Do you know what sucks when browsing any website?

You get a 404 error page from your browser.

Even if someone types a website's URL wrong or a page doesn't exist, it does not matter. 404 errors can hurt your brand and make it tougher for search engines to go through your site, which can harm your SEO (the thing that helps your website show up in search results).

Luckily, there are some easy solutions to fix 404 errors on your website.

In this guide, we will discuss how to identify and fix 404 errors on your website, so you can improve your branding and SEO.

What are 404 errors?

A 404 error, also known as a "page not found" or "unable to locate" error, is a standard HTTP status code that indicates that the client was able to connect with a given server. However, the server was unable to locate the requested page. This can happen for a variety of reasons, such as if you have deleted the page or moved it to a new URL without updating the links to it. [What are HTTP status codes?]

Here is a simple to explain of a 404 error (also referred to as an HTTP 404 or 404 code):

A 404 error is what you get when you try to visit a web page that doesn't exist. It's like trying to go to a house that doesn't exist. The address is wrong, so you can't get there. Similarly, the search engines are unable to locate the requested URL.

 

Why are 404 errors bad?

404 errors can be bad for a few reasons. First, they can frustrate your visitors and make them leave your website. Second, they can hurt your website's ranking in the search engine. Third, they can make your website look unprofessional. Finally, a 404 error could be a sign of a security issue on your website, such as a malware infection.

Error 404: Hard vs. Soft

  • Hard 404 error: A 404 error that commonly occurs when a page has been deleted or moved. When a user tries to visit a page with a hard 404 error, they will receive a 404 error message from the server. 

Here are some examples of a hard 404 error:

  1. A page that has been deleted or removed.
  2. A page that has been moved to a new URL without updating the link to it
  3. A page that is blocked by a robots.txt file
  4. A page that requires authentication
  5. A page that has a typo in the URL
  • Soft 404 error: A 404 error that occurs when a page exists but is not accessible to online search engines. Soft errors (404) can be caused by several things, such as:
  1. A page that returns a 403 Forbidden Server Error code
  2. A page that returns a 500 Internal Server Error status code
  3. The page is blocked by a robots.txt file.
  4. The page is password protected.
  5. The page is only available to certain users or groups.
  6. The page is set to noindex.

When a search engine encounters soft errors, it will not index the page. As a result, the page does not appear in the query results.

Note: Soft errors are not as harmful as hard 404 errors. However, it is still important to fix 404 errors because they can hurt your website's ranking in web robots results. On the other hand, it may signal that your website is not well maintained or has low-quality content.

Other examples of hard and soft 404 errors:

Hard 404 error:

https://example.com/page-that-does-not-exist: This page does not exist on the server.

https://example.com/page-that-has-been-moved: This page has been moved to a new URL, but the link to it has not been updated.

Soft 404 error:

https://example.com/page-that-is-blocked-by-robots-txt: This page is blocked by the robots.txt file, so search engines cannot index it.

https://example.com/page-that-is-password-protected: This page is password protected, so only authorized users can access it.

https://example.com/page-that-is-only-accessible-to-certain-users-or-groups: The page is only available to certain users or groups.

https://example.com/page-that-is-set-to-noindex: This page is set to noindex, so the search engine will not index it.

Here is a summary of the difference between hard and soft 404 errors:

Hard 404 error:

  • Are caused by a page that does not exist or is not accessible.
  • Return a 404 Not Found status code from the server.
  • Are harmful to your website's SEO.

Soft 404 error:

  • Are caused by a page that exists but is not accessible to search engines.
  • The server may return a variety of status codes, such as 403 Forbidden, 500 Internal Server Error, or 200 OK.
  • It is less harmful to your website's SEO than a hard 404 error, but should still be fixed.

If you find a 404 error on your website, be sure to fix it as soon as possible. To clarify, improving your website's user experience and search engine optimization (SEO) performance is very important. On the other hand, it will reduce bounce rates on your site.

How to find 404 errors

In this case, we will know four different methods to find a 404 error on your website. 

  1. Use a site crawler like Screaming Frog: This tool will scan your website and identify all of the broken links that could lead to a 404 error.
  2. Check Google Search Console: GSC is a free tool that will show you a list of all of the pages with a 404 error on your website.
  3. Check Bing Webmaster Tools: One of the features of Bing Webmaster Tools is the ability to find 404 error codes on your website.
  4. Dead Link Checker: This free tool Checks up to 2,000 links on your website to see if any are broken.

1. Using Screaming Frog SEO Spider App Site Audit

Here are the steps to run a site audit using the Screaming application:
  • Download and install Screaming from their website.


Download Screaming Frog from their website
Download the Screaming app. from their website.
  • After launching the software, enter the website URL you want to audit and click "start". Read More.