Link Building
UGC link
A UGC link is a hyperlink supplied through user-generated content, such as a comment or forum post, and identified for Google with the `ugc` relationship value.
What it means
The token describes who supplied the link, not whether the destination is good or bad. Google recommends `ugc` for user-created links, permits combining it with `Nofollow`, and notes that consistently trustworthy contributors may be handled differently under a documented moderation policy.
Why it matters
Origin-aware qualification limits blind first-party association while preserving useful community contributions and keeping moderation, spam prevention and link semantics as separate controls.
Example
A forum links the words “supporting source” to a member's destination and automatically assigns `ugc Nofollow` until the account meets a reviewed contributor policy.
Common mistakes
Do not label staff-written editorial links as ugc, treat the token as a spam verdict, omit moderation and abuse controls, overwrite a valid sponsored relationship, apply the rule to unrelated navigation or assume it blocks all Crawling.
How AYSA handles this
Signals reviewed
content author type, anchor, destination, existing rel values, moderation state, trusted-contributor rule
Problem AYSA can identify
AYSA can detect user-supplied links missing the approved relationship token or staff links incorrectly swept into a broad UGC rewrite.
Recommendation prepared
The change is scoped to the documented user-content surface and preserves valid token combinations and contributor exceptions.
Approval preview
The user sees affected content types, current and proposed markup, moderation state, exclusions and the estimated record count.
Execution
AYSA can apply an approved UGC-link rule on supported WordPress content without changing destinations or deleting user submissions.
Verification
Representative rendered comments or posts are checked for the approved tokens, preserved labels and unchanged staff-authored links.
Limits
Qualification does not replace moderation, prevent every abuse attempt or guarantee how any search engine treats a particular link.
Sources and further reading
- Google Search Central — Qualify outbound links — Official search documentation
- Google Search Central — Evolving nofollow and new link attributes — Official search documentation
- Google Search Central — Link best practices — Official search documentation
Written by Marius Dosinescu. Reviewed by AYSA SEO Editorial Team · 2026-07-28 00:00:00.
Quick answers
Frequently asked questions
Does rel=ugc mean the destination is spam?
No. It describes the link's user-generated origin, not a quality or policy verdict about the destination.
Can ugc and nofollow appear on the same link?
Yes. Google accepts multiple relationship values when both descriptions are relevant.
SEO execution campaign
Less SEO work. More organic growth.
AYSA monitors your website, finds opportunities, prepares the work, asks for approval and executes accepted changes so you can grow without living in SEO tools.
