The web is quietly falling apart. Pages get deleted, companies rebrand, blogs move platforms, and the links pointing to all that content stop working. For readers, a dead link is a dead end. For you, it is an opening: a site owner who has a broken link on a page has a problem you can help solve.
Broken link building is the practice of finding those dead links on relevant websites, creating or pointing to a page on your site that covers the same thing, and suggesting it as a replacement. Done well, it is one of the most helpful forms of outreach, because you are fixing something for the editor rather than just asking for a favour.
This guide walks you through the full process step by step, from finding opportunities to writing the email, with templates, a prioritisation table and the mistakes that waste most people's time.
Key Takeaways
- Broken link building means replacing dead links on other sites with links to a relevant, working page of yours.
- Link rot is common: Pew Research Center found 38% of webpages that existed in 2013 were no longer accessible a decade later.
- Your replacement page must genuinely match what the dead link used to point to.
- Start with your own broken backlinks – a 301 redirect recovers them without any outreach.
- Short, specific, personal emails get the best response rates; mass templates do not.
Why broken link building works
Link rot is not a rare edge case. Pew Research Center's 2024 study put numbers on it:
“38% of webpages that existed in 2013 are no longer accessible a decade later.”
— Pew Research Center, When Online Content Disappears
The same study found that 23% of news webpages and 21% of the government webpages it examined contained at least one broken link, and that 54% of Wikipedia pages had at least one dead link in their references (Pew Research Center). That is a lot of pages with a problem their editors would like fixed.
Broken link building also fits neatly within Google's rules. You are not paying for links or swapping them; you are offering a better reference to an editor who decides for themselves. That is very different from the link schemes described in Google's spam policies. If you are new to links in general, read what are backlinks first.
Broken link building: step by step
- Fix your own broken backlinks first. Find pages on your site that return a 404 but still have links pointing at them, and 301-redirect each to the closest equivalent page. This is the fastest win and needs no outreach. Our guides to fixing 404 errors and choosing the right redirect cover the details.
- Find dead pages in your niche. In a backlink tool, look at competitors' and industry sites' pages that return 404 or other errors but still have many referring domains. Each one is a ready-made list of sites with a broken link.
- Check resource pages. Search for pages like
"your topic" + "useful resources"or"your topic" inurl:links, then run a broken-link checker browser extension on them. - Find out what the dead page said. Look it up in the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine so you understand exactly what readers expected to find.
- Match or create a replacement. If you already have a page that covers the same topic as well or better, use it. If not, decide whether the opportunity is big enough to justify creating one.
- Pull the list of linking pages. Export the sites that link to the dead URL and filter out spammy, irrelevant or abandoned sites.
- Find the right contact. Look for the author or editor of the specific page rather than a generic contact form.
- Send a short, helpful email. Point out the broken link first, then suggest your page as one option.
- Follow up once and track results. Log every prospect, response and link won so you can see which sources convert.
Where to find broken link opportunities
| Source | How to find it | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Your own 404 pages with backlinks | Backlink tool "indexed pages" or "broken pages" report; Google Search Console Pages report | Fix with 301 redirects – no outreach needed |
| Competitors' dead pages | Filter competitors' pages by HTTP status 4xx/5xx and sort by referring domains | Often the richest source of prospects |
| Defunct businesses and tools | Industry news about closures, acquisitions and rebrands | Many sites still link to the old resources |
| Resource and links pages | Search operators plus a broken-link checker extension | Small wins, but highly relevant |
| Wikipedia "dead link" citations | Pages in your topic area with citations marked as dead | Wikipedia links are nofollow, but the research helps you find the dead source and who else links to it |
How to prioritise opportunities
Not every dead page deserves your time. Score each one against these criteria.
| Criterion | Strong opportunity | Weak opportunity |
|---|---|---|
| Referring domains to the dead page | Dozens of relevant, real sites | A handful of directories or scraper sites |
| Topic match | Your page covers the same topic in more depth | Only loosely related |
| Freshness of linking pages | Updated in the last couple of years | Abandoned blogs with no recent posts |
| Effort to create a replacement | You already have a suitable page | Needs a large new asset for few prospects |
| Linking site quality | Real audience, editorial standards | Sells links, thin content |
Writing the outreach email
Keep it brief and make it easy to say yes. A structure that works:
- Subject line: specific and useful, e.g. "Broken link on your guide to composting".
- First line: mention the page and the exact link that is broken.
- Offer: one sentence on why your page is a good replacement.
- Close: no pressure – thank them either way.
Example:
Subject: Broken link on your composting guide Hi Sam, I was reading your guide to home composting and noticed the link to the "Council compost bin finder" in the third section now returns a 404. If you're looking for a replacement, our free compost bin comparison covers the same information and was updated this year: https://example.com/compost-bin-guide/ Either way, thanks for a really useful guide. AlexNotice what the email does not do: it does not ask for a specific anchor text, it does not offer payment and it does not demand a "dofollow" link. Offering money or goods in exchange for a link would turn a legitimate tactic into a paid link, which breaks Google's spam policies.
Common mistakes
- Weak replacement pages. If your page does not truly match what the reader expected, editors will ignore you.
- Ignoring your own broken backlinks. Many sites lose valuable links during redesigns. Redirect those first.
- Mass, unpersonalised outreach. Sending the same email to hundreds of sites produces low replies and spam complaints.
- Pitching irrelevant pages. A broken link on a recipe blog is not an opportunity for a law firm.
- Too many follow-ups. One reminder is polite. Three is a nuisance.
- Not tracking anything. Without a log, you cannot tell which prospect sources are worth repeating.
Broken link building is one tactic among many. For the bigger picture, read our guide to link building strategies, and use competitor backlink analysis to find dead pages your rivals are still getting links to. A regular SEO audit will also catch broken links on your own site.
Related Guides
- Digital PR for SEO: How to Earn High-Authority Links
- Toxic Backlinks and the Disavow Tool: What You Need to Know
- Anchor Text in SEO: Types, Best Practices and Ratios
Frequently Asked Questions
Is broken link building white hat?
Yes, as long as you are simply suggesting a relevant replacement and not paying for the link. The editor decides whether to update their page, so the link is editorial.
What response rate should I expect?
It varies widely by niche, list quality and how well your page matches. Personalised emails to well-qualified prospects perform far better than bulk sends, so focus on relevance rather than volume.
Do I need paid tools for broken link building?
Paid backlink tools make finding dead pages with many links much faster. You can still start for free using Google Search Console, search operators, a broken-link checker extension and the Wayback Machine.
Should I recreate the dead page's content?
Only if it fits your site and audience. Improve on the original with up-to-date information rather than copying it, and make sure it serves your own visitors too.
How do I fix broken backlinks to my own site?
Find your pages that return a 404 but still have backlinks, then add a 301 redirect from each to the most relevant live page. That recovers the link without contacting anyone.
Conclusion
Broken link building rewards patience and relevance. Start by recovering your own lost links, then find dead pages in your niche, offer genuinely better replacements and keep your emails short and human. If you would like our team to run broken link and outreach campaigns for you, explore our SEO services, or if a redesign broke your URLs, our web development team can map the redirects. Get a free quote to start.
