Technical SEO · Free tool
Do-Follow / No-Follow Link Checker
A dofollow link passes ranking signals (PageRank equivalents) to the destination URL. A nofollow link (rel='nofollow') does not, or does so with reduced weight. This tool fetches a URL and shows every link on the page, categorized by follow type, anchor text, and destination.
SEO, GEO & AEO: why this checklist matters
Who should use this
SEOs building link profiles, developers implementing link attribution, and content teams managing outbound linking policies.
Rankings, AI answers, and citations
Dofollow links are one of the primary inputs to Google's link-based ranking signals. Nofollow links were introduced to handle comment spam; rel=sponsored and rel=ugc are newer refinements. Getting these right on your own site is good practice for transparency with Google's systems.
What to verify before you ship
- Mark paid or sponsored links with rel=sponsored
- User-generated content links (comments, forums) should use rel=ugc
- Don't nofollow legitimate editorial outbound links — it looks manipulative
- Verify that important internal navigation links are not accidentally nofollowed
What you can expect next
Use this workflow on drafts and live URLs. For continuous monitoring across Google and AI surfaces, pair results with Linkstonic SEO audit, AI tracking, and TrueTrace.
Frequently asked questions
Written for search snippets, People Also Ask-style surfaces, and answer engines that quote short Q&A units.
Does Google ignore nofollow links?
Since 2020, Google treats nofollow as a hint rather than a hard directive. They may choose to follow and pass credit through nofollow links if they determine the link is editorially relevant. In practice, nofollow links have significantly reduced link equity transfer.
Should I nofollow all outbound links?
No. Editorially linking to reputable sources is a positive quality signal. Nofollowing all external links is sometimes called 'link hoarding' and is not recommended. Nofollow is for paid links, sponsored content, and user-generated links you haven't vetted.
What is the difference between rel=nofollow, rel=sponsored, and rel=ugc?
Nofollow is the general catch-all. Sponsored is specifically for paid placements. UGC (user-generated content) is for unvetted links from comments or forum posts. Google introduced the distinctions to better understand link intent.
Does nofollowing outbound links protect my PageRank?
The old 'PageRank sculpting' concept (nofollowing internal links to concentrate equity) has been outdated since 2009. Link equity that doesn't flow out simply doesn't flow — it doesn't accumulate on other pages.