No broken external links

broken_external_links

Checks for broken external links that return errors.

What does this rule check?

External links pointing to dead URLs hurt user experience and can signal a poorly maintained site. While not as severe as broken internal links, they should still be addressed.

Why is this important?

Broken external links negatively impact user trust and experience. They suggest the content may be outdated. Some SEO professionals believe they can also slightly impact rankings.

How to fix

Find updated URLs for the external resources, or remove links to dead external pages. Consider using web archive links as fallbacks.

Examples

<a href="https://old-site.com/resource">Reference</a>
<!-- Returns 404 or site is offline -->

<a href="https://new-site.com/resource" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Reference</a>

Agent fix snippet

Copy this snippet and paste it into your AI coding agent to fix this issue automatically.

Fix broken external links:
1. Find the updated URL for the resource
2. Replace with the working URL
3. If the resource is gone, find an alternative or remove the link
4. Consider using web.archive.org links as fallbacks