Free bounded website crawl
Broken Link Finder
Check a public website for broken internal links, failed external citations, redirects, blocked responses, and pages that could not be verified. Every result keeps the source page, destination, anchor text, and response status together.
- Up to 25 internal pages
- 40 external links checked
- Public URLs only
- No page content stored
Run the check
Scan a public website
Enter a website you own or are authorized to review. Start from the homepage or a relevant content hub; the live scanner keeps the crawl bounded and returns evidence you can inspect.
Publisher quality
Broken Link Finder
Crawl a bounded set of internal pages and report URLs that return errors or redirects.
How to check a website for broken links
A bounded scan is best for a representative section. Large sites, JavaScript applications, and complete migration audits need a full crawler and server-side data.
Start with the right section
Use the homepage for a general review or a content-hub URL to focus the crawl. Submit only a site you own or have permission to check.
Filter the evidence
Prioritize failed internal links, then review redirects, failed external citations, blocked responses, and unverified requests.
Verify and repair
Open important results manually. Correct the source link, restore content, remove the reference, or redirect only to a genuinely relevant replacement.
How to read the crawl status
The report separates outcomes because status codes and connection failures do not all mean the same thing.
| Report label | Typical evidence | Recommended review |
|---|---|---|
| Working | A successful HTTP response, usually in the 2xx range. | Usually no repair is needed. Still confirm that the destination contains the expected content. |
| Redirected | A 3xx response and a different final destination. | Check whether the final page is correct. Update internal links to the stable destination when practical, especially after a migration. |
| Failed | A clear client or server error such as 404, 410, or a persistent 5xx. | Verify manually, then correct, restore, remove, or redirect according to what happened to the content. |
| Blocked | An access response such as 401, 403, or 429, or an explicit crawling restriction. | The page may work for people. Check it in a browser and respect the site’s access controls and crawl rules. |
| Unverified | Timeout, DNS failure, TLS problem, interrupted connection, or another result without reliable confirmation. | Retry later and verify manually. Do not label the destination broken from this result alone. |
| Soft 404 | A page appears missing or empty but returns 200. | A lightweight status check may not detect this reliably. Review Search Console and the rendered page when the content looks wrong. |
Repair links that interrupt important journeys first
Broken links are a maintenance and user-experience problem before they are a ranking discussion. Google has clarified that ordinary 404 responses are a normal part of the web and do not stop crawling across an entire site. The practical priority is the source page, the user’s task, and whether a useful path has been lost.
- Conversion and service paths. Fix dead links in navigation, forms, pricing, checkout, contact, and high-value landing pages first.
- Important internal references. Repair links that strand key articles, tools, categories, or pages with external backlinks.
- Primary-source citations. Replace failed research, legal, medical, statistics, or documentation links with a current authoritative source.
- Redirect chains. Update internal links that pass through unnecessary hops, even when the final page works.
- Low-impact archives. A removed URL with no useful replacement can correctly remain a 404 or 410; it does not need an irrelevant homepage redirect.
Choose the repair that matches the cause
Avoid sending every deleted URL to the homepage. The destination should satisfy the same or a very similar need.
The source URL contains a typo
Edit the link at its source. A redirect can provide a safety net when the misspelled URL has meaningful traffic or backlinks, but it does not replace correcting your own markup.
The page moved
Use a 301 or 308 permanent server-side redirect to the closest equivalent page, then update internal links, sitemaps, canonicals, and navigation.
The content still should exist
Restore the page or publish the intended content at the expected URL. Confirm that the server returns the correct successful status instead of a soft 404.
The content is permanently removed
Remove links from source pages. Return a genuine 404 or 410 when there is no suitable replacement, and provide useful navigation on the human-facing error page.
An external citation failed
Find the current primary source or an equivalent authoritative reference. Do not replace a trusted citation with a convenient but weaker source merely to remove the error.
The result is blocked or temporary
Retry from a normal browser, check server logs when you control the site, and wait before acting on a timeout, rate limit, TLS error, or transient 5xx.
Illustrative crawl review
This fictional example shows why the source page and final destination matter more than a single error total.
A 12-page resource hub returns two internal 404s, three redirects, one failed external citation, and one blocked external request. Both internal 404s point to the same guide that moved during a redesign. The correct repair is a permanent redirect to its true replacement plus updates to the two source links.
