Links often break by accident, usually when updating websites.

Here are the main reasons why your links might break:

Deleting or moving pages - When you delete or move website pages without updating the links or setting up redirects, those links point to non-existent pages.

Typos in URLs - Mistakes like missing characters or incorrect spelling in URLs can create links that lead nowhere resulting in 404 pages.

Incorrect redirects - If you set up redirects from old to new URLs incorrectly, such as with typos, they can lead to error pages instead of the correct page.

Website restructuring - Changes in the site structure or CMS can move pages to new locations, breaking internal links if they're not updated or redirected properly.

Deleting downloadable files - Links to downloadable content like PDFs, documents, images, or videos can break if you delete or move the files.

Code errors - Mistakes in the website's HTML, CSS, or JavaScript code can prevent links from working correctly, such as a typo in a linked file's name.

Broken links can negatively impact your website in several ways in terms of bad user experience. Additionally, your reputation on Google will decrease and affect your rankings.

Here are the most serious issues caused by broken links:

Bad user experience - When users click on a backlink expecting relevant content but are met with a 404 error page, it leads to frustration and confusion.

Lower rankings - Search engines use backlinks as one of the indicators of a webpage's quality and relevance. Broken backlinks fail to pass on 'link juice,' or the value that one page passes to another, which can weaken the site's overall SEO profile.

Loss of potential traffic - A functional backlink can direct valuable traffic to a website. When a backlink is broken, this potential flow of visitors is lost, which could have otherwise contributed to higher engagement, conversions, or sales.

Credibility damage - Websites with numerous broken backlinks can appear neglected or outdated, which can harm the site's credibility and authority in its subject matter. Users and other websites may be less likely to link to or recommend a site that doesn't maintain its links.

Crawling and indexing issues - Broken backlinks can lead to inefficient use of search engine resources. If a search engine frequently encounters broken links, it may index your site less frequently.

You can find broken links on a website either manually or using tools specifically designed to find broken links across your entire site such as Google Search Console or Morningscore's broken link checker.

Yes, you can. Manual checking is the most time-consuming method. In general it's not recommendable to check for dead links manually but can be suitable for small websites with a few landing pages.

It works like this: manually follow the links on the site to check if they work. You can either check all pages one by one or focus on just the most important sections.

You can also check the site through search engines. Enter the query “site:yoursite.com” in the search bar and see which pages are displayed in the results.

Broken link checkers scan all your pages and report any links that don't work, so you don’t need to do it manually.

Basically, the tool crawl your page just like Googles crawlers and thereby finds link that is pointing at URL's that are not found.

1. Go to the landing page where you found the broken internal link.

2. Click on links to find the broken ones. These can be pictures, icons, menus, or normal text links in your content.

A trick is to hold down CTRL + click (Command + click) to open the links in a new window so you don't leave your landing page.

3. If you right-click anywhere on your page and select "Inspect" in the menu that comes up, it will take you to the code. It might look scary, but if you now press CTRL + F (Command + F) to search for things in the code, you can put in the broken link you found.

It should show where the broken link is in the code, and often you will see readable text around it so you can visually identify where on the page the link is.

4. Now you should fix the link in your website's control panel (CMS) so it no longer points to a broken URL.

It's best to check your website for broken links regularly, ideally once a month.

For websites with frequent updates, like news sites, consider checking weekly to ensure all links are functioning correctly. Regular checks help maintain a smooth user experience. In Morningscore you can choose when and how regularly you want to scan your website for broken links.

Error 404 and a broken link are connected but it's not the same thing. An Error 404, also known as a "Page Not Found" error, happens when the server can't find your requested page. This might be because of a broken link or because the page was deleted or moved without setting up a redirect.

A broken link is one that doesn't take you to a working page or resource. Clicking on a broken link might lead to a 404 error. However, it could also take you to the wrong page.

When redesigning your site, you can prevent broken links from appearing if you follow these steps:

1. Plan site migration - Before you start, map out your site's new layout. Figure out which pages will be removed or relocated.
2. Check your links - Use a link checker tool to scan your site for all links, both internal and external. It will tell you which ones need updating.
3. Make updates and redirects - Change your internal links to point to their new locations. If you're deleting of or moving pages, use 301 redirects. This way, both users and search engines will be forwarded to the right page.
4. Test everything - Once you've made changes, test your site to make sure every link leads to a live page.
5. Keep an eye out - After your site goes live with its new design, keep an eye out for any broken links that may pop up over time. Tools like Morningscore are here to help you find any broken link and alert you when it appears.

Broken links don't automatically fix themselves since they lead to non-existent or moved resources. But don't worry, you can fix this! By setting up automatic redirects with a 301 code (permanent redirect) or a 302 code (temporary redirect), your server can guide visitors from those broken links to the right place. Just decide where you want these links to go and set it up either directly on your server or through your website's content management system.

When dealing with broken links, it's wise to use a specialized tool like Morningscore, which can automatically scan your site to find broken links and alert you when a new broken link appears. This not only saves time but also helps you maintain your site's SEO and a good user experience.

Yes, it's possible. However, identifying broken links on password-protected pages requires a more specialized approach. Standard link checking tools' crawlers cannot access restricted areas, but you can still perform this task manually.

Search engines do not apply manual actions to your site solely because of broken links. However, when search engine crawlers find broken links, it signals poor website maintenance and a negative user experience. This could lead to a decline in search engine rankings.