink) is made no-follow. No-follow lin

ks are mainly used to refer to other websites. In addition, Google appreciates if you want to make a reference within your own site (read: internal link).

ople also gather no-follow links to keep the total link profile in the proportion of do-follow links and no-follow links; this helps to maintain a natural ratio. A link profile wherein more than 95% of the total number of backlinks are do-follow indicates link buying. This is not appreciated by Google. As a website, you actually can get a penalty for this. Many natural link profiles do not have such a high percentage. So, one obtains no-follow backlinks for the quality of the link profile for deliberate reasons.

How to recognize a no-follow link

To identify a no-follow link, you need to look at the HTML source code of a webpage. A standard link (do-follow) looks like this: <a href="https://seeders.agency">Seeders</a>

A no-follow link, however, contains a specific attribute: <a href="https://seeders.agency" rel="nofollow">Seeders</a>

Google's evolution from directive to hint

Since 2019, Google has changed how it treats the no-follow attribute. Previously, it was a strict directive: Google simply ignored the link. Nowadays, Google sees it as a "hint." This means that while no direct link juice is passed, Google may still use the link for discovery or to better understand the context of the linked page.

Additionally, Google introduced two new attributes to provide even more clarity:

rel="sponsored": Specifically for links that are part of advertisements or paid placements.
rel="ugc": For links within User Generated Content, such as comments or forum posts.

Why no-follow links still have value

It is a common misconception that no-follow links are "useless" because they don’t pass authority. On the contrary, they offer several benefits for your SEO strategy:

Traffic generation: A no-follow link on a high-traffic site (like Wikipedia or a major news outlet) can still drive thousands of potential customers to your website.
Brand awareness: Being mentioned on authoritative platforms increases your brand’s visibility and credibility.
Indirect link building: Someone who finds your site through a no-follow link might later link to you with a do-follow link from their own blog.
Natural Link Profile: As mentioned earlier, a healthy mix of do-follow and no-follow links is the only way to show Google that your growth is organic and not manipulated.

Tools to check no-follow links

Just like with do-follow links, you don't want to check every source code manually. You can use various tools to analyze the ratio:

Ahrefs and SEMrush: These provide a clear breakdown of your backlink profile, showing exactly which percentage of your links are no-follow.
Moz Bar: A browser extension that highlights no-follow links on any page you visit, making it easy to see how a competitor is linking out.
Google Search Console: Under the 'Links' section, you can see which domains link to you, although it doesn't always specify the attribute immediately.