404-page (2024)

FAQs

What should a 404 page include? ›

When you directly manually access to “404” page in URL you will get 200 status because you are successfully connected to standard page that has informational content that page that client have tried connect to (kjh) doesn't exist. It is the same way if you redirect to home page or any other page instead.

No, you cannot bypass a 404 error, as it is a response from the server indicating that the requested page cannot be found. However, you can set up a redirect to a different page on your website or use a custom 404 page to provide helpful information to visitors.

These 404 pages can have an adverse impact on your website in terms of user experience and SEO value. Bad user experience – An excellent user experience means visitors can find anything they need on your site on their first try, without any problems. Dead-end 404s can drive visitors away.

404 page best practices

Use friendly and simple language to explain the error. Engaging visuals: Incorporate visually appealing graphics or illustrations that align with your website's design and brand. These visuals can help soften the frustration of encountering an error.

The HTTP 404 Not Found response status code indicates that the server cannot find the requested resource. Links that lead to a 404 page are often called broken or dead links and can be subject to link rot. A 404 status code only indicates that the resource is missing: not whether the absence is temporary or permanent.

A web server should return either the HTTP status code 404 (Not Found) or 410 (Gone) if a URL does not exist. If there are outdated links on the web or incorrect links on your website, Google can only recognise that the target page does not (or no longer) exists by an HTTP status code 404 or 410.

Basically, you should only really redirect if the content has genuinely moved elsewhere, i.e. the 'new' page actually has a large amount in common with the one that's been removed. 404/410s are a natural part of the web and do not harm your site.

404 not found errors are the most recognizable errors on the web. In fact, because of its popularity, it's already a cultural reference to anything that doesn't exist, is inaccessible, or is missing. Sometimes, people also use it as a way to humorously admit or call out mistakes.

How do you tell if a page is a 404? ›

Google Search Console provides a list of every 404 error Googlebot finds on your site. This includes both hard 404s and soft 404s. Login to the Search Console, click Coverage, and select the Excluded tab. You'll see a list of hard 404 errors marked Not found (404) and soft 404 errors marked Soft 404.

How long does it take Google to stop showing for 404 pages in search results? Depends on how often your site is indexed. If you have a large site with lots of visitors, it could be within a day to a week. However, if you have a smaller site that Google doesn't crawl that frequently, it could take much, MUCH longer.

As a generality, use 404s when pages don't exist and shouldn't resolve. Use 410s if your server permits it, but otherwise use a 404 and just accept that it may take longer for search engines to drop the page from their index than if you were able to use a 410.

1. Poor User Experience. 404 errors can hurt your visitor's user experience. They prevent users from visiting the pages they wanted to see.

In computer network communications, the HTTP 404, 404 not found, 404, 404 error, page not found, or file not found error message is a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) standard response code, to indicate that the browser was able to communicate with a given server, but the server could not find what was requested.

A 404 page is also known as an “error page” or “Page Not Found” page. This page indicates that the user reached the domain they requested, but the URL path provided no information. If that sentence made your eyes glaze over, you're not alone.

This standard HTTP error message code signals the website you were trying to reach couldn't be found on the server. It's a client-side error, meaning either the webpage was removed or moved, and the URL wasn't changed accordingly, or the person just typed in the URL incorrectly.

The best 404 pages are those that feel authentic, giving a proper response to users that makes their unplanned step off of your sitemap feel considered. Even better, the 404 page can offer alternative page options to take those users elsewhere within a website, which could help them find what they need.

The 404 code means that a server could not find a client-requested webpage. Variations of the error message include "404 Error," "404 Page Not Found" and "The requested URL was not found." This 404 error page shows the user the error code, what it means and potential ways to navigate around it.