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What Are 404 Errors and How You Can Fix It?

What Are 404 Errors?

We love getting what we want - be it on the internet or outside. You know how enthusiastic and eager we are after clicking a link. You expect the right information. But kaput - you get a 404 error - Page Not Found.

404 errors are an HTTP standard response status code. The web server sends out this response to your browser when it is unable to find your requested page on the server.

Time for a quick refresher on HTTP status codes. Most of us may have come across a 404 Error at some point. Hope you are aware of these HTTP status series sets below?

Let's take a quick tour

  • Successful responses (200–299) - example, 200 OK
  • Redirects (300–399) - example, 301 Redirect
  • Client-side errors (400–499) - example, 404 error page
  • Server-side errors (500–599) - example, 500 Internal server error
  • and Informational responses (100–199)- example, 100 Continue

Some of the ways you may find the 404 error not found displayed are:

  • 404 Page Not Found
  • 404 error Not Found
  • HTTP 404 Not Found
  • 404 File or Directory Not Found
  • 404 Not Found Error
  • 404 HTTP 404

The requested URL was not found on this server. The 404 not found error can appear across any browser be it Chrome, Mozilla, or any other. It means that though the server is reachable, the page sought is not available on the server.

Why and How do 404 Errors Occur?

How do 404 Errors Damage Your Website

The reasons for 404 errors can be due to any of the following reasons.

  • The URL may have moved to another location. It may have got deleted. Or, its files and images may have moved or got deleted. It could also be due to incorrect internal linking.
  • You may have typed the wrong URL spelling into the browser. The Incorrect URL's utilized during a website redesign or creation may also cause a 404 error.
  • The website host server may be down (not running) or maybe during a broken connection.
  • The domain name may have expired or does not exist.
  • Converting a domain name into an Internet Protocol (or IP) address may face issues. This results in a 404 not found.

Do you remember coming across a 404 error? What did you at that moment? You might have closed the tab and searched for another related website. Well, that's what most users on the web do.

The higher the number of 404 error pages on your website, lesser users are likely to use it. Your website users abandon your website and search for another on seeing a '404 not found page'. This particular user behavior impacts your search engine rankings.

Search engine algorithms use this as a criterion for ranking websites. Users leaving your website due to a 404 error creates a negative user experience. The bounce rates increase. Your search engine optimization will have a negative impact.

Site crawlers can confirm if many of your website requests are resulting in 404 errors. It signals that the site is not well maintained. 404 errors are dead link pages. Google can lower placement in the Search Engine Results Page (SERP). This can lower the number of visitors to your website and impact your business.

How can you identify 404 errors on your website?

Tools to Identify 404 Errors

We have seen the negative impact that 404 errors do on your website. It is better to prevent the 404 error pages. You can do a monthly check by monitoring and fixing them. Improve your site's user experience and SEO by fixing the 404 error pages on priority.

There are many free tools available that can help find broken links on your websites.

  • Google Search Console: Using Google Search Console, you can detect 404 pages and fix them. Once you log into your account, go to Crawl errors > Diagnostics. Click on 'Not Found' and you can see the full list of 404 errors found by Google crawler on your website. You can mark them as corrected in the web tool also. You can also check out extra functions helping you find errors in robot.txt files.
  • Dead Link Checker: This is one of the simplest and fastest tools. It helps you find linked internal and external 404 error pages. You only enter the URL of the site you want to check into the web app. You have a choice of checking the entire website or only a single page. You will be able to see error pages, their URL, and status codes.
  • W3C Link Checker: This tool is from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). You only enter the URL and hit check. This has a detailed check for testing individual web pages and so takes more time to deliver results.
  • Bing Webmaster: This is a free service as part of Microsoft's Bing Search Engine. You can find 404 Page Not Found errors by going to Bing webmaster tools. Under Reports & Data, you can find Crawl information. You can get information on any outstanding errors.
Fixing and Creating Consumer Friendly 404 Landing Pages

Resolutions to Fixing 404 Errors

A few 404 errors on your website are normal. But you should track and fix them at the earliest. Here's what you can do to fix 404 error pages

Redirect the page

The page may be missing. Redirecting is a simple and easy way to fix your 404 error page. You can use a 301 Redirect response code to point to the right content at the new URL.

Check URLs

Your user might have manually typed the URL address or directed by a link from elsewhere. Check the URL for any mistyping by the user. Check the path of the website and correct it if there is a mistake.

Restore deleted pages

In some cases, the user might click a link that leads to a deleted page. You might have deleted it for business or whatsoever reason. Your user might have come redirected from an external link as well. In case you are not restoring due to any business reason, you may redirect that URL.

Delete browser cache and cookies

Your URL may not be accessible on one machine browser. It may display a 404 error. But the URL may be working on another machine browser. In that case, you must clear the browser cache and cookies and try again to get it working.

There is a possibility that a page not loaded well may show a 404 error. Refresh and check if it's a genuine error.

Content Management Systems like WordPress, Drupal, or Joomla create a 404 error page. This is the automatic outcome when an URL is not found. If your CMS does not give you the option, you can do the following

  • Create an error page ('404.html' or '404.php') in the root directory.
  • Open the .htaccess file in the root directory. Make the following entry 'ErrorDocument 404 /404.html' and save the change.
  • Try to access an unavailable web page to test if error 404 appears on the browser.

You can also personalize a 404 Error page with some creativity for a better user experience. Keep it in a matching style with your website. You can let your visitors know with some light humor that content is unavailable. You can display some other alternate links that may add value.