What Are Dofollow Backlinks? The Short Answer
A dofollow backlink is a link from another website to yours that has no rel=“nofollow”, “sponsored” or “ugc” attribute, so Google can follow it and count it as a ranking signal. “Dofollow” isn’t a real HTML attribute. It’s the name for a link that carries none of the qualifying ones.
Whether a link is dofollow tells you if it can pass ranking credit. It doesn’t tell you if it will. That depends on the site, the page and where the link sits, which is why the links that do the most are dofollow contextual backlinks: followed links inside relevant body text on a site with real readers.
I’m Subham Chowdhury. I’ve worked in SEO since 2014 and built links for clients since 2018. This guide is what I tell clients who ask me for “dofollow backlinks”, because the attribute is the easy part.
Dofollow vs Nofollow Links: What Changed in 2019
In September 2019 Google added two new link attributes and changed how it treats nofollow. Before that, Google ignored nofollow links for ranking. Since then, Google says nofollow, sponsored and ugc are all treated as hints about which links to consider.
| Attribute | What it means | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| None (dofollow) | A normal link Google can follow and count | Editorial links the site owner chose to give |
| rel=“nofollow” | Don’t imply an endorsement | Links the site doesn’t want to vouch for |
| rel=“sponsored” | The link was paid for | Ads, sponsorships and paid placements |
| rel=“ugc” | Added by users | Comments and forum posts |
Google’s own guide to qualifying outbound links covers the details. The practical result: a nofollow link from a big, relevant site can still help, and a dofollow link from a site that sells links to anyone may count for nothing.
What Are Contextual Backlinks?
A contextual backlink is a link placed inside the main body text of an article, where the sentences around it are about the same topic as the page it points to.
The surrounding words help search engines understand what your page is about, the same way anchor text does. A reader is also far more likely to click a link that answers the sentence they’re reading. Here’s the difference in practice:
- Contextual: a paragraph about choosing running shoes for flat feet that links to a shop’s guide on arch support.
- Not contextual: the same link in a footer, a sidebar widget, a blogroll or an author bio, or in an article about something unrelated.
Guest posts, niche edits and broken link replacements all produce contextual links when they’re done properly. Profile and directory links don’t, which is why I treat foundation links as a supporting layer rather than the main event.
Dofollow Contextual Backlinks: Why the Combination Matters
A dofollow attribute lets a link count. Context decides how much it counts. When I check a placement for a client, the attribute is the last thing I look at. The first things are:
- Topic match. Does the site, and the exact article, cover your subject?
- Real readers. Does the site get organic traffic from the country your customers are in?
- Indexed page. Is the article in Google’s index? A link on a page Google doesn’t index does nothing.
- Placement. Is the link in the body, next to text about your topic?
- Outbound links. Is the page stuffed with other commercial links?
A link that passes all five is worth more than ten dofollow links that fail them. My guide to high authority backlinks covers how to check whether a site’s authority is real.
How to Check if a Backlink Is Dofollow
Right-click the link, choose Inspect, and look at the rel attribute on the <a> tag. It takes about ten seconds in Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari.
- Open the page that links to you and find your link.
- Right-click it and choose Inspect (or Inspect Element).
- Read the highlighted <a> tag. No rel attribute, or only values like noopener or noreferrer, means the link is followed.
- If rel contains nofollow, sponsored or ugc, the link is qualified.
- Check the page’s robots meta tag too. A page set to nofollow qualifies every link on it.
To check many links at once, the backlink reports in Google Search Console list who links to you, and paid tools like Ahrefs and Semrush label each link as dofollow or nofollow. When I deliver links, every URL goes into the client’s report so they can run this check themselves. My link building report template has a column for it.
How to Get Dofollow Contextual Backlinks
Give a relevant site a reason to mention you inside its content. The methods that reliably produce dofollow contextual links are:
- Guest posts: write a useful article for a site in your niche with a link inside it. See my guest posting services.
- Niche edits: ask a site owner to add your link to an existing article where it fits. See niche edits.
- Broken link building: find a dead link on a relevant page and offer your page as the replacement. See broken link building.
- Original data and tools: publish numbers or free tools other writers want to cite.
- Digital PR and expert quotes: answer journalist requests in your field.
For free methods first, read how to get backlinks. If you’d rather hand the work off, my buy backlinks page lists every link type with its price.
Should Every Backlink Be Dofollow?
No. A link profile where every single link is dofollow and keyword-rich looks bought, because it usually is. Real sites pick up nofollow links from forums, social posts, news sites and comments as they grow. Those links bring visitors and make the profile look like normal coverage.
There’s no official ratio, and I won’t invent one. Aim for most of your important links to be dofollow and contextual, and don’t remove or avoid nofollow links you earn naturally. Keep anchors varied, mostly your brand or URL, as my anchor text ratios show.
Dofollow Backlink Offers to Avoid
Search for “dofollow backlinks” and you’ll find plenty of these. Walk away from:
- Hundreds of “high DA dofollow backlinks” for a few dollars. Those come from software and link farms.
- PBN links. Private blog networks exist only to sell links, and Google’s spam policies name them.
- Sitewide footer or sidebar links. Dofollow, but not contextual, and easy to spot.
- Sellers who won’t show the site first. If you can’t see the domain before you pay, assume the worst.
- Guaranteed rankings. No one controls Google.
Before you hire anyone, run the 12 checks in my buyer’s guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Short answers to what people ask most about dofollow and contextual backlinks.
What is a dofollow backlink?
A dofollow backlink is a normal link with no rel="nofollow", "sponsored" or "ugc" attribute. Google can follow it and count it as a ranking signal. "Dofollow" isn't an HTML attribute; it just means the link has none of the qualifying ones.
Are nofollow links useless for SEO?
No. Since 2019 Google treats nofollow, sponsored and ugc as hints, not hard rules, so it may still use some of those links. Nofollow links also bring visitors and make a link profile look natural.
What is a contextual backlink?
A contextual backlink is a link placed inside the body text of an article, surrounded by sentences about the same topic as the page it points to. A link in a footer, sidebar or author bio is not contextual.
How do I check if a link is dofollow?
Right-click the link and choose Inspect. If the a tag has no rel attribute, or rel holds only values like noopener or noreferrer, it's a followed link. If you see nofollow, sponsored or ugc, it's qualified.
How many dofollow backlinks do I need?
There’s no fixed number. Count the referring domains of the pages ranking in the top 5 for your keyword and aim to close the gap with relevant links over time. My how many backlinks do I need guide walks through the method.
Can I buy dofollow backlinks safely?
Google asks for paid links to be marked sponsored, so a paid dofollow link breaks its guidelines. The risk grows with patterns: many links at once, unrelated sites and repeated keyword anchors. Small, relevant orders spread over weeks carry the least risk. I explain this in full on my buy backlinks page.
The Bottom Line
A dofollow backlink can count. A dofollow contextual backlink on a relevant site with real readers is the one that does. Check the attribute in ten seconds, then spend your time on the questions that matter: topic, traffic, indexing and placement.
New to this? Start with what link building is, then see how long backlinks take to work.
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Tell me your site and the page you want to rank. I’ll tell you which link types fit and what they cost, or tell you if your page isn’t ready for links yet, before you pay anything.