How To Find and Fix Broken Links: Powerful Guide for SEO Health

Learning how to find and fix broken links is a fundamental and non-negotiable task for maintaining the long-term health of any website. Broken links, which lead to 404 error pages, are silent killers of both user experience and search engine optimization performance. They create dead ends for visitors, frustrate users, and prevent the flow of valuable authority throughout your site. A website riddled with broken links appears neglected and untrustworthy to both people and search engine crawlers.

This powerful guide provides a complete, step-by-step roadmap for a comprehensive broken link management strategy. We will explore the different types of broken links, the damage they cause, and the most effective methods and tools for finding and fixing them. We will also cover how to turn this maintenance task into a proactive link building opportunity. By mastering this process, you can improve your site’s usability, preserve your hard-earned authority, and send strong positive signals to search engines.

What Are Broken Links and Why Are They a Problem?

A broken link is a hyperlink that points to a page that no longer exists, has been moved, or was typed incorrectly. When a user or a search engine crawler follows a broken link, they are served a “404 Not Found” error page. This is a dead end.

This phenomenon is a natural part of the web’s lifecycle, often referred to as “link rot.” A comprehensive link rot study can show how prevalent this issue is across the internet. Pages get deleted, websites are redesigned, and domains expire. This constant state of change means that any website, no matter how well-managed, will inevitably develop broken links over time if not actively maintained.

The Negative Impacts of Broken Links

Broken links are a serious problem for three key reasons:

• Poor User Experience: When a visitor clicks a link, they expect to be taken to a relevant resource. A 404 error page is a frustrating experience that can cause users to lose trust in your site and leave.
• Wasted Link Equity: Backlinks are a powerful ranking signal. If an external website is linking to a page on your site that is now deleted, the authority or “link equity” from that link is being wasted. It flows to a dead end instead of helping your site rank. The same is true for internal links; they help distribute authority, and a broken one stops that flow.
• Negative Quality Signals: While a few broken links are normal, a large number of them can be a signal to search engines that a website is old, neglected, or poorly maintained. This can negatively impact how search engines perceive the overall quality of your site.

The Two Types of Broken Links You Must Manage

A complete strategy requires you to find and fix broken links of two distinct types. Each type requires a different set of tools and a different fixing process.

Internal Broken Links

These are links that originate on your own website and are supposed to point to another page on your own website. For example, a link from your blog post to your services page. If your services page URL changes and you do not update the link, it becomes a broken internal link.

External (Inbound) Broken Links

These are links that originate on other websites and point to a page on your site that no longer exists. For example, a reputable blog linked to one of your articles a year ago. Since then, you have deleted that article. The link on that blog is now a broken inbound link, and the authority it is sending is being lost.

Part 1: How to Find and Fix Internal Broken Links

This is the most straightforward part of the process, as you have full control over your own website. The goal is to crawl your site to identify all links that point to a 404 error page and then to systematically fix them.

Using Site Crawlers (Screaming Frog, Sitebulb)

Desktop site crawlers are powerful tools that mimic how a search engine crawls your website. They are one of the most efficient ways to find broken internal links at scale.

The Step-by-Step Process:

1. Configure the Crawler: In a tool like Screaming Frog, enter your homepage URL in the “Enter URL to spider” box.
2. Run the Crawl: Start the crawl and let it run until it is 100% complete. For a very large site, this can take some time.
3. Find the 404 Errors: Once the crawl is finished, go to the “Response Codes” tab. In the overview pane, click on “Client Error (4xx).” This will filter the main window to show you all the URLs on your site that returned a 404 error.
4. Identify the Source Pages: This is the critical step. For each broken URL in the main window, click on it. Then, in the bottom pane, click on the “Inlinks” tab. This will show you every single page on your own site that is linking to that broken URL.

Using Ahrefs’ Site Audit Tool

All-in-one SEO suites like Ahrefs and SEMrush have excellent cloud-based site audit tools that can also find broken links.

The Step-by-Step Process:

1. Set Up a Project: Create a project for your domain in Ahrefs and run a new site audit.
2. Navigate to the Links Report: Once the audit is complete, go to the “Links” report in the sidebar.
3. Identify Broken Links: Look for the “Broken” links issue. Ahrefs will provide a list of all the internal links on your site that are pointing to a broken page. It conveniently shows you the source page and the broken destination page in one easy-to-read report.

The Fixing Process: A Prioritized Checklist

Once you have your list of internal broken links and the pages they are on, you need to fix them. The appropriate fix depends on the situation.

• If the link was simply mistyped: This is the easiest fix. Go into your content management system (CMS), edit the source page, and correct the typo in the URL.
• If the linked-to page was intentionally deleted and has no replacement: In this case, the best option is to edit the source page and remove the link entirely.
• If the linked-to page has been moved or replaced: The best solution is a 301 redirect. However, you should also update the source link itself to point directly to the new page. This is a better user experience and is slightly more efficient for crawlers.

Part 2: How to Find and Fix External (Inbound) Broken Links

This process is about reclaiming lost authority. You are looking for other websites that are linking to your domain, but the specific page they are linking to is now a 404 error. This is a core part of a proactive backlink management strategy.

Using Backlink Checkers to Find Broken Inbound Links

You will need a premium backlink analysis tool to do this effectively.

