How to Manage 404 Pages Effectively for SEO and User Experience

Encountering a “404 Not Found” error can be more than just a minor inconvenience; it is a missed opportunity in both user experience and search engine optimization. 

In this article, I’ll dive into practices for effectively managing 404 errors, so you can transform what could be a setback into a proactive tool for engagement and retention.

What Is a 404 Not Found Error?

A 404 Not Found error is an HTTP status code that indicates that the server could not find the requested resource. 

For instance, when someone clicks on a link, and that page has been moved or taken down without 301 redirecting it to a new URL, the server generates a 404 Not Found error. 

A 404 tells the user and search engines that the requested page does not exist at the specified URL.

A standard 404 page is not ideal for a variety of reasons, including:

• A poor user experience: 404 errors can frustrate and deter users from using the site further, which means a bounce from your site.

• Negative impact on the customer journey: Every clicked link is an opportunity for you to move a visitor further down the customer journey. If people never have a chance to engage on your site, they won’t become future customers.
• SEO impact: While Google states that 404 errors are normal and don’t directly harm your site’s rankings, they can have indirect negative effects. For example, if a search engine visits a webpage and gets a 404, it has nowhere else to go on the site. While 404 errors are a normal part of the web, excessive broken internal links can waste crawl resources and make it harder for search engines to efficiently discover important content. Also, if external links point to pages that yield 404 errors, valuable external links may no longer benefit your site if they point to pages that no longer exist.

The good news is that there are good solutions to manage 404s, which I’ll talk about next.

Two Primary Solutions for 404 Error Pages

404s happen. That’s why we have a backup plan. There are two basic steps you can take to manage the 404 error pages that need it, and that is:

1. Implement 301 redirects. A 301 redirect is an HTTP status code that signals a permanent redirect from one URL to another. It tells search engines that a page has permanently moved to a new location and quickly ushers website visitors to the new URL. Implementing 301 redirects when moving a webpage is a best practice for avoiding 404s. However, not every 404 page should be redirected. If content has been intentionally removed and there is no relevant replacement page, returning a proper 404 or 410 status code is often the best option.
2. Create a custom 404 error page. A custom 404 error page is helpful to both search engines and visitors. For visitors, it gives more information than just a blank page with a “404 not found” message. Custom 404 pages ensure a smoother experience by offering links that a person can visit instead. Custom 404 pages also help users continue navigating the site instead of immediately exiting after encountering an error.

For more information on 301 redirects, see: What Is a 301 Redirect? How To Do a 301 Redirect on 3 Common Servers + WordPress (Coming June 23rd!)

Next, I’ll talk about how to create a custom 404 error page.

How to Design a Custom 404 Page

A custom 404 page provides a seamless, branded experience for people who land on them. 

They are designed to look like any other page on your site and contain helpful information about what a person can do next on your website instead of accessing the page they were trying to access.

For instance, here is a screenshot of our 404 error page on BruceClay.com:

The page is designed with the same look and feel as any other page on our site and contains key links that we want search engines and people to follow next.

Here are six best practices for designing a custom 404 error page:

1. Design the Page to Look Like Your Website 

It’s better to encounter a page that looks like an actual website versus a generic 404 page like this:

2. Put Thought into the Messaging 

Explain that the page is unavailable and then offer steps someone can take instead. 

Make sure the tone matches the brand copy on other parts of the site. Depending on your brand personality, you might use a little humor to help deflect the frustration of the situation.

3. Offer Suggestions for Other Pages Where People Can Go

Include links to key pages on your site. For example, include a link to your home page (with keyword-rich anchor text), a link to your main navigational pages, a link to your site map and/or a link to current promotions.

4. If Possible, Make It Ultra Personalized

If someone was looking for women’s evening dresses and got a 404, you could program a page to dynamically link to a similar category on the site, for instance, women’s clothing.

5. Include a Search Box

Let people take it from there to find what they are looking for.

6. Properly Configure the Page for Search

In most cases, search engines will naturally avoid indexing pages that return a proper 404 status code.

Your custom 404 page should also return an actual 404 HTTP status code. A page that looks like a 404 but returns a 200 OK response may be treated as a soft 404 by search engines.

