Hey! If you have a website you know how important everything has to work. One of the biggest problems that can really annoy your visitors is broken links. These are links that go to pages that don’t exist anymore and give a 404 error. Not only do broken links annoy users but they also hurt your SEO. The good news? Google Analytics 4 (GA4) can help you find and fix them. Let’s get started!
What are Broken Links?
First let’s define what we mean by broken links. A broken link is any link that points to a page that doesn’t exist anymore. This can happen for a few reasons:
- A page was deleted or moved.
- The URL was changed.
- An outside site links to an old page.
When users click on these links they land on a 404 error page which is not fun for anyone. You want your visitors to have a good experience right? So let’s find those broken links!
Step by Step Guide to Find Broken Links in GA4
To find and fix broken links in Google Analytics, follow these easy steps:
Step 1: Log in to Google Analytics.
Step 2: Go to your GA4 account.
Step 3: Click on “Reports.”
Step 4: Select “Life Cycle.”
Step 5: Click on “Engagement.”
Step 6: Choose “Pages and Screens.”
Step 7: Click on “Page Path and Screen Class.”
Step 8: Select “Page Title and Screen Name.”
Step 9: Set a filter for “Page not found” to find 404 errors.
Step 10: Add a secondary dimension: “Landing Page + Query String” for more details.
Now that you’ve found the broken links, let’s look at how to fix them!
Fixing Broken Links
Now you have your broken links, here’s how to fix them:
Regular Audits: Make checking for broken links a habit. Set a reminder to run this Filter every few months.
Update External Links: Contact the sites linking to your broken pages and ask them to update their links.
Set up Redirects: Set up 301 redirects from old URLs to new or relevant pages so users end up on working pages.
Make this a habit! Run this report every few months to catch new broken links.
Conclusion
Fixing broken links is key to a user friendly site. Use GA4 to find Broken links and sort them out. Visitors will love your site and your SEO will be strong!
 can help you find and fix them. Let’s get started!){kind=link}