What Is Disavow?
Disavow is an SEO action where you ask Google to ignore some backlinks that point to your website. You do this when the links are spammy or low quality and might harm your rankings.
Definition
In SEO, to disavow links means to upload a special text file to the Google Disavow Links tool inside Google Search Console. This file lists bad links or whole domains that you do not trust. After some time, Google treats those listed links as if they do not count for your site.
Why Disavow Matters
Not all backlinks are good. Some come from spam sites, link farms or hacked pages. Too many of these can cause:
- Lower search rankings
- Manual actions for unnatural links
- Less trust in your website
Using disavow the right way can help protect your site from bad links that you cannot remove in any other way.
How Disavow Works
Here is the simple idea of how disavow works:
- You find harmful or clearly spammy backlinks pointing to your site.
- You try to remove them by asking the site owners first.
- If removal does not work, you list those URLs or domains in a plain text file.
- You upload that file to the Disavow Links tool in Google Search Console.
- Over time, Google processes the file and ignores those links in its ranking system.
Google warns that disavow is an advanced tool. If you disavow good links by mistake, you can hurt your own rankings, because you are telling Google to ignore helpful signals.
Example of Disavow
Imagine you run an online shoe store. One day you see hundreds of strange backlinks from unrelated gambling and adult sites. You did not ask for those links. They look spammy and dangerous.
You collect those domains into a text file, for example:
domain:spamexample1.com domain:spamexample2.net
You upload the file in the Disavow Links tool. After Google processes it, those spam links should no longer count toward your site. This can help protect your store from a penalty or ranking drop.
FAQs
When should I use disavow
Use disavow only if you have a lot of spammy or clearly unnatural backlinks and you think they might cause a penalty or ranking problems. Most small sites never need it.
Does disavow improve rankings
Disavow itself does not boost rankings. It just removes the effect of bad links. It may help if you were being pushed down by those links, but it is not a growth trick.
Can I undo a disavow
Yes. You can download your current disavow file, remove links you no longer want to ignore, then upload the updated file. Google will later start counting those links again.
Is disavow the same as deleting links
No. The links still exist on the web, but Google tries to ignore them for ranking your site. Only the site owner who placed the link can fully remove it.
Do I need to disavow every bad looking link
No. The web is full of weak or random links, and Google is good at ignoring many of them. Disavow is mainly for large scale spam or serious link problems, not for every small issue.
