How I Fixed Website 404 and Broken Link Issues
404 Fix SEO Website Google Search ConsoleA website may look complete from the homepage, but if users click a link and land on a 404 page, the experience becomes poor. While improving my website for blog content and AdSense readiness, I understood that broken links and unfinished pages can make a site look unprofessional.
I wanted my website to feel complete and trustworthy. That is why I started checking every important page, every blog link, every footer link, and every sitemap URL. This process helped me remove broken links and make the website cleaner for both users and search engines.
What Is a 404 Error?
A 404 error appears when a user tries to open a page that does not exist on the website. This can happen because of a wrong URL, deleted page, missing file, incorrect folder structure, or a link that was added before the actual page was created.
For example, if a blog index links to /blog/example-article/ but the actual file
public/blog/example-article/index.html does not exist, the user may see a 404 page.
A few 404 errors are normal on the internet, but too many broken internal links can damage user trust and make the website look unfinished.
Why Broken Links Are a Problem
Broken links create problems in two ways. First, they affect users. If a visitor clicks an article link and the page does not open, they may leave the website. Second, they affect search engine crawling. If search engines find many broken links, they may treat the site as poorly maintained.
Broken links are especially risky when preparing for AdSense because the website should look complete, useful, and easy to navigate. A site with many empty or missing pages can look under construction.
Where I Found Broken Links
I checked several areas of my website:
- Header navigation links
- Footer policy links
- Blog listing page links
- Individual article back links
- Sitemap URLs
- Old pages that were renamed or removed
The blog listing page was one of the most important pages to check. If a blog card is clickable, the target article page must exist. Otherwise, the blog index will send users to a broken page.
Removing Coming Soon Links
One mistake I wanted to avoid was keeping clickable “Coming Soon” articles. If the article is not created yet, it should not be linked as a real article. A coming soon title is not useful for a visitor if clicking it opens a missing page.
So I followed a simple rule:
- If the article page exists, show it on the blog page.
- If the article page does not exist, do not add a clickable link.
- If a topic is planned for the future, keep it private until the article is ready.
This made the blog page cleaner and reduced the chance of broken links.
Fixing Wrong URL Structure
My website uses static HTML pages inside the public folder. For blog articles, I use this structure:
public/blog/article-slug/index.htmlThis makes the live URL:
https://hiijoshi.in/blog/article-slug/
The folder name and the link must match exactly. If the folder is named google-search-console-canonical-fix,
then the blog index link should be:
/blog/google-search-console-canonical-fix/Even a small spelling mistake in the slug can create a broken page.
Checking Navigation Links
I also checked the main navigation links such as Home, Blog, Tools, Services, About, and Contact. These pages are important because they appear on most pages of the website.
A broken navigation link is worse than a broken hidden link because users can see it everywhere. So I made sure these pages were created and working:
/blog//tools//services//about//contact//privacy-policy//terms//disclaimer/
Updating the Sitemap
A sitemap should include real and accessible pages. It should not include pages that are missing, unfinished, or planned for later. If the sitemap contains broken URLs, search engines may try to crawl pages that do not exist.
After creating real blog articles, I added only those article URLs that were actually live. This kept the sitemap clean.
For example:
<url><loc>https://hiijoshi.in/blog/fix-website-404-broken-links/</loc></url>Testing Live Pages
After pushing changes, I opened the live website and manually checked every important link. Manual testing is simple but very useful. I opened the blog page, clicked each blog card, checked the header links, and checked footer policy links.
This helped me confirm that users can move around the website without landing on missing pages.
Using Google Search Console
Google Search Console is useful for checking indexing and page issues. After fixing links and updating sitemap, I submitted the sitemap and used URL Inspection for important pages.
URL Inspection helped me check whether Google could access a specific page. After publishing a new article, I used the Request Indexing option for faster discovery.
My Final Checklist for Broken Links
This is the checklist I followed:
- Every blog card opens a real article.
- No coming soon article has a clickable broken link.
- Header navigation pages open correctly.
- Footer policy pages open correctly.
- Sitemap includes only real pages.
- Canonical URL matches the live URL.
- Article folder name matches the blog link slug.
- Live pages are tested after deployment.
What I Learned
Fixing 404 and broken link issues taught me that website quality is not only about design or content length. The structure of the website also matters. A site should feel complete when users click around.
I also learned that SEO and user experience are connected. Clean navigation, working links, correct sitemap, and real content all help search engines and visitors understand the website better.
Conclusion
Fixing 404 errors and broken links was an important step in improving my website. It made the blog page more reliable, improved user experience, and made the sitemap cleaner for search engines.
My simple rule is this: if a page is linked publicly, it should be complete and working. This rule helps keep the website professional and avoids the feeling of an unfinished or low-value site.