Free broken link checker

Every way a link can let your visitors down

• Links on your site

  Every link on up to 100 pages. For each one that leads nowhere: where it is, the page it should point to, and whether it’s in your menu.

• A redirect list to check and send

  The old addresses and the pages to send them to, as a file your web person can import into the site’s settings. Check the pages first: they’re suggested by matching words.

• Links to other websites

  Dead links to other sites, with a saved copy from the Wayback Machine when there is one, to link to instead.

• Pictures, files, phone and email links

  Pictures that don’t load, menus and price lists that don’t open, and phone or email links a tap can’t use.

• Every answer, counted

  Each kind of answer counted at the top, the way Google’s Search Console sorts them: pages not found, pages that moved, server errors and pages kept out of Google. Choose a count to see which ones.

• What Search Console lists

  Drop in a list from Search Console, like its “Not found (404)” pages or the pages other sites link to most. See what each one answers today, and what to do.

What happens when you press the button

1. 01Opens your home page

   The way Google first reads it, before any scripts run. Then your robots.txt (a small file telling search engines which pages to skip) and your sitemap (the list of pages you ask Google to show).

2. 02Reads up to 100 pages

   The ones your home page and menu lead to first, then the rest of your sitemap. Pages robots.txt asks crawlers to skip are left alone.

3. 03Asks every link for its answer

   Up to 400 links, pictures, files and sitemap pages, the ones on your site first. A server error is asked again before it counts as broken.

4. 04Sorts it and suggests the fix

   Every answer sorted like Search Console’s Pages report, the closest working page for each broken link, and the redirect list.

What the codes mean

Every web address answers with a three-digit code. Codes in the 200s worked, the 300s moved, the 400s are a problem with the address or the page, and the 500s are a problem with the website’s server. The ones you’ll see most:

• 200OK

  The page opened normally.

• 301Moved for good

  The page has a new address for good. The right redirect when a page moves: Google takes it as a strong sign the new address is the main one.

• 302Moved for now

  The page is somewhere else for now. Google takes it as only a weak sign, so it may keep the old address. If the move is for good, a 301 is better.

• 307, 308Moved for now, moved for good

  Newer versions of 302 and 301, read the same way.

• 403Refused

  The server won’t show the page. Often a firewall or security check turning a checker away, not a broken page.

• 404Not found

  There’s no page at this address. It was moved, deleted or typed wrong.

• 410Gone

  The page was removed on purpose. Google treats it the same as a 404.

• 429Too many requests

  The server asked the checker to slow down. Not a broken page.

• 500Server error

  Something went wrong on the website’s server.

• 503Unavailable

  The website is down for now (busy, or under maintenance), or a security check answered.

From Google’s own guides to how it treats answer codes and redirects.

What this check can’t tell you

• Every page of a very big site

  It reads up to 100 pages and asks about up to 400 links, the ones visitors reach first. Pages deep inside a very big site aren’t read.

• Links added by scripts

  It reads each page’s own code, before scripts run. Links a script adds later aren’t seen.

• Old addresses and links from other sites

  It reads your pages as they are today, so it can’t see the old addresses Google remembers or who links to you. A list you drop in from Search Console covers both.

• The rest of your SEO

  For titles, speed and what stops Google showing your site, try the free SEO checker.