Why Broken Links Occur and How to Resolve Them?

What Does Broken Link Mean?

A broken link can be defined as a link that does not work when clicked, in the shortest definition. In a longer definition, a broken link is where a link on a website cannot access the target page. Broken links can occur for many reasons, such as the URL of the link being misspelt, renamed, the target page being deleted or moved, or the link no longer being clickable.

What are the Types of Broken Links?

Broken links are a significant problem that will impact the usability, performance, and functionality of web pages. Understanding the different types of links that can be broken is important for identifying and fixing them. The types of links that can be broken are as follows:

Broken Internal Links

Internal links refer to the links between pages on a website. Internal links that connect pages on your website make it easier for users and search engines to discover them. In addition, internal links improve search engine optimization (SEO), increase the amount of time users spend on your website, and increase the number of views your website receives.

Your website’s homepage may contain multiple internal links. These links also direct users to other content on the website. Internal links that redirect users to related or similar content on a page on the website allow users to explore more content. As a result, users spend more time on your website.

Broken External Links

External links are website links to pages on other websites. This link directs users to external resources outside of the website. In this way, additional information is provided to users and different perspectives are presented. For example, a product page on a website can be linked to an e-commerce page related to that product. Links provided in this way are external links.

External links that increase communication between websites make it easier to access resources on different websites. However, external links direct users to a different page from your website. In this case, the time spent on your page is reduced. Therefore, the number of external links on your website can affect your SEO performance. 

Image Broken Links 

The errors that occur when the images on your website are missing, incorrect or have missing URLs are called image broken links. When your images are image broken links, a broken link symbol or error message is displayed on your website instead of the image.

Image broken links, which negatively affect the user experience by disrupting the visual aesthetics of your website, also lead to doubts about the reliability of your website. Image broken links are caused by incorrectly written or deleted file names, or the server where the image is located not working properly. Fixing image broken links improves the quality of your website, increases user trust in your website, and has a positive impact on SEO performance.

Redirect Broken Links

A redirect broken link occurs when a link on a website doesn’t work due to a redirect error. This is when a user clicks on a page on a website and encounters an error message such as “404 Page Not Found” or “Redirect Error.” Redirect links that negatively impact user trust and experience also negatively impact SEO performance.

Redirecting broken web links resulting from incorrect redirects can be easily fixed. Correcting redirect broken links increases the return rate and loyalty to the website. In addition, it improves user experience and trust, and positively impacts SEO performance.

Typo-Broken Links

Typo-broken links occur due to spelling errors on a web page. Typo-broken links can occur because the website owner uses the wrong letter or number. Additionally, this type of link can cause error messages or the page to not work properly due to the web page having the wrong URL.

How Does a Broken Link Occur?

When a link becomes broken, clicking on it does not direct to the target page and instead displays an error message. Broken links can occur due to many factors on a web page and fixing them is of great importance for a website. Therefore, website owners should regularly monitor and correct broken links. The reasons for broken link formation are as follows:

• Page Moving: Broken links can occur as a result of website owners moving or deleting their pages. The moved page will usually display an error due to broken links resulting from the moving of web pages. This is especially true on large websites and the possibility of broken links due to page movement is much higher.
• URL Changes: Broken links can occur on other pages that link to the current page due to website owners changing the URL of a page on their site. This situation may also occur due to other pages linking to your site not updating the new URL or linking to the wrong URL. In short, URL changes are a situation that website owners need to pay attention to.
• Typos: Broken links can occur when website owners manually enter a link incorrectly. Errors such as missing letters, incorrect number writing, punctuation errors, and incorrect ordering in the writing of a link can lead to the formation of broken links. As a result, the links may not work correctly or may be out of service.

Why do Broken Links Pose a Problem for Websites?

Broken links are links that are no longer accessible but still present on a website. Regular detection and removal of broken links are necessary as they can cause various problems for websites. The problems caused by broken links for websites are as follows:

• User Experience: The most important factor for websites is to provide a good user experience. One of the biggest problems users encounter while browsing web pages is broken links. When a user clicks on a web page and encounters a broken link, it creates the impression that their time has been wasted. This not only reduces the trust in the web page but also leads users to turn to competitor websites.
• SEO Performance: Having a high number of broken links on a website can cause search engines to evaluate the website as low quality. This can lead to a decrease in the website’s search engine ranking. Therefore, broken links harm SEO performance.
• Internal and External Links: The impact of broken links differs for internal and external links on a webpage. Broken internal links hinder the transition between pages on the website. On the other hand, broken external links affect the SEO performance and reputation of the website.

How to Identify Broken Links?

Broken links hinder the proper functioning of a website and redirect users incorrectly, causing them to leave the website. As a result, the traffic to the web page decreases. Website owners should regularly detect and fix broken links to provide their visitors with a better experience. There are many ways to check the site for broken links, including:

Manual Check

With the manual check method, you will go through your website and check it for broken links. The link of each page that is not working or is redirecting incorrectly is examined one by one to see where broken links may be hiding. The manual check method, which is more feasible on small-scale web pages, is very time-consuming and difficult to implement on large-scale pages.

Since broken links are checked manually one by one in the manual check method, there is a high possibility of missing some broken links. On the other hand, automatic tools will scan all pages on the website to quickly and comprehensively detect broken links. Therefore, using automatic tools to detect broken links is easier and has a much lower error rate.

Google Search Console

Google Search Console is a free tool that detects broken links on your website and is used to solve them. It scans all URLs on your website to find broken links and inaccessible pages. It is recommended that website owners regularly use Google Search Console to detect and fix broken links. 

