Paid Link
A paid link is a backlink that is placed in exchange for money or other compensation — such as a free product, service, or sponsorship. While buying and selling links is a common online marketing practice, it can be risky from an SEO perspective if not done correctly.
Search engines like Google consider undisclosed paid links to be manipulative. If these links are intended to pass PageRank and influence search rankings, they may violate Google’s Link Spam Policies and result in penalties.
Why paid links are controversial in SEO
Paid links can:
- Artificially inflate rankings, giving an unfair advantage
- Create link spam if abused at scale
- Undermine the value of organic link building
- Lead to manual penalties or ranking drops if detected by search engines
However, when properly disclosed and tagged, paid links can still drive traffic and brand visibility without risking penalties.
How to properly tag paid links
If you use or publish paid links, you must add attributes to let search engines know:
| Attribute | Purpose |
|---|---|
rel="sponsored" | Indicates the link is part of an advertisement or sponsorship |
rel="nofollow" | Tells search engines not to pass ranking value |
rel="ugc" | Used for user-generated content (e.g., forums, blog comments) |
You can combine these, like: rel="sponsored nofollow"
HTML example of a properly tagged paid link
<a href="https://example.com/product" rel="sponsored nofollow">Check out this product</a>
This tells search engines that the link is part of a sponsored placement and should not pass SEO value.
Best practices for handling paid links
- Always disclose paid links to stay compliant with Google’s guidelines
- Use the correct rel attributes (
sponsored,nofollow, or both) - Avoid buying links solely for SEO purposes — focus on traffic and relevance
- Vet any sites you buy from — avoid link farms or irrelevant placements
- Use native advertising strategies that blend naturally with content
In summary, a paid link is a backlink given in exchange for money or value. While useful for exposure and traffic, it must be handled transparently with proper tagging to avoid SEO penalties and maintain trust with both users and search engines.