Broken links
Links to pages that no longer exist, or that do nothing when clicked, leave shoppers at a dead end.
Checked on: every page the audit scans · Zolvio’s check: “Broken navigation links”
Why it costs you sales
A shopper who clicks a link expects the page it promises. A “page not found”, or a link that does nothing, ends that path through the store and makes the store look unfinished.
Links to removed collections, products and sale pages are easy to leave behind in menus and sections after the page itself is gone.
How Zolvio detects it
Zolvio learns which of your pages are missing in two ways. It notes every page the audit loads that your store answers “page not found” (404) or “gone” (410) for, and it asks your store about up to 80 of your homepage’s links to your own pages, one request at a time: the header’s, menus’ and footer’s first, then the homepage’s own sections’, product links last (not the cart, checkout, account or search pages, or files). A link that redirects counts as working. On every page it scans, it then picks out the links that point to a missing page.
It also picks out links that can’t go anywhere, with no destination (#, javascript:void(0), an empty link): one whose inline code does nothing but cancel the click, and a button in your page’s own sections worded as a way into the store, such as “Shop now”, “Shop all” or “View all”, that was left without a link and that the page actually lays out (one in a closed tab panel can’t be clicked, so it doesn’t count). A link with no destination that a script may handle is left alone: one that carries a script’s attributes or sits in a form or an app block, or one worded like a control, such as a menu toggle or a currency picker. Links inside a block that its own app hides and replaces for shoppers (for example a reviews app’s placeholder) are skipped.
It isn’t a full link checker: a link on another page is matched only against the pages the audit loaded and the homepage links it asked about. The finding lists up to ten links of each kind, with their text and address, and for a missing page what your store answered.
This is a direct measurement, so it’s reported on every plan, including Free and audits with AI turned off. With AI review on, the AI agent also checks it against the audit’s evidence before it reaches your issue list.
How to fix it
- Use the link texts and addresses in the finding to find each link: menu items live in Content → Menus, and buttons and text links usually live in a section’s settings in the theme editor.
- Point each one at a page that exists, or remove it if there’s nothing to link to.
- For a collection, product or page you’ve removed, add a URL redirect to its replacement (Content → Menus → View URL redirects), so old links and bookmarks keep working.
- If a link is meant to open a dropdown or drawer, make it a button (or give it role="button"), so it isn’t a dead link to shoppers or screen readers.
In Zolvio: on paid plans with AI turned on, the guided fix writes these steps for your own store and theme: where to click in Shopify admin or the theme editor, or which file to open, the line to find and the code to add. Each file opens in Shopify’s code editor. Zolvio never edits your theme: you make the change, then Verify fix checks your published theme for code changes (or you mark it fixed), and later audits confirm the problem is gone.
Common questions
Why does “Broken links” cost a Shopify store sales?
A shopper who clicks a link expects the page it promises. A “page not found”, or a link that does nothing, ends that path through the store and makes the store look unfinished. Links to removed collections, products and sale pages are easy to leave behind in menus and sections after the page itself is gone.
How does Zolvio detect “Broken links”?
Zolvio learns which of your pages are missing in two ways. It notes every page the audit loads that your store answers “page not found” (404) or “gone” (410) for, and it asks your store about up to 80 of your homepage’s links to your own pages, one request at a time: the header’s, menus’ and footer’s first, then the homepage’s own sections’, product links last (not the cart, checkout, account or search pages, or files). A link that redirects counts as working. On every page it scans, it then picks out the links that point to a missing page. It also picks out links that can’t go anywhere, with no destination (#, javascript:void(0), an empty link): one whose inline code does nothing but cancel the click, and a button in your page’s own sections worded as a way into the store, such as “Shop now”, “Shop all” or “View all”, that was left without a link and that the page actually lays out (one in a closed tab panel can’t be clicked, so it doesn’t count). A link with no destination that a script may handle is left alone: one that carries a script’s attributes or sits in a form or an app block, or one worded like a control, such as a menu toggle or a currency picker. Links inside a block that its own app hides and replaces for shoppers (for example a reviews app’s placeholder) are skipped. It isn’t a full link checker: a link on another page is matched only against the pages the audit loaded and the homepage links it asked about. The finding lists up to ten links of each kind, with their text and address, and for a missing page what your store answered.
How do I fix “Broken links” on Shopify?
Use the link texts and addresses in the finding to find each link: menu items live in Content → Menus, and buttons and text links usually live in a section’s settings in the theme editor. Point each one at a page that exists, or remove it if there’s nothing to link to. For a collection, product or page you’ve removed, add a URL redirect to its replacement (Content → Menus → View URL redirects), so old links and bookmarks keep working. If a link is meant to open a dropdown or drawer, make it a button (or give it role="button"), so it isn’t a dead link to shoppers or screen readers.
Related
- HighTrustBroken images
- MediumNavigationFooter with few or no links
- LowNavigationLogo doesn’t link to the homepage
- HighNavigationNo search on the store
Documentation
- How audits work — What an audit scans and how findings become issues.
- Guided fixes — Step-by-step fixes written for your theme, with links into the code editor.
- Session recordings — Watch how real shoppers move through your store.