Nofollow

Definition

Nofollow is a link attribute (`rel="nofollow"`) that tells search engines not to follow the link or pass PageRank (link equity) through it. Introduced by Google in 2005 to combat comment spam, nofollow was originally a binary instruction. In 2019, Google introduced two additional values: `rel="sponsored"` (for paid links and ads) and `rel="ugc"` (for user-generated content like comments and forum posts). As of 2019, Google treats all three as "hints" rather than hard directives — it may choose to follow and index nofollow links. Common uses: all links in blog comments should be nofollow (or ugc), all paid/affiliate links must be sponsored or nofollow per Google's link spam guidelines, and any link you include that you don't want to editorially endorse.

Why it matters for SEO

Buying followed (dofollow) links is a Google link spam violation that can trigger a manual action or algorithmic penalty. Nofollow protects you when linking to user-generated content or sponsored placements. For outbound links from your own content: internal links should never be nofollow (you want PageRank to flow internally). External links to authoritative sources you endorse don't need nofollow — Google expects normal editorial linking. The historical practice of adding nofollow to all external links "just to be safe" is outdated and can signal unnatural link practices.

How DeepSEOAnalysis checks this

The audit checks internal links for incorrect `rel="nofollow"` attributes (which would block internal PageRank flow) and checks paid/sponsored external links for missing `rel="sponsored"` or `rel="nofollow"` (a compliance risk). It also identifies external links using dofollow to very low-quality domains, which could be a negative signal.

Useful tools and resources

• Full links audit