How do I find broken backlinks pointing to my site?

Export the pages that link to you from a backlink tool, then check which of the linking URLs return errors, and separately check which of your own URLs that those links point to return 404s. The second check is usually the more valuable one, because a link pointing at a dead page on your site passes little to nothing until you fix it. Both can be done with free or paid tools, and neither takes long.

Workflow for broken links pointing to your site

1. Pull your backlink data. Use Google Search Console (Links report) for a free starting point, or a dedicated backlink tool for fuller coverage. See how to check who links to your website for free.
2. Collect the target URLs. You want the list of your own pages that receive links, with the number of linking domains for each.
3. Check their status codes. Run the list through a crawler or a bulk status checker. Flag 404s, 410s, and chains of redirects.
4. Prioritize. Sort the broken targets by how many referring domains link to them. A dead URL with twenty linking sites matters more than one with a single link. Context on that distinction is in backlinks vs referring domains.
5. Fix it. If a close replacement page exists, add a 301 redirect to it. If the page should still exist, restore it. If nothing relevant exists, leave the 404 rather than redirecting to the homepage, which search engines may treat as a soft 404.
6. Optionally, ask for a correction. When a link has a typo in the URL, a polite email to the site owner can work, though replies are never guaranteed.

Trade-offs to know about

• No tool sees every link. Search Console, free tools and paid indexes each show different subsets, so combining sources gives a better picture.
• Data lags. A newly broken page may not appear right away, and a fix may take time to be reflected in tools. See how long new backlinks take to show up.
• Redirects are not magic. They preserve the path for visitors and usually for link signals, but results vary and nothing is guaranteed.
• Some tools have built-in broken-link reports. Features and limits differ by product, so confirm current details on each tool's official site before paying.

Recommended for youHow to Check and Audit a Backlink Profile: A Step-by-Step Walkthrough

Make it a habit

Rerun the check after site migrations, URL changes or content cleanups, and on a regular schedule. How often to check your backlinks covers cadence. If you're comparing tools for this job, our review and comparison pages under Backlink Monitoring & Analysis show how they differ.

Related

• How to Track New and Lost Backlinks and Win Back the Ones You Lose
• How to Check and Audit a Backlink Profile

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