The external citation should be checked for a current version from the original publisher. The blocked request is not called broken until a browser check confirms the destination is unavailable.
Outcome: one redirect rule, two internal-link updates, one citation review, and one manual verification—not seven identical actions.
Use broken-link outreach only when the replacement helps
Finding a failed external resource can reveal an editorial opportunity, but the error does not make every replacement relevant. Ahrefs and Semrush both describe broken-link building as a process that still requires prospect evaluation, a comparable resource, and thoughtful outreach.
- Confirm the dead page and understand what it originally provided.
- Offer a live resource that answers the same question at least as well.
- Reference the exact source page and broken destination.
- Explain the reader benefit without claiming entitlement to the link.
- Respect editorial decisions, disclosures, and publisher terms.
Crawler limits and accuracy
Bounded scope
The tool follows up to 25 internal pages and checks a separate bounded sample of up to 40 external destinations. Use a full crawler for large sites and complete migration inventories.
Returned HTML
Links created only after login, consent, scrolling, button clicks, or complex browser-side JavaScript may not exist in the HTML available to a lightweight crawler.
Manual confirmation
Security services, geographic variation, temporary failures, and bot rules can affect automated responses. Confirm important failures before publishing changes or sending outreach.
Broken link finder questions
What is a broken link?
A broken link points to a destination that is no longer available or cannot complete the expected request. Common evidence includes a 404 or 410 response, although network and server failures require careful interpretation.
What is the difference between a broken internal link and a broken backlink?
A broken internal link appears on your site and points to another page on your site. A broken backlink is an incoming link from another website to a failed page on your domain. This crawler focuses on links found while scanning the submitted site, not a complete external backlink index.
Do 404 errors hurt an entire website’s rankings?
No. Google has said that 404 pages are a normal part of the web and do not stop crawling of the entire site. Broken links can still interrupt users and useful crawl paths, so fix the source links that matter.
Should every 404 redirect to the homepage?
No. Redirect only when a close replacement exists. Sending many unrelated removed URLs to the homepage can confuse visitors and may be treated as a soft 404.
What is the difference between 404 and 410?
Both indicate that the requested resource is unavailable. A 404 means “not found”; a 410 explicitly means “gone.” Either can be appropriate when content is permanently removed and has no suitable replacement.
Do all redirects need to be fixed?
No. Redirects are normal after URL changes. Update a source link when it uses an unnecessary chain, reaches an unexpected page, or can point directly to a stable final URL.
Why can a working page appear blocked?
Firewalls, bot protection, authentication, rate limits, and geographic rules can return a different response to an automated checker. Verify the page in a normal browser and review logs when you control the server.
Can the tool detect a soft 404?
Not reliably from status alone. A soft 404 returns a successful code while showing missing, empty, or error-like content. Review Google Search Console and the rendered page for this issue.
Can I crawl a private staging site?
No. This public tool accepts HTTP and HTTPS URLs and blocks local, private-network, authenticated, file, FTP, and other unsupported destinations for safety.
Why does the crawler have limits?
The 25-page and 40-external-link bounds keep public checks focused and responsible. A complete technical audit of a large site requires a dedicated crawler, server capacity planning, and often Search Console or log data.
Will fixing broken links guarantee higher rankings?
No. Repairs can improve navigation, maintenance, and crawl paths, but no single link change guarantees a ranking increase. The effect depends on the page, the failed route, the replacement, and the wider site.
Can I export the crawl report?
Yes. After results load, filter the table if needed and choose Export CSV. The export retains the source page, destination, anchor, status, final URL, and detail available in the report.
Continue the link review
Use each tool for a focused question instead of turning one crawl result into a complete publisher-quality score.
Standards and further reading
Primary Google documentation supports the status and repair guidance. Ahrefs and Semrush are included for broader industry workflow—not as evidence of guaranteed rankings or outreach success.
Campaign support
Need help repairing or replacing a link?
Send the source page, broken destination, suggested replacement, target market, and the service you need. The existing order form can receive the scan summary without changing the current order workflow.
We will review the editorial fit, identify suitable publishers, prepare the article angle, and confirm placement terms before any order proceeds.
Prefer email? Write to [email protected].
A broken-link opportunity is checked for relevance and publisher availability before outreach or placement work begins.