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Few things frustrate visitors more than clicking a link that goes nowhere. A broken link not only disrupts their online journey but also signals to search engines that your site might not be well-kept. The good news? You can spot and repair broken links quickly.
A broken link is a website connection that doesn’t work how it should – for example, doesn’t load the content the user expects. The most common result is the 404 Not Found error. That status tells both people and search engines that the page doesn’t exist anymore. If the page was deleted permanently, servers may use a 410 Gone response to be even clearer.
Source: Unsplash
Sometimes, websites display a “not found” message but quietly return a 200 OK status. That’s known as a soft 404. Search engines dislike it because it sends mixed signals: the page says “missing” but the server says “fine.”
In theory, broken links should not impact your rankings in search engines. Google has explained that having some 404s alone won’t cause a penalty or a demotion in rank.
In practice, though, internal broken links damage user trust. Imagine a customer trying to buy a product but landing on a dead page. That click is often the last one they give you. Nearly three-quarters of ecommerce sites struggle with poor link accessibility, which frustrates users and leads to abandoned sessions – instead of a successful conversion.
There’s also the creep of link decay over time. According to Ahrefs, about 66.5% of links pointing to websites disappeared over a nine-year span. Regular broken link checks help to stay ahead of this ‘link rot’.
Finally, the new AI search tools are making the problem more visible. AI assistants tend to send users to broken pages nearly three times as often as traditional search. That means errors users might not have noticed before are now front and center – and your broken link hygiene becomes even more important.
Source: Unsplash
Finding broken links on the website is relatively easy and can be done using both free and paid tools.
Step 1. In Google Search Console, head to the Page indexing report. Look under Not found (404) and Soft 404 to see URLs Google couldn’t access. This gives you a direct list of pages that search engines have tried and failed to reach.
Step 2. Run a full crawl of your website with your preferred third-party tool (like ScreamingFrog or Lumar). Crawlers scan your site in bulk and flag every broken internal link, redirect chain, or protocol mix-ups like HTTP to HTTPS. They’re invaluable when you’ve made changes to URLs, launched new products, or migrated to HTTPS – and complement the data you get from performance monitoring tools.
Step 3. Check navigation, footers, and reusable blocks inside your CMS (content management system). Menu anchors, template includes, and promo banners often hide outdated links – for example, a product that is no longer available may still be linked in a menu. When you update content or change slug formats, old links can break.
Once you have this data at hand, start focusing on pages with 404 status code that still receive traffic and focus on those first. Importantly, fixing 404 errors is one of the key tactics to diagnose and tackle traffic drops to your website.
If you recently switched to HTTPS, review internal links that still point to HTTP to avoid landing users on non-secure versions of the website. And if you have a website migration planned – it’s prime time to fix broken links by setting up 301 redirects from old URLs to the new ones.
Source: Unsplash
There isn’t one universal fix for all broken links – the right response depends on the situation.
Google says that redirects are interpreted as signals about which URL should be canonical. Choose the type that matches how long the change will last. According to Bing, a helpful 404 page and accurate status codes are best practice. That page can guide users back to working content without masking the 404.
Here are some more practical examples on how to avoid broken links:
Broken links happen to every website, but they don’t have to be a major setback. With the right tools, you can catch them early, decide the best fix, and keep both users and search engines on track. Whether you redirect, update, or let a page return a clean 404, the important thing is to be intentional.
A 404 means “page not found.” A 410 means “page gone.” Both tell search engines the page is unavailable, but 410 is more explicit.
No, not directly. Google confirms that 404s themselves don’t hurt a site’s SEO. They can, however, frustrate users if they’re internal.
It’s when a page looks like an error to users but returns a 200 OK status. Search engines flag these as misleading. The fix is to serve a proper 404.
Use 301 for permanent changes so the new URL becomes canonical. Use 302 if you plan to revert to the old URL later.
Monthly checks are enough for most sites. During a migration or redesign, run audits more often to catch issues early. it.com’s migration resources cover what to review.
Continue reading at the it.com Domains blog...
TL;DR
- Broken links are URLs that no longer lead to valid pages.
- Google says 404s don’t directly harm rankings, but they frustrate users.
- Choose the right fix: update the link, set a redirect, or serve a true 404/410 when content is gone.
- Soft 404s (pages that look missing but return a 200 OK code) should be avoided.
Broken Links: Definition and Types
A broken link is a website connection that doesn’t work how it should – for example, doesn’t load the content the user expects. The most common result is the 404 Not Found error. That status tells both people and search engines that the page doesn’t exist anymore. If the page was deleted permanently, servers may use a 410 Gone response to be even clearer.
Source: Unsplash
Sometimes, websites display a “not found” message but quietly return a 200 OK status. That’s known as a soft 404. Search engines dislike it because it sends mixed signals: the page says “missing” but the server says “fine.”
