Guest posting in 2026: what's still safe and what's link spam
Guest posting is safe when it's an editorial article for a relevant site's readers. What Google calls link spam, and when a link needs rel=sponsored.
LLaunchScaler·Published ·7 min read
Guest posting is still safe when it is an editorial article you pitch to a relevant site, written for that site's readers, with a natural link the editor chose to keep. It is link spam when the main purpose is building links at scale, when the anchors are stuffed with keywords, or when you pay for a post whose link passes ranking credit.
Google has held that line since at least May 2017, when it published a warning about links in large-scale article campaigns, and its link spam policy still names guest posts with optimized anchor text. In 2024 it added a site reputation policy that reaches the host sites too. Below is what each rule says, and how to tell a safe guest article from a link purchase.
Is guest posting still safe in 2026?
Yes, for articles written to inform another site's readers. Google's 2017 post says it "does not discourage these types of articles in the cases when they inform users, educate another site's audience or bring awareness to your cause or company." What violates its guidelines "is when the main intent is to build links in a large-scale way back to the author's site."
That distinction still decides everything. A single article on a relevant publication, pitched to its editor, with a link to your product in your author line or where it helps the reader, is ordinary publishing. Fifty near-identical articles placed on any site that will take them, each with the same keyword link, is a link scheme.
What did Google's 2017 guest posting warning say?
Google's May 25, 2017 post, "A reminder about links in large-scale article campaigns," said it had seen "an increase in spammy links contained in articles referred to as contributor posts, guest posts, partner posts, or syndicated posts." It listed four factors that, "when taken to an extreme," indicate a violation, and warned that publishing sites could be affected too.
The four factors, in Google's words:
"Stuffing keyword-rich links to your site in your articles."
"Having the articles published across many different sites; alternatively, having a large number of articles on a few large, different sites."
"Using or hiring article writers that aren't knowledgeable about the topics they're writing on."
"Using the same or similar content across these articles; alternatively, duplicating the full content of articles found on your own site," in which case it advised in addition to .
Questions, answered
What people ask about this
01
Is guest posting still good for SEO in 2026?
An editorial guest article that informs another site's readers is still fine; Google says it doesn't discourage those. What Google treats as link spam is guest posting done mainly to build links at scale, especially with keyword-rich anchor text, and paid posts whose links pass ranking credit.
The post also spoke to sites that accept guest articles. Publishing "articles that contain spammy links" can "change Google's perception of the quality of the site and could affect its ranking," so hosts should ask: "Do I know this person? Does this person's message fit with my site's audience? Does the article contain useful content?" A host that asks those questions is the kind of host you want your article on.
Do paid guest posts need rel=sponsored?
Yes. Google's link spam policy lists "exchanging money for links, or posts that contain links" as buying links, and it names "advertorials or native advertising where payment is received for articles that include links that pass ranking credit, or links with optimized anchor text in articles, guest posts, or press releases distributed on other sites."
The same policy says paid links are "a normal part of the economy of the web" and are fine when "qualified with a rel="nofollow" or rel="sponsored" attribute value." Google prefers sponsored for paid placements and still accepts nofollow. So if money changes hands for a guest post, the link should carry one of them:
How does the site reputation policy affect guest posts?
It targets the host site. Google introduced "site reputation abuse" on March 5, 2024: third-party pages published "with little or no first-party oversight," meant to exploit the host's ranking signals. Enforcement began May 5, 2024. In November 2024 Google added that "no amount of first-party involvement" changes that when the aim is to exploit the host's signals.
On August 28, 2026 Google published an update under the name "site reputation policy," changing how manual actions apply inside the European Economic Area from August 30. The current policy page is explicit about what is fine. "Columns, opinion pieces, articles, and other work of an editorial nature" are not considered violations, nor is advertorial content whose purpose "is to share content directly to readers" rather than to manipulate rankings.
Its examples of violations show the pattern to avoid: "an educational site hosting a page about sponsored reviews of payday loans written by a third-party that distributes the same page to other sites across the web," and "a medical site hosting a low-quality, third-party advertising page about 'best casinos' that isn't integrated with the site."
