Broken links are an accessibility concern as well as make an awkward user experience for visitors. We recommend checking for broken links on a regular basis.
Here are some resources that you can use to check for broken links:
Websites
- Google Search Console - The Index Coverage Report shows the Google-index state of all URLs in your property. Errors with the type Submitted URL not found (404) are broken links.
- Broken Link Checker - This free online broken link checker tells you which of your hyperlinks are broken, which page they are on, and where the reference is located in your HTML code. You can scan up to 3000 pages at no cost.
- W3C Link Checker - Check links and anchors in for full websites or specific pages. The link checker reads the page and extracts a list of anchors and links. It checks that no anchor is defined twice. It then checks that all the links are dereferenceable, including the fragments. It warns about HTTP redirects, including directory redirects.
- Broken Link Checker by Atomseo - Broken Link Checker by Atomseo is a free web-based online tool for checking your site health. With the free plan, you can scan up to 2000 link per day.
Browser Extensions
- Broken Link Checker Chrome Extension - This extension can scan one or multiple pages and provides a broken links report. When scanning a page, it will highlight working links green and broken links pink. On the free plan, you can scan 1000 internal pages, 300 external pages, and 100 backlink pages.
- Check My Links Chrome Extension - This extension finds all the links on a page and checks each one for you. It highlights which ones are valid and which ones are broken. You can copy the broken links to your clipboard and paste them in a spreadsheet/document for further review if needed.