Error 404: How to Fix It to Improve Your SEO?

Updated on October 8, 2025 by José PEREZ

Error 404: How to Fix It to Improve Your SEO?

You're browsing a website, you click on a link, and… «Error 404 – Page Not Found». Frustrating, isn't it? For a visitor, it's an unpleasant experience. For a website owner, it's a problem that can harm your organic search rankings and drive away potential customers.

But Why do these errors occur, and more importantly, how can they be effectively corrected? Whether you run an online store or manage a corporate website, this article will explain How to detect, fix, and prevent 404 errors for a more effective website.

Understanding the 404 Error

A page not found—but why?

The’404 error is an HTTP status code that means the requested page no longer exists or never existed. In other words, a visitor or a search engine is trying to access a URL that leads nowhere.

This can happen for several reasons:
✔ The page has been deleted but without redirection.
✔ The URL has been amended and the old links haven't been updated.
✔ A link poorly written in a menu or an article.
✔ A technical issue during a website migration.

404 errors may seem harmless, but they have an impact directly impacts SEO and user experience.

Why are 404 errors a problem?

A poor user experience

Imagine you're on an online store, ready to buy a product, and the product page no longer exists. Will you look for the product elsewhere on the site, or just leave and never come back?

404 errors frustrate visitors, ...increase the bounce rate and reduce the time spent on your site. A disappointed user can quickly lose confidence and go to a competitor.

A negative impact on SEO

Google does not penalize a few 404 errors, but if there are too many of them, it can cause a bad sign.

❌ Loss of traffic : If a well-ranked page disappears without a redirect, it will no longer appear in search results.
❌ Poor site navigation : Googlebot wastes crawl budget by trying to access non-existent pages.
❌ Lost SEO juice : If other websites link to a deleted page, the link becomes useless and search engine rankings suffer.

Fortunately, there are simple solutions to correct these errors and prevent them from affecting your site.

How do you detect 404 errors?

Google Search Console: A Valuable Tool

Google notify immediately about 404 errors via Google Search Console. In the « Page indexing«You can see all the URLs with errors, along with the date they were detected.".

I recommend check for these errors regularly to prevent them from building up.

SEO tools for crawling your website

✔ Screaming Frog SEO Spider : a free tool (up to 500 URLs) that scans your site and identifies 404 pages.
✔ Sitebulb, Ahrefs, SEMrush : tools that help identify errors and track their progression.
✔ Broken Link Checker : a WordPress plugin that detects broken links directly from the site’s dashboard.

Server Log Analysis

If you want to go further, analyzing server logs allows you to see which error pages are still being visited by Google or your visitors.

How to Effectively Fix a 404 Error

Redirect using a 301

If a page has been deleted or moved, you must redirect the old URL to an equivalent page thanks to a 301 redirect. This helps preserve SEO value and directs the user to a page that is still active.

👉 Example: your page mysite.com/old-product no longer exists? Set up a 301 redirect to mysite.com/new-product.

Fix broken internal links

Your menus, articles, and product pages may contain links that point to deleted pages. Once 404 errors have been detected, be sure to update these links to avoid sending your visitors down a dead end.

Check and correct external backlinks

If other websites link to a page deleted, you'll lose traffic and SEO power. You can:
✔ Contact the site administrator to request an update to the link.
✔ Create a 301 redirect to capture the traffic from this URL.

Create a custom 404 page

If a 404 error does occur, you might as well make sure it is useful ! A good Custom 404 page must:
✔ Explain clearly and engagingly that the page no longer exists.
✔ Offer a link to the home page and popular articles.
✔ Integrate a search engine to help visitors find the information they are looking for.

Tip : A touch of humor can make the experience less frustrating and encourage visitors to stay on your site.

Prevent 404 errors in the future

Set up redirect management

✔ Before deleting a page, be sure to redirect it to a similar URL.
✔ Use tools like «Redirect» on WordPress to easily manage your 301 redirects.

Check your website regularly

✔ Perform a monthly SEO audit to identify new 404 errors.
✔ Set up a Google Search Console alert to be notified as soon as a problem arises.

Handle website migrations with care

If you change the structure of your website or migrate to a new domain, Develop a contingency plan so you don't lose your Google rankings.

Why hire an SEO consultant to fix 404 errors?

An expert to optimize your website

A SEO consultant can help you:
✔ Audit your website and identify all harmful 404 errors.
✔ Set up smart redirects to maintain your search engine rankings.
✔ Optimize your internal linking to avoid broken links in the future.

Consultant or agency: which should you choose?

✔ An SEO consultant is perfect if you're looking for a personalized and flexible approach.
✔ An SEO agency may be relevant for more complex projects requiring a complete overhaul of the website.

My thoughts on handling 404 errors

404 errors are inevitable, but if managed properly, they shouldn’t affect your SEO. The important thing is to detect them quickly and fix them effectively to avoid frustrating visitors and maintain your search engine rankings.

If you have a lot of 404 errors and you don't know how to handle them, I strongly recommend that you hire an SEO expert. Regular monitoring and a good redirect strategy will help you avoid significant losses in traffic and conversions ! 🚀

 

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Jose Perez

SEO & E-commerce expert - 17 years' experience

An expert in search engine optimization (SEO) for over 17 years, I optimize e-commerce sites for search engines. I help companies develop their visibility on Google in order to increase their online sales. My aim is to attract qualified traffic to your website through effective and ethical SEO strategies.

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