The Step-by-Step Process:

1. Enter Your Domain: In a tool like Ahrefs’ Site Explorer, enter your domain.
2. Go to the “Best by links” Report: In the left-hand menu, under “Pages,” click on “Best by links.”
3. Filter by HTTP Code: Add an “HTTP code” filter and select “404 not found.”
4. Analyze the Results: The tool will now show you a list of all the pages on your website that have backlinks pointing to them but are currently returning a 404 error. The report will also show you how many referring domains are linking to each broken page.
5. Prioritize Your Efforts: Sort the list by “Referring domains” to see which broken pages have the most valuable links pointing to them. A broken page with 50 referring domains is a much higher priority than one with only one.

The Fixing Process: A Deep Dive into Link Reclamation

The process of fixing these broken inbound links is also known as link reclamation. The goal is to redirect the authority from the dead page to a live, relevant page.

The Step-by-Step Process:

1. Identify a Relevant Replacement Page: For each high-priority broken page on your list, you need to find the most suitable live page on your site to redirect the link equity to. If the old page was “/best-running-shoes-2022,” the best replacement is likely your current “/best-running-shoes” category page.
2. Implement a 301 Redirect: In your site’s .htaccess file or through a redirection plugin, set up a permanent 301 redirect from the old, broken URL to the new, relevant URL. This will pass most of the link equity and will ensure any user who clicks the old link is sent to the right place.
3. Optional Outreach: For your most valuable broken backlinks (e.g., a link from a major news site), you can consider contacting the webmaster. You can send a polite email letting them know their link is broken and providing them with the new, correct URL.

A Note on Toxic Links: This process is for reclaiming good links. It is separate from dealing with toxic backlinks. If a broken page has links from spammy or harmful sites, you should not redirect it. Just let it remain a 404. You should address those harmful domains as part of a larger backlink audit, which may involve using the tool to disavow backlinks.

Part 3: Using Broken Links for Proactive SEO

Now that you have cleaned up your own site, you can use the same principles to proactively build new links. This is a popular white hat strategy.

The Concept of Broken Link Building

The concept of broken link building involves finding broken outbound links on other websites in your niche. You then contact that website’s owner, alert them to the dead link, and suggest your own relevant content as a replacement.

This is a highly effective tactic because you are leading with value. You are helping the webmaster fix an error on their site, which makes them much more likely to reward you with the link.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Finding Opportunities

1. Identify Target Websites: Look for authoritative sites in your niche that have a lot of content and external links, such as resource pages, long-form guides, and “best of” lists.
2. Analyze Their Outbound Links: Use a tool like Ahrefs’ Site Explorer. Enter the target domain, go to the “Outgoing links” report, and click on the “Broken links” filter. This will show you all the dead links that the site is pointing to.
3. Find Relevant Opportunities: Sift through the list of broken links to find ones that were pointing to content related to a resource you have on your own site.
4. Create a Replacement Asset (If Needed): If you find a great opportunity but do not have a perfect replacement resource, this is your chance to create one.

Crafting the Perfect Outreach Email

Your outreach email must be polite, professional, and genuinely helpful.

1. Use a Clear Subject Line: Something simple like “A broken link on your site” works well.
2. Be Specific: In the body of the email, clearly state the page where you found the broken link and the specific anchor text of the dead link.
3. Suggest Your Replacement: Politely suggest your own resource as a potential replacement.
4. Keep it Low-Pressure: End the email by making it clear that it is just a suggestion.

Conclusion

Learning how to find and fix broken links is an essential skill for anyone serious about SEO. It is a fundamental aspect of website maintenance that pays significant dividends. By regularly auditing your internal links, you improve user experience and ensure that authority flows correctly throughout your site. By reclaiming the value of your broken inbound links, you preserve your hard-earned authority. And by using this knowledge proactively, you can build new, high-quality links.

This process is a core component of any good SEO strategy. It is one of the many important seo tips that can make a real difference in your site’s performance.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: How often should I check for broken links?

For a small to medium-sized website, a quarterly check for broken links is a good practice. For very large, enterprise-level websites that are updated frequently, a monthly check is recommended. Continuous backlink monitoring can also alert you to broken inbound links as they happen.

Q2: Do broken links negatively affect my rankings?

Indirectly, yes. While Google has stated that a few broken links will not directly harm your rankings, a large number of them can be a signal of a low-quality, neglected site. More importantly, broken links waste link equity, which can definitely prevent your pages from ranking as high as they could.

Q3: What’s the difference between a 404 error and a soft 404?

A 404 error is the correct server response for a page that does not exist. A “soft 404” is when a non-existent page incorrectly returns a “200 OK” server response code. This is confusing for search engines and should be fixed so that the URL properly returns a 404.

Q4: Is it better to update a broken internal link or 301 redirect it?

You should do both. The first priority is to set up a 301 redirect from the old URL to the new one to capture any external link equity. After that, you should also go back and update the source of the internal link on your own site to point directly to the new page.

Q5: Can I use a WordPress plugin to find broken links?

Yes, there are plugins like “Broken Link Checker” for WordPress. They can be very convenient for smaller sites. However, these plugins can be very resource-intensive and can slow down your website’s server. For larger or more serious sites, using an external crawler like Screaming Frog or a cloud-based tool like Ahrefs’ Site Audit is the recommended approach.