{"id":10220,"date":"2020-12-15T22:38:50","date_gmt":"2020-12-15T19:38:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.travelpayouts.com\/en\/?p=10220"},"modified":"2025-07-23T17:11:21","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T14:11:21","slug":"affiliate-links-and-google","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/affiliate-links-and-google\/","title":{"rendered":"Affiliate Links: How to Build Strong Relationships With Google"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Affiliate Websites and Affiliate Links in the Eyes of Google<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>John Mueller, Webmaster Trends Analyst at Google, regularly shares practical thoughts on affiliate links <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JohnMu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">on his Twitter<\/a>. We have collected the main ideas from his answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>There is no need to hide the affiliate nature of a site. Affiliate relationships are fine. If you don\u2019t want to do anything with the affiliate links, you can keep them as they are right now.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure data-wp-context=\"{&quot;imageId&quot;:&quot;69f3112eb89fc&quot;}\" data-wp-interactive=\"core\/image\" class=\"wp-block-image size-large wp-lightbox-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"817\" height=\"562\" data-wp-class--hide=\"state.isContentHidden\" data-wp-class--show=\"state.isContentVisible\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\" data-wp-on-async--load=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async-window--resize=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" src=\"https:\/\/travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/\/2020\/12\/johnmu.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10222\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu.png 817w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu-300x206.png 300w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu-768x528.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 817px) 100vw, 817px\" \/><button\n\t\t\tclass=\"lightbox-trigger\"\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\taria-haspopup=\"dialog\"\n\t\t\taria-label=\"Enlarge\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-init=\"callbacks.initTriggerButton\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--right=\"state.imageButtonRight\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--top=\"state.imageButtonTop\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"12\" height=\"12\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 12 12\">\n\t\t\t\t<path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M2 0a2 2 0 0 0-2 2v2h1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 1 .5-.5h2V0H2Zm2 10.5H2a.5.5 0 0 1-.5-.5V8H0v2a2 2 0 0 0 2 2h2v-1.5ZM8 12v-1.5h2a.5.5 0 0 0 .5-.5V8H12v2a2 2 0 0 1-2 2H8Zm2-12a2 2 0 0 1 2 2v2h-1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 0-.5-.5H8V0h2Z\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t<\/button><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\" start=\"2\"><li>The quality of your content and any additional value you bring to your readers is meaningful. There are plenty of sites that monetize completely or partially with affiliate links that don&#8217;t have any problems with Google. However, if a website was built just to drive traffic to affiliate links, without adding any additional value for the audience, it may face problems.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure data-wp-context=\"{&quot;imageId&quot;:&quot;69f3112eb8de5&quot;}\" data-wp-interactive=\"core\/image\" class=\"wp-block-image size-large wp-lightbox-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"826\" height=\"384\" data-wp-class--hide=\"state.isContentHidden\" data-wp-class--show=\"state.isContentVisible\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\" data-wp-on-async--load=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async-window--resize=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" src=\"https:\/\/travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/\/2020\/12\/johnmu2.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10223\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu2.png 826w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu2-300x139.png 300w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu2-768x357.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 826px) 100vw, 826px\" \/><button\n\t\t\tclass=\"lightbox-trigger\"\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\taria-haspopup=\"dialog\"\n\t\t\taria-label=\"Enlarge\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-init=\"callbacks.initTriggerButton\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--right=\"state.imageButtonRight\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--top=\"state.imageButtonTop\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"12\" height=\"12\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 12 12\">\n\t\t\t\t<path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M2 0a2 2 0 0 0-2 2v2h1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 1 .5-.5h2V0H2Zm2 10.5H2a.5.5 0 0 1-.5-.5V8H0v2a2 2 0 0 0 2 2h2v-1.5ZM8 12v-1.5h2a.5.5 0 0 0 .5-.5V8H12v2a2 2 0 0 1-2 2H8Zm2-12a2 2 0 0 1 2 2v2h-1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 0-.5-.5H8V0h2Z\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t<\/button><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\" start=\"3\"><li>Google has no problems with affiliate websites and affiliate links if your website has quality content and treats the links appropriately:<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure data-wp-context=\"{&quot;imageId&quot;:&quot;69f3112eb91e2&quot;}\" data-wp-interactive=\"core\/image\" class=\"wp-block-image size-large wp-lightbox-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"814\" height=\"435\" data-wp-class--hide=\"state.isContentHidden\" data-wp-class--show=\"state.isContentVisible\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\" data-wp-on-async--load=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async-window--resize=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" src=\"https:\/\/travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/\/2020\/12\/johnmu3.