Internal Links with Nofollow

This error appears when there are internal links with the nofollow attribute, which prevents Google from following them within your own site. Here's what it means and when it makes sense to keep it.

What this error means

The nofollow attribute on a link tells Google not to follow it or distribute authority through it. It makes sense to use it on external links you don't want to endorse, but applying it to internal links is a different matter. When an internal link has nofollow, you're telling Google not to crawl that part of your own site. That can leave pages uncrawled, cut the flow of authority between your own pages, and make it harder for Google to understand your site's structure. It isn't always an error. There are cases where applying nofollow to internal links makes sense, such as links pointing to admin pages, login areas, user-generated content, or print versions. The problem is when it's applied to normal navigation links without any specific reason. This error usually appears when nofollow is applied broadly without reviewing each case individually, or when an external link configuration is copied and accidentally applied to internal links as well.

Why reviewing nofollow on internal links matters

Applying nofollow to an internal link is like putting a stop sign inside your own site. Google gets there and stops. And what it doesn't crawl, it doesn't index or rank. Reviewing and cleaning it up where it doesn't belong is one of those technical tasks that improves your site's crawlability without needing to create new content.

Impact on SEO rankings

Internal links are one of the main ways to distribute authority across your site's pages. If they have nofollow, that authority doesn't flow and the linked pages may rank lower than they should.

Impact on user experience

Nofollow doesn't affect what the user sees — the link is still clickable. But if Google doesn't crawl those pages, they may not appear in search results, preventing new users from reaching that content.

Crawling and indexing obstacles

If Google encounters nofollow on normal navigation links, it may not crawl important pages on your site. That reduces crawl efficiency and can leave valuable content outside the search index.

How to fix it step by step

If this error showed up in your audit, here are the steps to leave it behind.

Step 1

Identify which internal links have nofollow

Ruk Audit shows you exactly which internal links have the nofollow attribute and which pages they point to. Review them before touching anything and get a clear picture of the full list.

Step 2

Evaluate whether nofollow makes sense in each case

Not all nofollows are an error. Review them one by one and decide which ones are justified — such as links to admin pages, login areas, user-generated content, or print versions — and which ones are there without any specific reason.

Step 3

Remove nofollow where it doesn't belong

On normal navigation links, remove the nofollow attribute so Google can follow them and distribute authority correctly. You can do this from your CMS editor or directly in the HTML code.

Step 4

Verify that the changes are correct

Once the changes are applied, check that the links Google should follow no longer have nofollow, and that those that should keep it are still correctly configured.

Does your site have this problem?

Audit your website for free and discover if this and other SEO errors are affecting your ranking.

See all the errors we detect