GlossaryTechnical SEO
404 error
Also called: Not found
A 404 error means a URL doesn't exist on the server. A few are normal, but dead pages with backlinks waste the links pointing to them.
A 404 is the response a server gives when it can't find the requested page. People see it as a 'page not found' message. It happens when pages are deleted, URLs are mistyped, or links are wrong.
A few 404s on a site are normal and Google says they don't harm the rest of your site. The issue is a 404 on a page that has backlinks or traffic, since the value of those links is lost and visitors leave. A site with many broken internal links also feels neglected.
Practical point: use Google Search Console and a crawler to find 404s. For pages that moved, add a 301 redirect to the closest match. For pages that are gone for good and have no replacement, a 404 is fine. Check pages that have backlinks first, since those are where a fix brings the most back.
Links you can check.
Every link we place comes with a receipt. The free link plan shows the pages worth pushing and what the links would cost.