Soft 404s occur when a page appears to be missing but returns a successful status code instead of a true 404 response.

For more, see our beginner’s guide to robots.txt.

3 Custom 404 Error Page Examples

Let’s look at a few examples of different types of websites and how they handle their custom 404 error pages:

1. An e-commerce site.
2. A news publishing site.
3. A software company site.

E-commerce Site Custom 404

This 404 page at ModCloth featured catchy text letting people know what happened. It then linked to major categories on the site, offered a 20% savings offer and displayed featured clothing items.

(Note that this landing page at ModCloth is no longer live at the time of publishing this article. The example is included here for illustrative purposes.)

News Publishing Site Custom 404

The New York Times 404 page takes an audience-focused approach to its text, offers an option to report a broken link and puts a search box front and center.

Software Company Site Custom 404

Unbounce provides a very conversion-focused 404 page, offering three choices: homepage, learn about landing pages or choose a conversion template.

How to Implement a 404 Page 

Now on to the nitty-gritty details of how to implement a 404 page. 

WordPress Sites (No Server Access Needed)

For most WordPress users, customizing a 404 page doesn’t involve direct server manipulation. 

Here’s why:

1. Theme-based customization: Most modern WordPress themes come with a 404.php file that can be edited directly from the WordPress admin dashboard. This approach doesn’t involve any server configuration and is purely handled within WordPress.
2. Plugins: WordPress plugins allow you to manage and create custom 404 pages without touching any server settings. These plugins work within the WordPress framework to intercept 404 errors and display custom content.

However, server-level customization might be necessary under specific circumstances, typically in more custom or advanced setups. And that’s what I’ll discuss next.

404 Pages on NGINX Servers

Once your custom 404 page is ready to go, you can implement it fairly easily on an NGINX server. 

Inside your NGINX configuration file and settings for the site, insert the following lines of code:

error_page  404  =   /404.html;

location  /404.html  {

internal;

}

404 Pages on Microsoft IIS Servers

To implement a custom 404 on a Microsoft IIS server, you will probably need administrative rights to the server to make changes and have your custom 404 page ready to go.

Then: 

1. Open the “Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.”
2. Click the > sign next to your server name and expand the list of sites.
3. Click on your website, which may be the “Default Web Server”.
4. Double-click on Error Pages in the center panel.

5.  Select the 404 code, and click “Edit” in the Actions panel on the right.

6. Select “Insert Content from static file into the error response” and set the file path to your 404 file.

7. Click “OK” to exit the dialogue box.

404 Pages on Apache Servers

Once you have designed your custom 404 page for an Apache server, you’ll add a line of code to your .htaccess file to present a custom 404 page instead of a standard error.

That line of code would look like this:

ErrorDocument  404  /error-pages/404.php

On high-traffic sites, some administrators prefer configuring custom error pages directly in the main Apache configuration instead of .htaccess for performance reasons.

If you use a CDN, reverse proxy or service like Cloudflare, custom error pages and caching behavior may also be configured outside the origin server.

How to Manage 404s Regularly

Stay proactive when monitoring broken links. Here are some best practices for managing your 404s on a regular basis.

Conduct Regular Audits

Use tools like Google Search Console and our SEOToolSet to monitor and address 404 errors. This can help you understand where they’re occurring and why.

You can also verify that your custom 404 pages return the correct HTTP status code using browser developer tools or command-line tools like:

curl -I

In Search Console, you can view the “page indexing” report to monitor 404s.

In the SEOToolSet, you can use the Site Checker Tool to monitor 404s, among other things. We have a free version — the Check Server Page tool — which looks at individual URLs and you can learn about in more detail here.

Decide What To Do 

If you already have a custom 404 page implemented, you don’t need to worry too much about the user experience while you figure out what to do with the link. 

However, you should have a plan for those as much as possible so that when you detect them, you take action. 

How do you know when to take action? Per Google, here are some common scenarios where you might want to fix the 404 and when you might want to leave them. 