For a guest author, the practical rule is to pick hosts whose guest content looks like the rest of the site: on its topic, credited to a named author, edited, and reachable from its own sections. A host that sells unrelated "sponsored" pages to anyone is a host whose pages, and your link on them, may be demoted.
What makes a guest post safe?
A guest post is safe when every part of it would exist without the link: a relevant site, an editor who could say no, content written for that audience, and a link placed where it helps the reader. Each departure from that moves it toward the patterns Google names.
Question
Safe guest article
Link spam pattern
Where is it published?
A site on your topic that your buyers read
Any site that accepts posts, on any topic
Who decides?
An editor who can reject or change it
A price list with guaranteed publication
How many?
A few, each written for its site
Many articles across many sites
Is the content original?
Written for this site only
The same or similar article reused
Who writes it?
Someone who knows the topic
A hired writer who doesn't
What is the anchor text?
Your product name, your URL or the author bio
A commercial keyword phrase like "best invoicing software"
Was money paid for the post?
No, or the link carries rel="sponsored"
Yes, with a followed link
How do you pitch a guest article that gets published?
Pitch an idea that belongs on the target site, from someone qualified to write it, before you write a word. Editors reject finished drafts that don't fit; they accept ideas that do.
List sites your buyers read that publish outside contributors. Check that recent guest articles there are on-topic, credited and edited.
Read the last ten posts, so your idea is new to them and fits their format.
Send a short pitch: a working title, three lines on what the reader will learn, why you are the one to write it, and one or two links to your previous writing.
Write it for their audience. Mention your product only where it genuinely helps, or leave it to the author bio.
Accept the editor's changes, including to links. If they add nofollow to your link, accept that too; the article still reaches their readers.
Keep a record of the URL, the date and the link, so you can check later that it's still live.
What should you avoid in guest posting sites and services?
Avoid anything that sells publication rather than pitching it. "Guest posting sites" lists and "write for us" pages with a price per post, and services that sell followed links on sites of a stated DR, are selling paid links. Google's policy calls those link spam unless they carry rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow".
Red flags in any offer:
A guaranteed number of followed links, or a guaranteed DR, before any editor has seen your article.
A list of sites to choose from by metric, with a price next to each.
Articles written for you by someone who doesn't know your product, placed on sites with no connection to your topic.
No list of the exact URLs where the articles went up.
What to demand from any link-building provider, and how to budget for it, is in link building for startups.
If you already bought guest posts with followed links, ask each host to add rel="sponsored" to your link; Google's manual-action guidance names that kind of fix, asking site owners to stop links "passing PageRank" with nofollow or a more specific attribute. Keep a note of each request. The disavow tool is for links you couldn't get fixed and that have caused, or are likely to cause, a manual action, as covered in toxic backlinks: should you disavow?.
Get editorial guest placements done by hand
LaunchScaler's SEO / GEO boost includes guest placements on real sites: "Editorial pitches to sites that actually publish, with a link a human approved." It never buys links from paid link networks or PBNs, and the page states that "we never fabricate signals or buy spam links." You get "a record of what shipped," with every placement and every fix "linked and checkable." Projects are scoped to your site from $299; send an inquiry and you get a scope and a quote within one business day. Talk to us.
Do paid guest posts need rel=sponsored?
Yes. Google's link spam policy includes exchanging money for posts that contain links, and it says paid links are fine only when marked rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow".
03
What did Google say about guest posting in 2017?
In May 2017 Google warned about spammy links in guest, contributor and syndicated posts. It named keyword-rich links, articles spread across many sites, writers who don't know the topic, and duplicated content as signs of a link scheme.
04
What is the site reputation abuse policy?
Introduced in March 2024, it targets third-party pages published on a host site mainly to exploit the host's ranking signals. Google now calls it the site reputation policy, and editorial columns and articles are not considered violations.
05
Are guest posting services safe to use?
A service that sells guaranteed followed links on sites with a stated DR is selling paid links, which Google's policy calls link spam unless they are qualified. A service that pitches editors and leaves the decision to them is a different thing.
A launch badge is a link from your site to the directory, so it helps the directory. When a badge-for-link trade is fine and when it becomes a link scheme.
A startup link building service should name every site, state each link's type and report what shipped. Options ranked, red flags, and doing it yourself.
