Explore essential link types for SEO, including internal, external, and nofollow links. Learn how to build a strong link profile to boost rankings and authority.
Links are an integral part of search engine optimization (SEO). They function as channels that communicate relevant information from one website to another. It is links that provide the information that helps search engines evaluate the authority and credibility of your site.
In this comprehensive guide, we explore 20 different types of links and explain how each one impacts your SEO results. Whether you are new to the subject or an experienced marketer, this post will provide you with practical advice to optimize your linking strategy for maximum SEO benefits.
Links are the lifeblood of SEO. They connect various pages within your site and link your content to other relevant external sites. They not only help search engines crawl and index your website but also play a pivotal role in establishing authority and trust.
Effective linking strategies involve a mix of different link types—internal links, external links, backlinks, and more—each with its own purpose. Understanding these types is crucial for effective link-building, a strong component of SEO.
Let's consider an online educational platform as an example. The website uses internal links to guide students from course descriptions to related articles and resources, improving navigation and keeping users engaged. It also includes contextual external links within its articles to cite research studies and reputable academic sources. As a result, search engines see the platform as well-structured and authoritative, leading to higher rankings for educational content.
Now, let's break down the 20 most important types of links that SEO practitioners and website owners should understand and implement for optimal results.
Internal links are hyperlinks that connect different pages on the same website. They play a crucial role in SEO by enhancing site navigation and helping search engines understand the structure of your website.
By linking related content, internal links distribute link equity throughout your site, allowing high-ranking pages to share their authority with other pages. This improves the overall crawlability of your site, ensuring that search engines can discover and index new or updated content.
These are hyperlinks that point from your website to other reputable websites. External links are important for SEO because they provide context and additional value to your content by referencing authoritative sources.
When you link out to high-quality sites, it enhances the credibility of your content in the eyes of readers and tells search engines that your content is well-researched and reliable. External links may also lead to reciprocal linking opportunities, which can further enhance your site’s authority.
Backlinks are incoming links from external websites that point back to your own website. They are among the most influential factors in SEO because search engines view them as endorsements of your content’s quality and relevance.
High-quality backlinks from reputable sites can greatly improve your search engine rankings by transferring authority and trust to your site.
Nofollow links are hyperlinks that contain a specific attribute (rel="nofollow") designed to inform search engines not to transfer link equity to the destination page. These links are often used for user-generated content, such as blog comments, or in paid links to prevent the artificial manipulation of search rankings.
While nofollow links do not directly contribute to a page’s authority, they still play an important role in maintaining a natural and diverse link profile. Their presence can help ensure that only trusted links are used to transfer SEO value.
Dofollow links are standard hyperlinks that allow search engines to follow them without any restrictions and transfer link equity to the destination page.
These links are essential for SEO as they directly contribute to the authority and ranking of the linked page. When authoritative sites use dofollow links to refer to your content, it acts as a vote of confidence, signaling to search engines that your content is valuable and trustworthy.
These are hyperlinks that originate from content created by users, such as forum posts, comments, or reviews. They are typically marked with a “UGC” attribute to indicate their origin and are common on platforms that encourage community interaction.
While UGC links may not always pass as much link equity as dofollow links from authoritative sources, they still contribute to a diversified link profile, which is a valuable factor in SEO.
These links are paid for or created as part of a sponsorship or partnership agreement. They are marked as sponsored to comply with search engine guidelines and ensure transparency.
Sponsored links are primarily used for advertising and monetization purposes, but they can impact SEO if they lead to high-quality content and generate targeted traffic. However, because these links are not meant to pass full link equity, overreliance on them may not provide substantial SEO benefits.
Contextual links are hyperlinks embedded within the body of your content, where they naturally fit into the narrative or discussion. These links are particularly valuable for SEO because they provide context and additional information to both users and search engines.
By integrating links in relevant content, you enhance the user experience by offering further reading or related topics, as well as helping search engines better understand the subject matter of your pages, serving as strong signals of content relevance that positively influence your site’s ranking.
These hyperlinks are naturally included in content by third-party publishers because they find your information valuable and worth sharing. These links are earned organically, without any exchange or payment, and are considered a genuine endorsement of your content.
From an SEO perspective, editorial links are highly beneficial because they come from reputable sources and add authority to your site, signaling to search engines that your content is reliable and useful.
Reciprocal links are hyperlinks exchanged between two websites, where each site agrees to link to the other. While this practice can help build relationships and foster collaboration within an industry, it must be used judiciously to avoid being perceived as manipulative by search engines.
When reciprocal links are natural and relevant, they can contribute to a balanced and diverse link profile, reinforcing your site’s authority.
These links use clickable images to direct users to other pages or websites. They often include alt text, which not only improves accessibility for visually impaired users but also provides search engines with context about the image and the linked content.