Google’s help file covers what to do in the following situations:

• If it is a deleted page that has no replacement or equivalent.
• If it is a bad URL that never existed on your site.
• If the URL is commonly misspelled or alternately spelled.
• If the content has moved.
• If the URL is unknown.

Usually, the best first choice when addressing a broken link is implementing a 301 redirect to preserve link equity and ensure a better user experience for search engines and users. 

In some cases, a 410 Gone status code may be more appropriate than a 404. A 410 explicitly signals to search engines that the content was intentionally removed and is not expected to return.

Final Thoughts

Managing 404 errors is about maintaining an optimal user experience and preserving SEO integrity. 

Whether you implement 301 redirects to smoothly transition users and search engines to relevant pages or design custom 404 pages that keep visitors engaged even when they lose their way, every action taken should enhance the site’s usability and search performance.

FAQ: How can I effectively manage 404 pages for better SEO and user engagement?

A well-designed 404 page helps visitors recover from broken or outdated links by guiding them to useful content elsewhere on your website. 

While a custom 404 page will not directly improve search rankings, it can improve the user experience, reduce frustration and help visitors continue their journey on your site.

A 404 error occurs when a page cannot be found at the requested URL. Instead of presenting a generic error message, businesses should create a custom 404 page that clearly explains the issue and provides helpful navigation options.

Best practices for 404 page optimization include: 

• Create a custom 404 page that matches your site’s branding.
• Clearly explain that the requested page is unavailable.
• Include links to key site sections, popular pages or recent content.
• Provide a site search feature to help visitors find relevant information.
• Add a clear call to action, such as “Return to Homepage” or “Browse Categories.”
• Ensure the page is mobile-friendly and loads quickly.
• Offer a simple way for users to report broken links or request assistance.

Action Plan

1. Create a custom 404 page that matches your site’s branding and user experience.
2. Clearly explain that the requested page cannot be found and reassure visitors that they can continue browsing your site.
3. Return a proper HTTP 404 status code so search engines understand the page does not exist.
4. Use 301 redirects only when a relevant replacement page exists. Avoid redirecting all 404s to the homepage.
5. Include a prominent search box to help users quickly find the content they were seeking.
6. Provide links to your homepage and primary site sections.
7. Highlight popular, high-performing or frequently visited content.
8. Feature recently updated or evergreen resources that are likely to satisfy visitor intent.
9. Include clear calls to action such as “Return to Homepage,” “Browse Categories” or “Search the Site.”
10. Ensure the page is mobile-friendly and functions properly across all devices.
11. Optimize page speed so the 404 page loads quickly and does not create additional frustration.
12. Keep navigation consistent with the rest of your website to maintain a familiar user experience.
13. Provide a simple way for users to report broken links or request assistance.
14. Include contact information when appropriate, particularly for service-based businesses and support-driven websites.
15. Use analytics tools to monitor 404 traffic and identify broken links, outdated content and navigation issues.
16. Regularly review server logs and Search Console reports to find and resolve recurring 404 errors.
17. Test the user experience periodically to ensure visitors can easily recover from a missing page.
18. Consider using light humor or brand personality if it aligns with your audience and brand voice.
19. Avoid overwhelming visitors with excessive navigation choices or unnecessary distractions.
20. Link to an HTML sitemap or resource hub if it helps users discover relevant content.
21. Make the page accessible by following modern accessibility standards, including readable text, keyboard navigation and sufficient color contrast.
22. Review and update featured links regularly to ensure recommendations remain relevant.
23. Monitor user behavior on 404 pages and use the data to improve navigation paths and content discovery.
24. Remove or redirect broken internal links throughout your website to reduce the number of 404 encounters.
25. Continuously refine your 404 page based on analytics, user feedback and changing site content.

A 404 page should not be a dead end. By providing helpful navigation, search functionality and clear next steps, you can keep visitors engaged and help them find the information they need, even when the original page is unavailable.

Bruce Clay is founder and president of Bruce Clay Inc., a global digital marketing firm providing search engine optimization, pay-per-click, social media marketing, SEO-friendly web architecture, and SEO tools and education. Connect with him on LinkedIn or through the BruceClay.com website.

See Bruce’s author page for links to connect on social media.