rel="sponsored"
What is rel="sponsored"?
rel="sponsored" is an HTML link attribute that tells search engines a link is an advert, a sponsorship, an affiliate link or otherwise given in exchange for payment or something of value. Google introduced it in September 2019 alongside rel="ugc", as a more specific option than rel="nofollow".
Like nofollow, sponsored is treated as a hint. Google says either sponsored or nofollow is acceptable for paid links, and you can combine them (rel="sponsored nofollow"). Existing nofollow paid links do not need changing.
Why rel="sponsored" matters for SEO
Google’s spam policies say that buying or selling links that pass ranking credit is a link scheme. Marking paid links as sponsored keeps the advert, the affiliate commission or the sponsorship within the rules, because the link no longer tries to influence rankings.
Leaving paid links followed is the core of the paid links problem. Sites that sell followed links risk a manual action that removes their ability to pass link value, and buyers risk a manual action for unnatural links.
How to use rel="sponsored"
- Add
rel="sponsored"to every affiliate link, sponsored post link, paid placement and advert link. - Apply it to links given in exchange for free products, discounts or other benefits, not just cash.
- If your CMS or affiliate plugin adds links automatically, check its settings so new links get the attribute.
- Combine with other values where they apply, for example
rel="sponsored noopener".
rel="sponsored" example
<a href="https://partner.example.com/?ref=you" rel="sponsored">Try Partner</a>rel="sponsored" FAQ
Do affiliate links need rel="sponsored"?
Google asks for affiliate links to be qualified with rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow". Separately, advertising rules in many countries require you to disclose affiliate links to readers.
Is rel="sponsored" better than rel="nofollow"?
Google prefers sponsored for paid links because it is more specific, but says nofollow is also fine. Neither passes ranking credit as a rule.
Related SEO terms
A nofollow link carries rel="nofollow", asking search engines not to pass ranking credit. Since 2019 Google treats it as a hint, not a rule.
rel="ugc" is a link attribute for links inside user-generated content, such as comments and forum posts, signalling the site does not vouch for them.
A dofollow link is a normal link with no rel="nofollow", "sponsored" or "ugc" value, so it can pass ranking credit to the page it points to.
Paid linksBlack hat
Paid links are links bought to pass ranking credit, without rel="sponsored" or nofollow, which breaks Google’s link spam policy.
Link schemesBlack hat
A link scheme is any attempt to create links mainly to manipulate rankings, such as buying, swapping or automating links, which is Google’s link spam.
Outbound links are links from your site to other websites. Linking to useful sources helps readers and does not drain your rankings.