A nofollow link is a link that can help SEO indirectly. Since September 2019, Google has treated nofollow, sponsored and ugc as hints rather than absolute instructions. A nofollow link can bring referral traffic and brand exposure, but it does not guarantee ranking credit.

Google may use the link and its surrounding context in some situations. Still, a nofollow link is not a dependable substitute for a relevant editorial link.

Question Short answer
Do nofollow links pass guaranteed ranking value? No
Can Google use a nofollow link as a ranking hint? Yes, in some situations
Can Google discover a URL through a nofollow link? It may, but do not rely on it as the only discovery method
Can nofollow backlinks send referral traffic? Yes
Are nofollow backlinks worth earning? Yes, when they reach a relevant audience
Should every external link on your site be nofollow? No

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

<a href="rel="nofollow">
  Visit Example
</a>

The attribute tells Google that you do not necessarily endorse the linked page or want the link treated as a normal editorial recommendation.

Google recommends using nofollow when you link to a page but do not want to associate your site with it or have Google treat the link as a standard endorsement.

Nofollow backlinks can contribute to SEO, but they are not a reliable way to build ranking authority.

Google introduced nofollow to identify links that should not be treated as conventional ranking endorsements. Google can now use nofollow, sponsored and ugc as hints when deciding whether to consider a link.

That means a nofollow backlink may provide value through:

  • Referral traffic
  • Brand awareness
  • Exposure within a relevant industry
  • New customers, subscribers or leads
  • Coverage that leads to other websites linking to you
  • Anchor text and surrounding context that help describe the linked page

The strongest direct SEO benefit usually comes from a relevant editorial link that a publisher gives without a nofollow attribute. Google uses links to understand relevance and discover pages, but it does not guarantee that any individual link will improve rankings.

1. They Can Send Qualified Referral Traffic

A nofollow link on a popular industry publication may send more useful visitors than a followed link on an irrelevant website.

For example, a nofollow link from a respected cybersecurity publication could bring relevant visitors to a security software company. Those visitors may later search for the company, sign up for its service or cite its research.

The traffic can be valuable even when the link provides little or no direct ranking credit.

2. They Can Increase Brand Visibility

SEO value is not limited to ranking signals. When reputable websites mention a company, more people may search for its brand, products or research.

A nofollow link can support branded search demand and referral conversions without passing ranking value in the same way as a conventional editorial link.

A journalist, blogger or researcher may discover your content through a nofollow link and later cite it from another page with a standard followed link.

This is an indirect benefit, not a guaranteed SEO outcome. It depends on whether the link reaches the right audience and whether the linked content is worth citing.

4. They Can Provide Context

Google says it may use link text to understand the page being linked to. It also treats nofollow attributes as hints rather than absolute exclusions.

A relevant anchor and clear surrounding text can make a nofollow link more useful than a generic link such as "click here."

Google may crawl or use a nofollow link, but you should not assume that it will.

Google's documentation says links containing nofollow, sponsored or ugc will generally not be followed. The linked page may still be discovered through other sources, including XML sitemaps and links from other websites.

For an important page, use more than one discovery path:

  • Internal links
  • An XML sitemap
  • Relevant followed links
  • A logical site structure
  • Crawlable HTML links

Google says its crawlers primarily discover new URLs through links on pages they have already crawled. Sitemaps and other discovery methods can also help.

Should You Use Nofollow, Sponsored or UGC?

Use the attribute that accurately describes the relationship between your site and the destination.

Link type Recommended attribute Typical use
Paid placement or advertisement rel="sponsored" Advertorials, paid reviews, affiliate placements and sponsorships
User-generated link rel="ugc" Forum posts, comments and community submissions
Untrusted or non-endorsed link rel="nofollow" Links you do not want to associate with your site
More than one condition applies Combine attributes For example, rel="ugc nofollow"

Google prefers rel="sponsored" for paid links, although nofollow remains acceptable. Google recommends rel="ugc" for links created by users. You can combine multiple values when more than one applies.

<a href="rel="sponsored">
  Sponsored product
</a>

<a href="rel="ugc">
  Community recommendation
</a>

<a href="rel="ugc nofollow">
  User-submitted link
</a>

When Should You Add rel="nofollow"?

Use nofollow when you link to a page but do not want to imply endorsement, and no more specific attribute applies.

Common examples include:

  • Untrusted websites
  • Links posted by unmoderated users
  • Websites you cannot verify
  • Certain commercial or compensated links when sponsored is not available
  • Destinations you do not want your site to be associated with

Do not add nofollow to every external link. Trusted editorial links can help users and provide context, so apply the attribute selectively.

Nofollow Is Not the Same as Noindex

These directives control different things:

  • rel="nofollow" qualifies a link.
  • noindex tells search engines not to show a page in search results.
  • robots.txt controls whether crawlers can access parts of a site.

Adding nofollow to a link does not stop the linked page from being indexed if Google discovers it elsewhere. To prevent a page from appearing in Google Search, use an accessible noindex directive instead.

The Practical SEO Recommendation

Treat nofollow links as marketing and discovery assets, not guaranteed authority links.

Assess an opportunity based on:

  1. The relevance of the referring website
  2. The relevance of its audience
  3. The likelihood of qualified referral traffic
  4. The publisher's credibility
  5. The chance that the coverage will lead to more citations or links

Do not reject a relevant publication opportunity just because the link is nofollow. At the same time, do not buy large numbers of nofollow links expecting them to improve rankings directly. Paid links must be qualified correctly, and Google warns that manipulative link schemes can violate its spam policies.

Nofollow links can support SEO through traffic, visibility, brand discovery and indirect link acquisition. Their direct ranking impact is uncertain, so focus on relevant coverage and useful content rather than targeting the nofollow or follow label alone.