Introduction to Broken Link Checkers

Broken links, also known as dead links, are links that show a 404 error message when clicked. This can occur when website owners modify or remove a page from their site, or when there are errors in the linking process. Broken links are detrimental to your website's SEO and user experience, making it essential to identify and fix them as soon as possible.

The Importance of Identifying and Fixing Broken Links

Broken links can have a negative impact on your website in several ways:

Decreased user experience: When users encounter broken links, they may become frustrated and leave your site. This can result in lower engagement rates, fewer return visits, and reduced conversions.

SEO Performance: Search engines like Google take into account the quality and functionality of a website when determining its ranking. Broken links can signal to search engines that your website is not well-maintained or lacks credibility. As a result, search engines may lower your website's ranking in search results, reducing its visibility and organic traffic. 

Indexing Issues: Search engine bots crawl websites to index their content. When bots encounter broken links, they may have difficulty navigating through your site and indexing its pages effectively. This can result in incomplete indexing, missing pages from search engine results, or reduced visibility for your content.

Backlink Integrity: Broken links can also impact the integrity of your backlink profile. When other websites link to your site but the linked page returns a 404 error (page not found), it diminishes the value of those backlinks. This can negatively affect your website's authority, trustworthiness, and overall SEO performance.

Lost Opportunities: Broken links can lead to missed opportunities for conversions, sales, or engagement. For example, if a broken link is pointing to a product page, potential customers may be unable to make a purchase. Similarly, if a broken link is included in a call-to-action, users may be unable to sign

up, download content, or complete desired actions, resulting in lost leads or conversions.

Reputation and Trust: Broken links can erode your website's reputation and trustworthiness. Visitors may perceive your site as outdated, abandoned, or unprofessional if they consistently encounter broken links. This negative perception can harm your brand's credibility and lead to decreased trust from users and potential customers.

Accessibility and ADA Compliance: Broken links can pose accessibility issues for individuals with disabilities who rely on assistive technologies to navigate the web. It is important to ensure that your website is accessible and free from broken links to comply with accessibility standards and provide an inclusive user experience.

How Broken Link Checkers Work?

Broken link checkers are tools designed to scan your website for broken links (both internal and external), identify them, and report their findings. These tools can save you time and effort by automating the process of discovering and fixing broken links on your website.

8 Best Broken Link Checker Tools in 2023

In this section, we will explore some of the best broken link checker tools available in 2023, including their features and pricing. These tools have been selected based on their popularity, functionality, and ease of use.

SE Ranking

SE Ranking is a comprehensive SEO platform that includes a broken link checker as part of its website audit feature. The tool scans your website's health by checking over 120 technical parameters, including broken internal and external links, HTTP status codes, orphan pages, and redirect loops.

‍

Key Features

• Overall website health score
• Website security verification
• Crawling issues discovery
• Title, meta description, and H1 checks
• Mobile optimization
• Core Web Vitals
• Flexible audit configuration
• Auto-schedules and sends website audit reports to email

Pricing

• SE Ranking offers multiple pricing plans starting from $31.20 per month for the Essential plan to $151.20 per month for the Business plan.

Sitechecker

Sitechecker is a powerful online tool that checks your website for broken links and provides detailed information on how to fix them. It can also analyze the anchors of 404 error pages and suggest improvements. Sitechecker is compatible with any operating system and can be used to crawl websites built on any CMS.

Key Features

• Scans up to 300 web pages for free
• Comprehensive report on website technical health, including broken links, redirect chains, orphan links, and indexation errors
• SEO audit of individual pages (free option) and entire websites (paid subscription)
• Content error detection: meta tags issues, thin pages
• Visual structure of the website created based on internal and external linking
• Website monitoring after crawling: alerts for any changes made on the site (paid option)
• Backlink tracker and keyword ranking checker services  available in the paid version

Pricing

• Sitechecker offers multiple pricing plans starting from $33 per month for the Basic plan. Their Enterprise plan is available at custom pricing.

Dead Link Checker

Dead Link Checker is an online tool that systematically scans your website to detect dead links that may harm your site's performance. It can identify broken links such as Page Not Found, Timeout, Server Error, and other issues that can cause web pages not to display properly.

‍

Key Features

• Offers three methods of scanning: Site Check, Multi Check, and Auto Check
• URL keyword filtering with wildcards
• Pause and Resume functionality at any time
• Simultaneous scanning of multiple links

Pricing

• Dead Link Checker offers plans starting from $9.95 per month.