Can Broken Links Hurt My SEO?
In theory, broken links should not impact your rankings in search engines. Google has explained that having some 404s alone won’t cause a penalty or a demotion in rank.
In practice, though, internal broken links damage user trust. Imagine a customer trying to buy a product but landing on a dead page. That click is often the last one they give you. Nearly three-quarters of ecommerce sites struggle with poor link accessibility, which frustrates users and leads to abandoned sessions – instead of a successful conversion.
There’s also the creep of link decay over time. According to Ahrefs, about 66.5% of links pointing to websites disappeared over a nine-year span. Regular broken link checks help to stay ahead of this ‘link rot’.
Finally, the new AI search tools are making the problem more visible. AI assistants tend to send users to broken pages nearly three times as often as traditional search. That means errors users might not have noticed before are now front and center – and your broken link hygiene becomes even more important.
Source: Unsplash
How to Identify Broken Links on Your Website
Finding broken links on the website is relatively easy and can be done using both free and paid tools.
Step 1. In Google Search Console, head to the Page indexing report. Look under Not found (404) and Soft 404 to see URLs Google couldn’t access. This gives you a direct list of pages that search engines have tried and failed to reach.
Step 2. Run a full crawl of your website with your preferred third-party tool (like ScreamingFrog or Lumar). Crawlers scan your site in bulk and flag every broken internal link, redirect chain, or protocol mix-ups like HTTP to HTTPS. They’re invaluable when you’ve made changes to URLs, launched new products, or migrated to HTTPS – and complement the data you get from performance monitoring tools.
Step 3. Check navigation, footers, and reusable blocks inside your CMS (content management system). Menu anchors, template includes, and promo banners often hide outdated links – for example, a product that is no longer available may still be linked in a menu. When you update content or change slug formats, old links can break.
Once you have this data at hand, start focusing on pages with 404 status code that still receive traffic and focus on those first. Importantly, fixing 404 errors is one of the key tactics to diagnose and tackle traffic drops to your website.
If you recently switched to HTTPS, review internal links that still point to HTTP to avoid landing users on non-secure versions of the website. And if you have a website migration planned – it’s prime time to fix broken links by setting up 301 redirects from old URLs to the new ones.
Source: Unsplash
Fix Broken Links: 5 Scenarios
There isn’t one universal fix for all broken links – the right response depends on the situation.
| Situation | Best action | Reason |
| Page moved permanently | 301 redirect | Tells search engines and users the new home. |
| Temporary change | 302 or 307 redirect | Keeps the old URL in the index, indicating the change is temporary. |
| Page removed for good | 404 or 410 | Honest and accurate. |
| “Missing” page returns 200 | Return a real 404 | Prevents soft 404 errors. |
| Broken internal link | Update the link to another live URL | Fixes the root problem. |
Google says that redirects are interpreted as signals about which URL should be canonical. Choose the type that matches how long the change will last. According to Bing, a helpful 404 page and accurate status codes are best practice. That page can guide users back to working content without masking the 404.
Here are some more practical examples on how to avoid broken links:
- You decide to rename /services/cloud-backup to /services/backup. Add a 301 redirect from one URL to another and update your menus.
- You need to retire /events/2023-summit with no replacement. Serve a 404 or 410. If it has high traffic, consider a 301 redirect to /events.
- Your 404 template currently shows a nice message but returns 200 OK. Switch it to a true 404 to avoid soft 404 flags.
How to Prevent Broken Links
- Check monthly. Review Search Console’s Not found report regularly.
- Standardize your URLs. Keep them short and predictable.
- Maintain a friendly 404 page. Offer links to top categories or a search box.
- Plan redirects carefully. Our migration guide is a solid resource.
- Accept link rot. Links across the web will decay – a routine crawl keeps you ahead.
Broken links happen to every website, but they don’t have to be a major setback. With the right tools, you can catch them early, decide the best fix, and keep both users and search engines on track. Whether you redirect, update, or let a page return a clean 404, the important thing is to be intentional.
FAQs
What is the difference between 404 and 410 errors?
A 404 means “page not found.” A 410 means “page gone.” Both tell search engines the page is unavailable, but 410 is more explicit.
Do 404s affect my rankings?
No, not directly. Google confirms that 404s themselves don’t hurt a site’s SEO. They can, however, frustrate users if they’re internal.
What is a soft 404?
It’s when a page looks like an error to users but returns a 200 OK status. Search engines flag these as misleading. The fix is to serve a proper 404.
When should I use 301 vs 302 redirects?
Use 301 for permanent changes so the new URL becomes canonical. Use 302 if you plan to revert to the old URL later.
How often should I scan for broken links?
Monthly checks are enough for most sites. During a migration or redesign, run audits more often to catch issues early. it.com’s migration resources cover what to review.
Continue reading at the it.com Domains blog...