By ensuring that images are optimized with relevant file names and descriptive alt attributes, image links can enhance the overall user experience while contributing to SEO. Properly optimized image links also help drive additional traffic through image-based searches.
Anchor text links refer to the visible, clickable text in a hyperlink that leads users to another page. This text is important because it provides context to both users and search engines about the content of the destination page.
A well-crafted anchor text can boost SEO by clearly signaling to search engines what the linked content is about, thereby contributing to improved search engine rankings.
Redirect links are used to send users and search engines from one URL to another, typically during site restructures or when content is moved.
A 301 redirect indicates a permanent move, transferring most of the original page's link equity to the new URL, while a 302 redirect signifies a temporary change and may not pass the full SEO benefits. Properly implemented redirects help maintain a site's SEO value by ensuring that both users and search engines are guided to the correct page without encountering errors.
Sidebar links are positioned in the sidebar area of a website and highlight popular posts, recent articles, or key navigation elements. These links improve user engagement by providing quick access to additional content and help distribute link equity across the site.
These links may not carry as much contextual weight as in-content links, but they enhance site navigation and contribute to a cohesive user experience, which in turn aids search engines in efficiently crawling and indexing your website.
These links are found at the bottom of web pages and typically link to essential pages such as contact information, privacy policies, or a site map.
Footer links help maintain internal connectivity across the website and ensure that important information is accessible on every page, contributing to a consistent user experience and assisting search engines in understanding the overall structure of the site.
Navigation links form the core structure of a website’s menu system, guiding users to the primary sections and pages. These links are crucial for both usability and SEO, as they establish a clear hierarchy and ensure that important content is easily accessible.
By improving user experience and facilitating smooth site navigation, navigation links help search engines better understand the organization of your content and crawl efficiently, contributing to improved search rankings.
Affiliate links are used to track referrals for products or services, often containing tracking parameters that credit the affiliate for generating sales or leads.
While their primary function is monetization, affiliate links also impact SEO. When integrated naturally and disclosed transparently, they contribute to a balanced link profile without disrupting the user experience.
Social media links connect your website with social platforms, whether by linking to your profiles or by allowing users to share your content directly on social networks.
While these links may not pass traditional link equity, they are important for SEO because they increase brand visibility, drive referral traffic, and encourage content sharing. Enhanced social signals can indirectly influence search engine rankings by amplifying the reach and engagement of your content.
PBN links originate from a network of websites specifically created to build backlinks to a target site. Although they can sometimes offer a short-term boost in rankings by artificially inflating the number of backlinks, search engines view these links with skepticism due to their manipulative nature.
Overreliance on PBN links can lead to severe penalties and long-term damage to your site’s credibility. As a result, they are considered a risky tactic compared to earning organic, high-quality backlinks through genuine content and outreach.
Broken links are hyperlinks that lead to pages that no longer exist, often resulting in 404 errors. They negatively impact SEO by hindering user experience and wasting valuable crawl budget, as search engines spend time trying to access these dead ends.
Regularly auditing your site, identifying broken links using tools like Google Search Console, and fixing or redirecting them is essential for preserving your site's structure and overall SEO value.
Search engines use complex algorithms to assess link value and relevance. Factors that influence the evaluation of links include:
Building and maintaining a robust linking strategy is crucial for SEO success. LinkScout’s AI-powered tool simplifies the internal linking process by automatically identifying link opportunities in your content. The platform ensures that your site is well-connected, allowing for even distribution of link equity across your pages. This improves crawlability and user experience and strengthens your website's overall authority.
By leveraging LinkScout, you can focus on creating high-quality content while the tool takes care of optimizing your internal links, thereby elevating your site's linking structure and SEO success.
Get Started With a FREE Trial!
A good backlink comes from a reputable, authoritative website that is relevant to your content. It should be earned organically through high-quality, valuable content rather than through manipulative practices. Editorial links and contextual links are often regarded as the best types, as they signal trust and relevance to search engines.
Link equity, often referred to as “link juice,” is the value or authority that a hyperlink passes from one page to another. High-quality links contribute more link equity, which can boost the linked page’s rankings. Effective internal linking and a balanced mix of external website links help distribute link equity across your site, improving its overall SEO performance.
A natural link is organically earned rather than artificially created or purchased. These links occur when other sites reference your content because it is valuable, relevant, and authoritative. Natural links are a key indicator of quality content and can greatly enhance your site’s credibility in the eyes of search engines.
Link juice is important because it represents the authority and trust passed from one page to another. Pages that receive more link juice from high-quality, relevant links are generally viewed as more authoritative and are more likely to rank higher in search engine results.
Experience the power of AI-driven automated internal linking.
Sign up for a free account and see the results for yourself.
Automate internal SEO links for your content
Copyright © 2025 LinkScout