W3C Link Checker

W3C Link Checker is a free online tool that provides options for inspecting broken links on your site, like displaying only a summary, hiding redirects, and checking specific documents. It shows link statuses and lists issues found during the link checking process. W3C Link Checker is a part of Quality Web Tool and World Wide Web Consortium's Validators.

‍

Key Features

• Inspects issues in links, anchors, and referenced objects on the entire site
• Customizable depth settings for the tool to scan
• Can be downloaded and installed on your system
• Utilizes HTML and CSS for optimal scanning results

Pricing

W3C Link Checker is a free tool.

Xenu's Link Sleuth

Xenu's Link Sleuth is a free, open-source software that checks your website for broken links. It automatically connects to your site and begins the crawling process. It is user-friendly and efficient, with support for SSL websites and sitemaps. Xenu's Link Sleuth is suitable for temporary network issues and is compatible with Windows operating systems.

‍

Key Features

• Good for temporary network issues
• Handles files less than 1 MB
• Supports SSL websites and sitemaps
• Limited testing of FTP, gopher, and mail URLs

Pricing

• Xenu's Link Sleuth is a free broken link checker.

Google Search Console

Google Search Console is a free tool that helps maintain your site's performance in search results. It checks if Google can access your site's content, helps you submit new pages and posts for Google to crawl, and allows you to remove content you don't want search engines to index. It can also help you optimize your site by analyzing the most searched keywords and providing insights about indexing and crawling activities performed by search engines on your site.

Key Features

• Optimize your site by analyzing keyword SEO
• Get insights on indexing and crawling activities
• Enhance your link-building campaigns with data on internal and external links
• Free to use

Pricing

Google Search Console is a free tool.

Broken Link Checker for WordPress

Broken Link Checker is a WordPress plugin that checks your website for broken inbound and outbound links. It scans your content, extracts links and images, and checks for broken links, redirections, and no-follow links. This plugin is suitable for websites hosted on WordPress.

‍

Key Features

• Runs the crawler in the background without interrupting user sessions
• Advanced filters and searching by URL or anchor text
• Edit content directly from crawler reports without having to use the post editor
• Supports additional URL tools for making bulk changes

Pricing

• The Broken Link Checker plugin by WordPress is free and has no premium version.

Integrity Link Checker

Integrity Link Checker is a free Mac desktop application designed for checking broken links on websites.It is ideal for large websites. It checks for broken internal and external links as well as broken images. Integrity Link Checker generates reports in PDF format and allows users to fix issues directly within the application, saving time and effort.

‍

Key Features

• Works well with large websites without slowdowns
• Checks for broken images
• Supports internal and external link checking
• Exports reports in PDF format
• Available only for Mac users.

Pricing

• Integrity Link Checker is a free tool. 

Factors to Consider When Choosing a Broken Link Checker Tool

When selecting a broken link checker tool, it's crucial to consider the following factors:

Ease of Use

Choose a tool that is user-friendly and easy to navigate, especially if you have limited technical knowledge. The tool should be able to generate clear and concise reports, making it simple for you to understand and address any broken links.

Integration

Select a tool that integrates seamlessly with your website platform and content management system (CMS). This ensures that the tool can efficiently detect and report broken links on your site.

Pricing and Plans

Consider the cost and features offered by each tool. Depending on your needs and budget, you may prefer a free tool or one that offers advanced features with a paid subscription. Evaluate the pricing and features of each tool to determine which one provides the best value for your specific requirements.

Conclusion: Choosing the Best Broken Link Checker for Your Needs

Keeping your website free from broken links is essential for maintaining a positive user experience and ensuring optimal SEO performance. By choosing the right broken link checker tool for your specific needs, you can quickly identify and fix any issues with your site's links. Consider the factors mentioned above when evaluating the available tools and select the one that best meets your requirements. Remember, maintaining an error-free website is an ongoing task, and using a reliable broken link checker tool can make the process more efficient and effective. You can also sign up for a free 7-day trial with Scalenut to optimize your website content and improve traffic.

About Scalenut 

Scalenut is an AI-powered SEO and content marketing platform that helps discover and create relevant content for your customers. Be it brainstorming a content strategy, creating comprehensive briefs, generating the content, or optimizing it per the best SEO practices, Scalenut has made the process extremely easy. Click here to create a free account and explore the many features of this tool.