Technical SEO

Broken Link Checker

/broken-links

Find all broken internal and external links on your site. Reports 404s, 5xx errors, timeout links, and redirect chains with their source pages.

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Install all free SEO skills with one command:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ccforseo/seo-skills/main/install.sh | bash

Or install this skill manually:

$ git clone https://github.com/ccforseo/seo-skills.git
$ cp -r seo-skills/broken-link-checker ~/.claude/skills/broken-link-checker
View on GitHubFree · MIT License · 8 skills included

What it does

The Broken Link Checker skill crawls your website and tests every internal and external link for HTTP errors. It reports 404 Not Found, 5xx server errors, connection timeouts, and excessive redirect chains. Each broken link includes the source page, anchor text, and link destination, making it straightforward to locate and fix every issue.

Key features

  • Tests all internal and external links for HTTP errors
  • Reports 404s, 5xx errors, timeouts, and SSL issues
  • Shows the source page and anchor text for every broken link
  • Detects redirect chains exceeding three hops
  • Exports results as CSV for team workflows

How to use Broken Link Checker

  1. Run the command

    Type /broken-links with your site URL. The skill crawls every page and tests all outbound and internal links.

  2. Filter results by type

    The output groups broken links by error type: 404s, server errors, timeouts, and redirect chains. Focus on internal 404s first since those directly affect crawl efficiency.

  3. Fix or remove broken links

    Update broken internal links to valid destinations. Remove or replace external links pointing to dead pages. Set up redirects where appropriate.

When to use it

Monthly broken link sweeps for site maintenance

Post-migration validation to catch broken internal links

Checking external links before publishing a new article

Auditing client sites during onboarding

Frequently asked questions

How do broken links affect SEO?

Broken internal links waste crawl budget and prevent link equity from flowing through your site. Broken external links create a poor user experience, which can increase bounce rates. Both signal poor site maintenance to search engines.

Does the Broken Link Checker follow redirects?

Yes. It follows redirects and reports the full redirect chain. Links with more than three hops are flagged for simplification. It also identifies redirect loops that prevent pages from loading.

Can I check only internal links without testing external URLs?

Yes. Use the --internal-only flag to skip external link validation. This speeds up the check significantly and is useful when you only need to verify your site's internal link structure.

How long does a full broken link check take?

Speed depends on site size and server response times. A 200-page site typically completes in 2-5 minutes. Larger sites take longer. The skill uses concurrent requests with rate limiting to avoid overloading your server.

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