Nofollow link
A nofollow link carries a rel="nofollow" attribute that tells search engines not to pass ranking credit through it.
The rel="nofollow" attribute was introduced to let sites link to a page without endorsing it, originally to fight comment spam. A nofollow link generally does not pass link equity the way a dofollow link does. Since 2019, Google treats nofollow (along with the newer rel sponsored and rel ugc values) as a hint rather than a strict directive, meaning it may still use these links for crawling and indexing in some cases.
Even though they typically pass little or no direct ranking value, nofollow links are far from worthless. They drive referral traffic, build brand awareness, and create a natural-looking link profile. Links from large platforms like Wikipedia, major news sites, and social networks are often nofollow yet still highly valuable for visibility.
Practical takeaway: do not refuse a relevant, traffic-driving placement just because it is nofollow, and do not obsess over the dofollow-to-nofollow ratio. A profile that is suspiciously all-dofollow can itself look manipulative, so a natural blend that includes nofollow links is a sign of organic growth.