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/ External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window

External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window

By WebFactory

Site Administration & Utilities / URL Redirects & 301 Management

Reviewed by Omar Dabbas

Trusted WordPress expert with 20+ years of experience evaluating plugins for the WP ecosystem.

External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window Review - In-Depth Analysis

Manage internal and external links on your site. Control link attributes like nofollow, noopener, and whether links open in a new window. SEO friendly with advanced features.

Performance Overview

WPS Score

6.27/10

User Rating

4.3/5 (based on 247+ reviews)

Active Installations

90,000+

Update Frequency

Average It is calculated using the weighted average of same category plugins.

Security Score

1 / 10 (Very Low Risk) It is calculated using the weighted average of all versions.

What It Does

Manage all external and internal links on your site. Control icons, nofollow, noopener, ugc (User Generated Content), sponsored and if links open in new window or new tab.

WP Links plugin was completely rebuilt in v2 and has lots of new features, like noopener, ugc and sponsored values for rel; font icons, internal links options and full WPMU support.

Check every single link on your site! See if it is broken or not, if it is redirected, what is the target and rel attribute and what page exactly it is linking to. This feature is a part of the WP Links PRO plugin.

After activating you can set all options for external and internal links on the plugin's admin page. The plugin filters the output and changes the links on the fly. The real contents will not be changed in the database.

WP External Links does not track, collect or process any user data. Based on that, we feel it is GDPR compatible.

Comparing to Alternatives

This plugin has several close alternatives that offer similar external link management features, allowing users to compare options based on specific needs.

Top alternatives

Strengths

Comprehensive control over external link attributes including nofollow, noopener, and noreferrer.
Ability to customize link behavior by domain for SEO benefits.
Intuitive interface that is easy to configure.
Includes options to manage link behavior consistently across the site.
Supports both free and pro versions for different user needs.

Weaknesses

Free version has limited features compared to pro.
Requires manual editing of existing posts to apply changes retroactively.
Some users report lack of developer responsiveness.
Uninstalling the plugin may not fully revert changes made to links.

User Sentiment Analysis

With a strong majority of 5-star ratings, users generally appreciate the plugin's functionality and SEO benefits, though a notable minority express dissatisfaction mainly due to support and functionality issues.

Positive highlights

"It does what I expected it to do" - Vladimir Unguru
"Essential Plugin for SEO Control Over External Links" - bondimedical3
"Intuitive interface and well-maintained" - bondimedical3
"Handles noopener and noreferrer attributes out of the box" - bondimedical3

Common complaints

Plugin only affects new posts or requires manual editing of existing posts.
Developers do not respond to support requests or user comments.
Uninstalling the plugin does not fully remove added attributes from links.
Free version offers very limited functionality.
Plugin caused site issues for some users.

Weaknesses

Limited retroactive application of settings.
Poor developer support responsiveness.
Potential site disruption reported by some users.
Incomplete cleanup on uninstall.

Who Should Use This?

Best for

Users looking for detailed control over external link attributes to improve SEO and security, especially those comfortable with some manual post editing and seeking a plugin with both free and pro options.

Not ideal for

Users who need full automatic retroactive link updates, expect prompt developer support, or require a plugin that fully cleans up on uninstall may find this plugin less suitable.

Pricing & Value

Free version includes

The free version provides basic external link management features but is limited in scope and functionality.

Pro version (29 - 49 USD / year)

Offers advanced features such as domain-specific rules, enhanced customization options, and more comprehensive control over link attributes.

Final Verdict

External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window is a robust plugin favored for its SEO-focused external link management and intuitive interface. It offers valuable features in both free and pro versions, making it suitable for users seeking granular control over link behavior.

However, the plugin has notable drawbacks including limited retroactive application, lack of developer support responsiveness, and incomplete cleanup on uninstall. Users prioritizing these aspects or requiring seamless automatic updates may want to consider alternatives.

Other Notable Features

Here are a few other notable features of this free External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window plugin.

External Links

Nofollow

Noopener

Screenshots

FAQ

Just use the option “Skip pages or posts” under the tab “Exceptions”.

For a more custom approach use the action wpel_apply_settings:
add_action( ‘wpel_apply_settings’, function () {
global $post;
$ignored_post_ids = array( 1, 2, 4 );

    if ( in_array( $post->ID, $ignored_post_ids ) ) {         return false;     }      return true; }, 10 );

Using this filter you can ignore any request, like certain category, archive etcetera.

Create redirect by using the wpel_link action. Add some code to functions.php of your theme, like:

add_action( 'wpel_link', function ( $link ) {     // check if link is an external links     if ( $link->is_external() ) {         // get current url         $url = $link->get_attr( 'href' );          // set redirect url         $redirect_url = '//somedom.com?url='. urlencode( $url );         $link->set_attr( 'href', $redirect_url );     } }, 10, 1 );

By adding this JavaScript code to your site:

jQuery(function ($) {     $('a[data-wpel-link="external"]').click(function (e) {         // open link in popup window         window.open($(this).attr('href'), '_blank', 'width=800, height=600');          // stop default and other behaviour         e.preventDefault();         e.stopImmediatePropagation();     }); });

See more information on the window.open() method.

Add this JavaScript code to your site:

jQuery(function ($) {     $('a[data-wpel-link="external"]').click(function (e) {         if (!confirm('Are you sure you want to open this link?')) {             // cancelled             e.preventDefault();             e.stopImmediatePropagation();         }     }); });

Use some JavaScript code for opening PDF files in a new window:

jQuery(function ($) {     $('a[href$=".pdf"]').prop('target', '_blank'); });

Use some CSS style to change the icon for secure sites using https:

a[href^="https"] .wpel-icon:before {   content: "\f023" !important; }

The code \f023 refers to a dashicon or font awesome icon.

Contributors and developers

“External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.

WebFactory

Pro version Free Version Docs

WPS

6.27

Average

Pro version

Ratings

4.3 out of 5 | 247

Version

2.66

Last updated

2 months ago

Active installations

90,000+

WordPress version

7.1.3 or higher

PHP version

7.2 or higher

Languages

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External Links – nofollow, noopener & new window Review - In-Depth Analysis

Performance Overview

What It Does

Comparing to Alternatives

User Sentiment Analysis

Who Should Use This?

Pricing & Value

Final Verdict

Other Notable Features

Screenshots

FAQ

Contributors and developers

Ratings

Reviews (247)

Sort by:

Contributors & Developers

Interested in development?

Changelog

Security Status

Secure

No Unpatched Vulnerabilities

Known Vulnerabilities (1)

Previous Versions

WPS

6.27

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