Broken Link : How To Find and Fix Broken Links?
What is Broken Link?
A broken link is a hyperlink on a website that points to a web page that has been deleted or moved. If a user clicks on the link, they will be directed to a 404 page or error message.
Reasons for Broken Links?
There are various reasons that broken links can occur, for example:
- The website owner entered the incorrect URL (misspelled, mistyped, etc.).
- The URL structure of your site changed.
- The external site is no longer available, is offline, or has been permanently moved.
- Firewall or private restriction does not allow outside access.
Examples of a Broken Link Error Code
Here are some examples of error codes that a web server may present for a broken link:
- 404 Page Not Found: the page doesn’t exist
- 400 Bad Request: the host server cannot understand the URL on your page
- Bad Host: Invalid host name: the server with that name is unreachable
- Bad URL: Malformed URL (e.g. a missing bracket, extra slashes, wrong protocol, etc.)
- Timeout: Timeout: HTTP requests constantly timed out during the link check
How Broken Links Will Affect?
- Search Engine Point of View : Google and other search engines don’t like broken links – so the more you have, the more your site will be pushed down the search rankings.
- Users Point of View : This is negative point for the user because it is blocking them access the desired information. These users may decide to make use of another website to find the information elsewhere.
How to Find Broken Links on Website?
- Use Search Engine Console
- Use Free Broken Link Checker Tool : https://howays.com/tools/broken-link-checker/
How To Fix Broken Links?
- Fix by Making Page Available / Correcting the URL slug
- Using 301 Redirection
- Using Plugins (if you are using any CMS like WordPress)