It is vital when linking to any untrusted sources, where not using this attribute may result in a severe authority loss.
So, let's get straight to the point.
What is a Nofollow tag
The nofollow tag is an HTML attribute meant for preventing search robots from following a specific hyperlink or all links on a web page. That way, you refuse to "share" the link juice with the website the said link(s) leads to.
Back in the day, it was common to rely on the basic nofollow attribute for all types of links the website didn't want to associate with, whether it's sponsorship or advertisement links, links to shady websites or unauthorized self-promotion in user-generated content (comment sections, blog posts), etc.
However, going forward, the situation started shifting.
In 2019 Google introduced new, more precise rel values , aimed at providing additional information about links to search engine bots. Besides the basic nofollow, these values are recommended:
- rel="sponsored" - for paid links (sponsorships, advertising, and other paid collaborations);
- rel="ugc" - for links in user-generated content, including forum posts and comment
For other scenarios, the basic rel="nofollow" tag remains suitable.
Does it mean that now you have to immediately replace all the basic nofollow attributes with new tags for old sponsored/ugc links?
No, the good-old nofollow attribute still works. But from now on, keep that recommendation in mind.
So what does the basic HTML nofollow tag do, and what does it look like?
First, it can allow you to give directions to search robots regarding the entire website page if you use the following line of code:
