How to fix 404 errors in WordPress

Step by step

1. Export the 404s Google has found

In Search Console, open Indexing → Pages, scroll to Why pages aren't indexed and click Not found (404). Export the list. These are URLs Google knew about, often because something links to them, so they are the priority list. Then open Links → Top linked pages and look for any URL in your export. A 404 with backlinks is the most expensive kind.

2. Find broken internal links

Go to Hydrogen SEO → Dashboard, run the site audit and open Broken internal links. Each entry shows the dead target and the page that links to it. These are dead ends you built yourself, so fix them first. Hydrogen SEO does not log 404 hits from visitors, so for full coverage also check your host's access logs or your analytics for pages titled "Page not found".

3. Fix internal links at the source

For every broken internal link, edit the linking page so it points at the correct URL. That removes the problem instead of hiding it behind a redirect. If the same wrong URL also has external links, fix the link and add a redirect.

4. Redirect URLs that have a real replacement

When the content moved or was merged, add a 301:

1. Open Hydrogen SEO → Redirections and click Add New.
2. From URL: the dead path, such as /old-guide/.
3. To URL: the page that genuinely replaces it.
4. Redirect Type: 301 - Permanent Redirect, then Create.

Inbound typos count too. If another site links to /prcing/, redirect it to /pricing/. The full walkthrough is in how to set up 301 redirects.

5. Leave the rest as 404 or 410

When the content is gone and nothing replaces it, a 404 is the correct answer. Do not redirect it to the homepage; Google treats that as a soft 404 anyway. If you want to say the removal was deliberate, a 410 is a slightly stronger signal. Hydrogen SEO's redirects are 301 and 302 only, so set a 410 at the server. On Apache:

Redirect gone /discontinued-webinar/

On Nginx:

location = /discontinued-webinar/ { return 410; }

6. Make the 404 page useful

Visitors will still land on dead URLs. Your theme's 404 template should say plainly that the page is missing and offer a search box and links to your main sections. Check that it returns a real 404 status, not 200:

curl -sI https://example.com/this-page-does-not-exist/ | head -1

Hydrogen SEO gives the 404 page noindex and its own title template under Titles & Meta.

7. Validate the fix in Search Console

Back in the Not found (404) report, click Validate fix once you have worked through the list. Google rechecks the URLs over the following days. Redirected URLs move to Page with redirect, and deliberate 404s stay listed, which is fine.

Prevent the next batch

• Switch on Auto Redirection under Hydrogen SEO → Redirections, so slug changes on posts, pages and terms get a 301 automatically.
• When you delete a post, decide its redirect or deliberate 404 in the same sitting.
• Rerun the site audit after any restructure, and recheck the Search Console 404 report monthly.
• Watch for pages nothing links to at all, which are the next 404s waiting to happen when someone deletes them; see find orphan pages.

Common mistakes

• Chasing zero 404s. Spam links and bots request junk URLs constantly. Those 404s are correct.
• Redirecting every 404 to the homepage with a catch-all plugin setting. Visitors get lost and Google ignores the redirects.
• Redirecting to a page that also redirects. That creates a chain; see fix redirect chains.
• A 404 page that returns 200. Google then reports those URLs as soft 404s instead.