---
title: "Nofollow"
description: "A link attribute (`rel='nofollow'`) that instructs search engines not to follow a link or pass link equity (PageRank) to the destination URL."
url: "https://skribra.com/glossary/nofollow"
type: "glossary-term"
category: "SEO Fundamentals"
updated: "2026-06-09"
---

# Nofollow

**Definition.** A link attribute (`rel='nofollow'`) that instructs search engines not to follow a link or pass link equity (PageRank) to the destination URL.

**In short.** Nofollow tells Google 'don't count this link as a vote.' It was created for user-generated content (blog comments, forum posts) to prevent spam. Google now treats it as a hint, not a directive.

## Key points

- Google introduced nofollow in 2005 to fight comment spam; in 2019 it was reclassified from a directive to a hint
- Two companion attributes were added in 2019: rel='ugc' (user-generated content) and rel='sponsored' (paid links)
- Nofollow links do not directly pass PageRank, but they still drive traffic and can build brand visibility
- Internally nofollowing links on your own site wastes crawl budget and can actually hurt PageRank flow — avoid it

## The History and Purpose of Nofollow

Google introduced the `rel='nofollow'` attribute in 2005 to combat link spam in blog comments and forums[1]. Before nofollow, spammers posted thousands of comments on blogs purely to get backlinks — each comment link passed [PageRank](https://skribra.com/glossary/page-rank) to the spammer's site. By adding `rel='nofollow'`, webmasters could signal to Google that a link should not be followed for PageRank purposes. This effectively removed the incentive for comment spam. In 2019, Google expanded the system with two new link attributes: `rel='ugc'` for user-generated content (comments, forum posts) and `rel='sponsored'` for paid or affiliate links. All three are treated as hints rather than directives — Google may choose to follow them.

## Nofollow, Sponsored, and UGC

The three link attributes serve distinct purposes but all prevent (or reduce) PageRank transfer[1][2]. `rel='nofollow'` is the general-purpose signal for any link you don't want to endorse. `rel='sponsored'` is required by Google's guidelines for paid links, affiliate links, and advertorial content — using 'nofollow' on paid links is acceptable but 'sponsored' is more specific. `rel='ugc'` is for user-generated content where you can't vouch for the destination. You can combine attributes: `rel='nofollow ugc'`. The practical difference between them for most sites is minimal — Google treats all three similarly in terms of link equity. The critical distinction is that [paid links](https://skribra.com/glossary/backlink) that pass PageRank without a nofollow or sponsored attribute violate Google's spam policies.

## When to Use (and Not Use) Nofollow

Use nofollow on: paid links and sponsorships, affiliate links, user-generated content you can't vet, login pages and thank-you pages you don't want crawled, and advertising. Do not use nofollow on internal links to your own pages — this was a popular tactic called 'PageRank sculpting' that Google has confirmed doesn't work as intended and can actually harm [PageRank](https://skribra.com/glossary/page-rank) flow by creating crawl dead-ends[2]. Also avoid nofollowing links to your most important pages. Nofollow links from high-authority sites (Wikipedia, major news sites) are still valuable for referral traffic even without passing PageRank — and Google has confirmed it uses nofollow links as hints that may influence crawling even if not full PageRank transfer.

## Related terms

- [Backlink](https://skribra.com/glossary/backlink): A hyperlink from one website pointing to a page on another website, used by search engines as a signal of authority and trust.
- [PageRank](https://skribra.com/glossary/page-rank): Google's original algorithm that assigns a numerical importance score to web pages based on the quantity and quality of links pointing to them, treating each link as a 'vote' of confidence.
- [Link Equity](https://skribra.com/glossary/link-equity): The SEO value and ranking power passed from one page to another through hyperlinks — sometimes called 'link juice' — determining how much of a linking page's authority is transferred to the pages it links to.
- [Anchor Text](https://skribra.com/glossary/anchor-text): The clickable, visible text of a hyperlink — the words a user sees and clicks to follow a link, which signals to search engines what the destination page is about.

## Sources

1. [Google Search Central — Qualify Your Outbound Links to Google](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/qualify-outbound-links)
2. [Ahrefs — Nofollow Links: What They Are and How to Use Them](https://ahrefs.com/blog/nofollow-links/)

## Machine-readable index

- HTML version of this page: https://skribra.com/glossary/nofollow
- Site index for agents: https://skribra.com/llms.txt
- Sitemap: https://skribra.com/sitemap.xml
- Public REST API: https://skribra.com/api/v1
- OpenAPI specification: https://skribra.com/openapi.json