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Why do old links to my site show "page not found"?

A "page not found" or 404 message means that address has no page anymore. It usually happens after a page is renamed, moved or removed, and a redirect fixes it.

A 404 error means your website is working, but nothing lives at that exact address. It is like a mail carrier finding the building but not the apartment number. Old links break most often after a site is rebuilt, a page is renamed, or a page is deleted.

  • Bookmarks your customers saved years ago
  • Links on other websites, social posts, emails and printed materials
  • Old search results that Google has not updated yet
  • Your own Google Business Profile or directory listings that still point to an old page

Is a 404 bad?

Some 404s are normal. Every site gets them from typos and very old links. They become a problem when:

  • many people still use the old link
  • the old page had good search rankings or links from other sites
  • the link is on something you cannot change, like a printed flyer or a QR code

Google stops showing a page in search over time when it keeps returning 404. So an important page that went missing can quietly lose its search traffic.

How it gets fixed

The fix is usually a permanent redirect (also called a 301). It sends anyone who visits the old address to the new page automatically. Search engines follow it too and move the old page's standing to the new one. If the page is gone for good and there is no close match, a clear 404 page with a link home is fine.

What you can do

  1. Write down the old address that shows the error. Copy it from the address bar.
  2. Find where the old link lives, if you can: an email, a post, a listing, a QR code.
  3. Decide which current page is the best match for it.
  4. Send us both addresses.

We can do this for you. Open a request in your client portal with the old address and the page it should go to, and our team will set up the redirect.

Common problems

  • If the address has a small typo, like a missing letter, fix the link where it lives. A redirect is not needed.
  • If a printed QR code points to a missing page, a redirect from that address fixes every printed copy at once.
  • If you see many 404s in a report after a redesign, send us the list. We can map them in one batch.

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