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What Are Dofollow Backlinks? (+ How to Get Them for Free)

A plain-English guide to dofollow backlinks: how they differ from nofollow links, how to check any link in 10 seconds, and five free ways to earn them.

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If you have ever asked for a "backlink" and been told the link you got "doesn't count", you have run into the dofollow versus nofollow distinction. This guide explains what a dofollow backlink actually is, how to check one in about ten seconds, and five free ways to earn links that search engines count.

What is a dofollow backlink?

A dofollow backlink is any hyperlink that search engines are allowed to follow and use as a signal — a small vote of confidence from one site to another. There is no rel="dofollow" attribute anywhere in HTML; a normal link is "dofollow" simply because nothing says otherwise:

<a href="https://example.com">This is a dofollow link</a>

A nofollow link carries an attribute that tells crawlers "don't treat this as an endorsement":

<a href="https://example.com" rel="nofollow">This link passes little or no ranking signal</a>

Since 2019, Google treats nofollow as a hint rather than a directive, and two more attributes exist: rel="ugc" for user-generated content (comments, forum posts) and rel="sponsored" for paid or affiliate links. All three are collectively what people mean by "nofollow links".

Why dofollow links matter

Search engines use links between independent sites as one of their strongest quality signals. A dofollow link from a relevant, trustworthy site can help with:

  • Rankings — the linked page becomes more credible for its topic.
  • Discovery — crawlers find new pages by following links.
  • Referral traffic — a link on a well-visited page brings real visitors regardless of SEO.

Nofollow links are not worthless: they still send referral traffic and they diversify a link profile. A natural backlink profile contains a mix. But when you are investing limited time, a dofollow link from a relevant site is worth more.

How to check if a backlink is dofollow

You do not need a paid tool to check a single link — the attribute is right there in the HTML:

  1. Open the page that links to you.
  2. Right-click the link and choose Inspect.
  3. Look at the highlighted <a> tag. No rel="nofollow", rel="ugc", or rel="sponsored" attribute? It is dofollow.

For checking many links at once, free browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox can highlight nofollow links on any page, and backlink checkers such as Google Search Console (under Links) show which of your earned links Google has discovered. Search Console only reports links Google actually crawled, which makes it a good end-of-funnel check: submit your site, wait a few weeks, then look for your domain under external links.

Five free ways to earn dofollow backlinks

1. Niche directories with editorial review

General web directories died years ago, but curated, niche directories still pass useful links because they link out deliberately. When choosing a directory, check what a recently listed product actually gets: view the listing page source and confirm the outbound link has no rel="nofollow". HiCyou is one example — every approved listing earns a dofollow link, and it is free.

2. Badge programs

Many directories and tools offer a "featured" badge you display on your own site; in exchange, your listing link is upgraded to dofollow. This is the fairest trade in SEO: you give the directory a visible endorsement, it gives you a followed link. HiCyou's badge program works exactly this way — verify the badge and your listing skips the queue and turns dofollow.

3. Launch and community platforms

Startup communities (launch platforms, maker forums, developer communities) are where early products earn their first links and users. The exact link attribute varies by platform — some mark everything nofollow — so verify before assuming SEO value, and go anyway for the audience. Our list of free dofollow and startup listing sites breaks down which is which.

4. Write for the sites you read

Guest posts, documentation contributions, and open-source project READMEs often allow a followed link to your own site when it is genuinely relevant. The bar is simple: contribute something the host site actually wants.

5. Create the page people cite

Comparison posts, checklists, and free tools attract links without asking. If you sell to developers, for instance, a honest "alternatives to X" post or a setup guide tends to collect citations over time — this blog's deployment tutorials exist partly for that reason.

What to avoid

  • Buying links in bulk from marketplaces. Search engines are good at spotting patterns, and cleanup is expensive.
  • Automated directory submission blasts to thousands of low-quality directories. A dozen relevant, curated directories beat a thousand spammy ones.
  • Exact-match anchor text everywhere. If every link says "best cheap CRM", it looks engineered. Brand-name and natural anchors are fine.

Start with one link you control

The fastest first step: submit your product to HiCyou for free. Approval adds your site to a curated directory with a dofollow link, and adding the badge fast-tracks the review. From there, work through the free dofollow backlink sites list — one relevant link per week outperforms a hundred spammy ones per day.