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10224\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu3.png 814w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu3-300x160.png 300w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu3-768x410.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 814px) 100vw, 814px\" \/><button\n\t\t\tclass=\"lightbox-trigger\"\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\taria-haspopup=\"dialog\"\n\t\t\taria-label=\"Enlarge\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-init=\"callbacks.initTriggerButton\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--right=\"state.imageButtonRight\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--top=\"state.imageButtonTop\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"12\" height=\"12\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 12 12\">\n\t\t\t\t<path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M2 0a2 2 0 0 0-2 2v2h1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 1 .5-.5h2V0H2Zm2 10.5H2a.5.5 0 0 1-.5-.5V8H0v2a2 2 0 0 0 2 2h2v-1.5ZM8 12v-1.5h2a.5.5 0 0 0 .5-.5V8H12v2a2 2 0 0 1-2 2H8Zm2-12a2 2 0 0 1 2 2v2h-1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 0-.5-.5H8V0h2Z\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t<\/button><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\" start=\"4\"><li>Mark affiliate links with rel=&#8221;sponsored&#8221;. Even though you do not get paid to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/where-can-i-post-my-affiliate-links-for-free\/\">share affiliate links<\/a>, since they only generate income in the moment someone makes a purchase by clicking the link, they are still sponsored because of the monetary relationship.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure data-wp-context=\"{&quot;imageId&quot;:&quot;69f3112eb959e&quot;}\" data-wp-interactive=\"core\/image\" class=\"wp-block-image size-large wp-lightbox-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"831\" height=\"488\" data-wp-class--hide=\"state.isContentHidden\" data-wp-class--show=\"state.isContentVisible\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\" data-wp-on-async--load=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async-window--resize=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" src=\"https:\/\/travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/\/2020\/12\/johnmu4.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10226\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu4.png 831w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu4-300x176.png 300w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu4-768x451.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 831px) 100vw, 831px\" \/><button\n\t\t\tclass=\"lightbox-trigger\"\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\taria-haspopup=\"dialog\"\n\t\t\taria-label=\"Enlarge\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-init=\"callbacks.initTriggerButton\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--right=\"state.imageButtonRight\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--top=\"state.imageButtonTop\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"12\" height=\"12\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 12 12\">\n\t\t\t\t<path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M2 0a2 2 0 0 0-2 2v2h1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 1 .5-.5h2V0H2Zm2 10.5H2a.5.5 0 0 1-.5-.5V8H0v2a2 2 0 0 0 2 2h2v-1.5ZM8 12v-1.5h2a.5.5 0 0 0 .5-.5V8H12v2a2 2 0 0 1-2 2H8Zm2-12a2 2 0 0 1 2 2v2h-1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 0-.5-.5H8V0h2Z\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t<\/button><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\" start=\"5\"><li>It is fine to simultaneously use the \u201cnofollow\u201d and \u201csponsored\u201d attribute for affiliate links, for instance rel=&#8221;nofollow sponsored&#8221;.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure data-wp-context=\"{&quot;imageId&quot;:&quot;69f3112eb98fc&quot;}\" data-wp-interactive=\"core\/image\" class=\"wp-block-image size-large wp-lightbox-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"821\" height=\"444\" data-wp-class--hide=\"state.isContentHidden\" data-wp-class--show=\"state.isContentVisible\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\" data-wp-on-async--load=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async-window--resize=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" src=\"https:\/\/travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/\/2020\/12\/johnmu5.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10228\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu5.png 821w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu5-300x162.png 300w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu5-768x415.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 821px) 100vw, 821px\" \/><button\n\t\t\tclass=\"lightbox-trigger\"\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\taria-haspopup=\"dialog\"\n\t\t\taria-label=\"Enlarge\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-init=\"callbacks.initTriggerButton\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--right=\"state.imageButtonRight\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--top=\"state.imageButtonTop\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"12\" height=\"12\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 12 12\">\n\t\t\t\t<path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M2 0a2 2 0 0 0-2 2v2h1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 1 .5-.5h2V0H2Zm2 10.5H2a.5.5 0 0 1-.5-.5V8H0v2a2 2 0 0 0 2 2h2v-1.5ZM8 12v-1.5h2a.5.5 0 0 0 .5-.5V8H12v2a2 2 0 0 1-2 2H8Zm2-12a2 2 0 0 1 2 2v2h-1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 0-.5-.5H8V0h2Z\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t<\/button><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\" start=\"6\"><li>Google doesn\u2019t pass signals through a lot of different kinds of links, even though they don\u2019t have a nofollow tag. There is no clear information if one or the other affiliate link falls into this category, but they may be there.