100% Free

Free Broken Link Checker

Find dead links on any website in seconds. Improve your SEO by fixing 404 errors.

How It Works

Step 1

Enter URL

Paste the URL of the page you want to check for broken links.

Step 2

Automatic Scan

Our tool extracts and verifies up to 50 links on the page.

Step 3

Get Results

See a detailed list of broken links with status codes and locations.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a broken link?

A broken link (also called a dead link or 404 error) is a hyperlink that no longer works. This happens when the destination page has been moved, deleted, or the URL was typed incorrectly.

Why are broken links bad for SEO?

Broken links hurt your search rankings because they create a poor user experience and signal to search engines that your site is not well-maintained. Google and other search engines may penalize sites with many broken links.

How many links can I check for free?

Our free tool checks up to 50 links per page scan. This is typically enough for most web pages. For larger sites, you can run multiple scans on different pages.

What HTTP status codes indicate broken links?

Common broken link codes include: 404 (Not Found), 410 (Gone), 500 (Server Error), 502 (Bad Gateway), and 503 (Service Unavailable). Any 4xx or 5xx status generally indicates a problem.

How often should I check for broken links?

It is recommended to check at least monthly, or after making significant content changes. Regular checks help maintain good SEO health and user experience.

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How it works

How the broken link checker works

Paste a URL. We scan every link. You fix what's broken.

01

Enter any page URL

Paste the URL of any page. Our broken link checker extracts every hyperlink on the page, both internal links and external links pointing to other websites.

02

We check each link in parallel

Every link is checked with a real HTTP request. We detect 404 Not Found, 500 Server Error, timeouts, SSL issues, and redirect chains. Up to 50 links per scan.

03

See exactly what's broken

Each broken link shows the HTTP status code, the anchor text used, and where it appears on the page. Fix them in your CMS or send the list to your developer.

Complete guide

Why broken links kill your SEO

A single broken link tells Google your site is poorly maintained. Here is what you need to know about dead links and how to fix them.

Google crawl budget waste

Every time Googlebot hits a 404, it wastes part of your crawl budget. On large sites with hundreds of broken links, Google may stop crawling your newer pages entirely.

Lost link equity

When an external site links to your page and that page returns a 404, you lose the SEO value of that backlink. The referring domain still points to you, but Google cannot pass authority through a dead link.

User trust erosion

Users who click a link and see a 404 page lose trust in your site. Bounce rate increases, time on site decreases, and these behavioral signals feed back into your search rankings.

Internal linking breakdown

Internal links distribute PageRank across your site. When internal links break, orphan pages lose their authority and drop in rankings. A broken internal link is a broken path in your site architecture.

How to fix broken links

  1. 1.

    Set up 301 redirects from old URLs to the correct new pages.

  2. 2.

    Update the href attribute in your HTML, CMS, or template to point to the new URL.

  3. 3.

    Remove links that point to pages that no longer exist and have no replacement.

  4. 4.

    For external broken links, find an alternative resource or remove the link.

  5. 5.

    Run this checker monthly to catch new broken links before Google does.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions about broken links

Common questions about dead links, 404 errors, and how to fix them.

What is a broken link?

A broken link (also called a dead link or 404 error) is a hyperlink that no longer works because the destination page has been moved, deleted, or the URL was typed incorrectly.

Why should I check for broken links?

Broken links hurt your SEO rankings and user experience. Search engines view broken links as a sign of poor site maintenance, which can negatively impact your search rankings.

How many links can I check for free?

Our free tool checks up to 50 links per page. This is usually sufficient for most web pages. For larger sites, you can run multiple checks on different pages.

What HTTP status codes indicate broken links?

Common broken link status codes include: 404 (Not Found), 410 (Gone), 500 (Server Error), 502 (Bad Gateway), and 503 (Service Unavailable). Any 4xx or 5xx status code typically indicates a problem.

How often should I check for broken links?

It is recommended to check your site for broken links at least once a month, or after making significant content changes. Regular checks help maintain good SEO health.

Monitor automatically

Stop checking manually

Robot Speed scans your entire site for broken links every week. When a link breaks, you get notified before Google notices.

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Free Broken Link Checker - Find Dead Links on Any Website | RobotSpeed