Broken Link Checker

A Broken Link Checker checks links to other sites from your website to see if the target pages are still accessible. This way, you can update links when necessary. By using this tool regularly, you can prevent the negative effects caused by broken links.

Ahrefs

Ahrefs is an important tool for detecting broken links on websites, allowing website owners to detect and correct broken links on their sites. Ahrefs is also used to improve SEO performance with features such as backlink profiles, keyword rankings, and competition analysis. Ahrefs is a paid tool that will help you solve problems that may affect your website.

Screaming Frog

Screaming Frog is a paid tool used to scan your website’s pages and identify SEO issues. It analyses the links between pages to show which links have problems. With these analyses, it is also possible to detect broken links using Screaming Frog.

SEMrush

SEMrush is a paid tool that notifies you when it detects broken links, inaccessible pages, and incorrect URLs. By fixing broken links and improving user experience, you can maintain your website’s ranking and increase traffic. In addition, the Semrush broken link tool can also be used to check links from your website to other sites.

What are the Steps for Fixing Broken Links?

Broken links are links that result from incorrect redirects and errors on a website. In order for your website to provide a good user experience and increase its reliability, broken links must be fixed. The steps required to fix broken links are as follows:

• Identifying Broken Links: We need scanning tools to identify broken links. Scanning tools scan all pages of your website and find non-working links. Tools such as Google Search Console, Screaming Frog, and Ahrefs, as mentioned above, are frequently used for detecting broken links.
• Fixing Broken Links: There are several different methods for this step. If the link is misspelt, it can be corrected by typing it correctly. If the link no longer exists on the target page and generates an error when loading, you can create a new page and update the link. Finally, if the target page of the link has moved, you can redirect it to the new page.
• Regularly Checking Links: Regular monitoring is necessary to prevent broken links from reappearing. This way, harmful links found on your website can be fixed in a timely manner. Regularly updating and refreshing your website is important to maintain high user satisfaction.
• Tracking Content Updates: When an old webpage is updated, its link needs to be updated as well. One of the most common reasons for broken links is content updates. Therefore, it is necessary to track content updates and regularly update links.

Why is Fixing Broken Links Important?

Having a large number of broken links on a web page is a disadvantage for the website. Therefore, fixing them provides many advantages to the website, including improving user experience, increasing the likelihood of visitors returning to your site, and encouraging visitors to stay on your site longer and browse more pages.

Fixing broken links is also important for search engines as they see broken links as an obstacle when scanning your website. Search engines that prioritise user experience detect broken links and affect SERP rankings. The more broken links a website has, the lower the ranking and the less organic traffic it receives. Choosing the correct method to fix broken links depending on the size, structure, and content of your website helps maintain its structural integrity and makes site content easily accessible.

Why are Broken Links Important for SEO?

Search engines focus on providing users with the best experience by making it easy for them to access accurate and up-to-date information. If there are broken links on a web page, it becomes more difficult for users to access the correct information. As a result, the quality of the website is perceived to be low by search engines. This leads to a lower SERP ranking and negatively affects SEO performance.

Broken links, which directly affect a website’s SEO performance, can also indirectly affect SEO performance based on other factors. For example, broken links that disrupt page transitions cause users to spend less time on the website, leading to a higher bounce rate and a decrease in click-through rates. This also leads to a lower ranking.

In conclusion, SEO broken links that directly affect a website’s performance are crucial for the proper functioning of the website.  Therefore, it is important to regularly identify and correct any broken links on the website. In short, broken links are important for improving a website’s ranking and SEO performance.

What Error Codes Represent Broken Links?

When a web page is visited and a link on that page is incorrect or missing, browsers receive an error code from the web server. These error codes indicate what type of errors occurred and describe their cause. The error codes that represent broken links are as follows:

404 Error

When an internet browser attempts to connect to a web page but the server cannot find that page, it results in a 404 error. This error can be caused by the page being deleted, moved, redirected to the wrong address, an incorrect URL address, or a server error. The 404 broken link error is frustrating for users because it prevents them from accessing the content they want. Fixing 404 errors is important for SEO performance and user satisfaction.

410 Error

An HTTP code that indicates a web page has been permanently removed or is no longer available is called a 410 error. Unlike a 404 error page, a specific page or text determined by the website owner is displayed in this error code. When a user encounters a 410 error while browsing a website, it means that the page is no longer available. Detecting and fixing the 410 error, which causes a negative experience for the user, is important.

403 Error

The 403 HTTP error, also known as the access denied error, indicates that the user does not have permission to access the web page. This error is caused by the server not giving the user permission to access the resource they requested. Even if the page is on the server, it becomes inaccessible due to the lack of user permission.

A website owner may want to give access to certain pages to specific users. In such a case, the URL of the page should not be shared publicly. If it is shared, a 403 broken link error will be encountered on the page, indicating that there is an access problem for users. The 403 error, which informs users of an access issue, does not mean that the page is not available. To solve the error, the user may need to obtain access permission.

401 Error

The HTTP 401 error, also known as the unauthorised error, is the HTTP response code encountered when a user tries to access a web page but is prompted for authentication. This error code is encountered when the user fails to provide the correct authentication information for the resource. When attempting to access a page without entering a username and password, the site will return a 401 unauthorised error. It is a commonly used method for protecting pages that require access permission. The solution is to check and update the access permissions of the relevant resource.

500 Error

The 500 error is also known as the Internal Server Error. It informs users who are trying to access a web page that the server is experiencing problems and that the page cannot be accessed. This error can occur for many reasons, such as the website crashing under heavy traffic or the software being configured incorrectly. To fix the 500 error, the cause of the problem needs to be identified and web developers need to be contacted to solve the problem.