Real HTTP link validation
Broken Link Finder
Scan internal links, external links, and optional image URLs on a public page to identify redirects, 4xx errors, 5xx failures, and connection problems.
Tool guide
What is the Broken Link Finder?
The Broken Link Finder extracts links and optional image URLs from a public webpage, sends limited HTTP requests, and groups the results by successful responses, redirects, client errors, server errors, and failed connections. Broken destinations frustrate users and can waste crawl attention.
The scan is intentionally limited to protect both websites and the server. It is best used for individual pages or a representative template. Site-wide link maintenance requires a controlled crawler, analytics, and repeated checks.
Audit coverage
What this SEO tool checks
Internal and external anchor destinations
Optional image source URLs
4xx client errors such as 404 and 410
5xx server errors and connection failures
Redirecting links that may be updated to their final destination
Step-by-step
How to use the Broken Link Finder
- 1Enter the page URL
Choose a page with links you want to verify.
- 2Set scope and limit
Scan internal links, external links, or both, with a sensible maximum.
- 3Run the HTTP checks
The tool requests each unique destination within safety limits.
- 4Export and repair
Update broken internal links directly and investigate or replace unreliable external sources.
Interpretation
How to understand the results
- 4xx responses usually indicate a missing, forbidden, or invalid destination.
- 5xx responses indicate a server-side failure that may be temporary or persistent.
- Redirects are not always broken, but unnecessary hops can slow navigation and hide outdated internal URLs.
Practical advice
SEO best practices
- Fix internal broken links at the source instead of relying on redirects.
- Use a relevant replacement when an external citation disappears.
- Do not remove a useful link solely because one temporary request timed out.
- Check image URLs and downloadable files, not only HTML pages.
- Schedule recurring scans for high-value pages and large content libraries.
Before you act
Limitations of this automated check
Some servers block automated HEAD or GET requests, rate-limit the checker, require cookies, or return different status codes by location. JavaScript-generated links may not appear in the initial HTML. A temporary timeout does not prove that a URL is permanently broken.
Deeper explanation
Understand the decision behind the check
Use the practical guide below when you need context, common mistakes and a verification workflow instead of only a pass/fail result.
Common questions
Broken Link Finder FAQs
Is every redirect a problem?
No. Redirects are useful during migrations, but internal links should normally point directly to the final page.
Why does a working browser link fail here?
The destination may block automated requests, require cookies, use location rules, or temporarily rate-limit the server.
Does the tool crawl the whole website?
No. It scans links found on the submitted page up to the chosen limit.
Should I delete all 404 links?
Repair internal links. For external links, replace, remove, or preserve them with context depending on whether the missing resource still matters.
Continue your audit