SEO Checklist

Broken links—also called dead or 404 links—are hyperlinks on your website that lead to pages that no longer exist or cannot be accessed. They harm both user experience and SEO, so identifying and fixing them is crucial for maintaining a healthy website.

Why Broken Links Matter

• Negative User Experience: Visitors encountering broken links get frustrated, increasing bounce rates and lowering engagement.


• SEO Impact: Search engines may reduce crawl efficiency and perceive your site as less trustworthy, which can hurt rankings.


• Link Equity Loss: If external sites link to broken URLs on your site, you lose valuable backlink equity.

Common Causes of Broken Links

• Pages moved or deleted without proper redirects.


• Typos or incorrect URLs in internal or external links.


• Changes in URL structure without updating links.


• External sites that you link to have removed or changed pages.

How to Identify Broken Links

1. Use Website Crawlers:
   Tools like Screaming Frog SEO Spider or BrokenLinkCheck can scan your entire site and detect broken internal and external links.


2. Google Search Console:
   Under the Coverage report or Enhancements > Crawl Errors, you can find broken pages that Googlebot has discovered.


3. Browser Extensions:
   Tools like the Check My Links Chrome extension highlight broken links on any page.


4. Manual Checks:
   Review website analytics to identify pages with high exit rates or low engagement that may be caused by broken links.

How to Fix Broken Links

1. Fix Internal Broken Links:
   
   
   
   • Correct typos or update URLs to the current, correct location.
   
   
   • Implement 301 redirects if the page has been moved or replaced.
   
   
   • Remove links to pages that no longer exist if no suitable replacement exists.
   
   
   
   


2. Fix External Broken Links:
   
   
   
   • Check if the external page has moved, and update your link accordingly.
   
   
   • If the external page is permanently gone, remove or replace the link with a relevant alternative.
   
   
   • Consider linking to archived versions using services like the Wayback Machine as a last resort.
   
   
   
   


3. Use Redirects Wisely:
   
   
   
   • Set up 301 redirects for any URLs that have changed to preserve link equity and user experience.
   
   
   • Avoid redirect chains and loops to ensure fast loading and crawlability.
   
   
   
   


4. Regular Maintenance:
   
   
   
   • Schedule regular link audits to catch broken links early.
   
   
   • Monitor Google Search Console and other tools for new crawl errors.
   
   
   
   

Best Practices to Prevent Broken Links

• Use relative URLs for internal linking to reduce issues when migrating domains.


• Implement a strong URL structure and avoid frequent URL changes.


• Use CMS features or plugins that check for broken links automatically.


• Keep backups and documentation of URL changes for reference.

Conclusion

Broken links are detrimental to both user experience and search engine optimization. By regularly identifying and fixing broken links, you ensure your website remains trustworthy, user-friendly, and search engine friendly. Leveraging the right tools and maintaining consistent website upkeep will protect your SEO health and improve overall site performance.