Broken link building is a simple trade. A site links to a page that no longer exists. You tell the owner and suggest your content as a replacement. They fix a problem, you earn a link.
The process
- Find relevant pages with resource lists or citations.
- Check their outbound links for 404 errors.
- Match each dead link to a page of yours that truly fits, or create one.
- Send a short, helpful note to the site owner.
- Track replies and confirm the link is live.
What makes it work
The replacement has to be a genuine match for what the old page covered. Our editors look at the archived version of the dead page so that your content serves the same purpose for the reader.
Realistic expectations
Response rates are modest and the work is manual. It pairs well with a content asset worth linking to, such as a guide or tool. See our guide to how to build backlinks for where it fits.
Frequently asked questions
What is broken link building?
Finding dead links on other sites and suggesting your page as a replacement.
Does broken link building work?
It can, when your content is a genuine match for the missing page. Results depend on relevance and outreach quality.
How do you find broken links?
We crawl relevant pages, check outbound links for errors and review archived versions of the dead pages.