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure data-wp-context=\"{&quot;imageId&quot;:&quot;69f3112eb9c6b&quot;}\" data-wp-interactive=\"core\/image\" class=\"wp-block-image size-large wp-lightbox-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"812\" height=\"449\" data-wp-class--hide=\"state.isContentHidden\" data-wp-class--show=\"state.isContentVisible\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\" data-wp-on-async--load=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-async-window--resize=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" src=\"https:\/\/travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/\/2020\/12\/johnmu6.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10229\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu6.png 812w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu6-300x166.png 300w, https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/johnmu6-768x425.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 812px) 100vw, 812px\" \/><button\n\t\t\tclass=\"lightbox-trigger\"\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\taria-haspopup=\"dialog\"\n\t\t\taria-label=\"Enlarge\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-init=\"callbacks.initTriggerButton\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-on-async--click=\"actions.showLightbox\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--right=\"state.imageButtonRight\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--top=\"state.imageButtonTop\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"12\" height=\"12\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 12 12\">\n\t\t\t\t<path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M2 0a2 2 0 0 0-2 2v2h1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 1 .5-.5h2V0H2Zm2 10.5H2a.5.5 0 0 1-.5-.5V8H0v2a2 2 0 0 0 2 2h2v-1.5ZM8 12v-1.5h2a.5.5 0 0 0 .5-.5V8H12v2a2 2 0 0 1-2 2H8Zm2-12a2 2 0 0 1 2 2v2h-1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 0-.5-.5H8V0h2Z\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t<\/button><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What to Do With the Affiliate Links on Your Website<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Doing something with your existing affiliate links is not required. If you want, you can keep everything as it is now. However, for a better relationship with Google, you are better off following these guidelines:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Add rel=&#8221;sponsored&#8221; to all affiliate links<\/li><li>No need to hide affiliate links or other affiliate tools (e.g. widgets, search bars, etc.) to \u201cnoindex\u201d.<\/li><li>You can add the rel=&#8221;nofollow&#8221; tag to the affiliate links. However, even without it, Google doesn&#8217;t pass signals through many different kinds of links.<\/li><li>Focus on the quality of your affiliate website by providing valuable information for the audience.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition, you can turn all external affiliate links into internal ones using a redirect. For example, you can set up a redirect from the internal link <em>example.com\/buy-ticket<\/em> to the external advertiser&#8217;s website. In this case, you can use a 301 redirect. <a href=\"https:\/\/travelpayouts.com\/blog\/url-redirection-and-replacement\/\">Read more<\/a> about the types of redirects and how to easily set them on your website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If the only reason for a page\u2019s existence is to place links on it, affiliate or otherwise, such a page will most likely have problems on Google. The page should be valuable for users and, if a person needs to click on links to get a response, then such a page can rarely be considered high-quality. This does not apply only to affiliate links, but also to any links. However, if this is a navigational page with links to the recommended services or any other page where users expect to get a lot of links, then it\u2019s not a problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Therefore, speaking about links, it is impossible not to touch upon the content itself on the page where the link is located. The link must be relevant and helpful to the user. This is true for both SEO and generating sales. When a user is ready to make a purchase and you offer him\/her an invite to the advertiser&#8217;s website to make a purchase, this is not punishable by Google, and you will see a good conversion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Therefore, you can take care of the affiliate links and the quality of the content at the same time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Links are the foundation of the Internet. Thanks to links, people and search bots are guided by identifying relevant pages. When you share affiliate links on your website, it\u2019s important to know how doing so impacts your website and whether you need to mark the affiliate links in noindex\/nofollow or add another tag.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":10302,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_eb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[192,11,77],"class_list":["post-10220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advices","tag-affiliate-marketing","tag-google","tag-links"],"acf":[],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10220"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10220\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28486,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10220\/revisions\/28486"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10302"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.travelpayouts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}