--- title: "404 Errors and SEO Guide for Australia | Aemorph" url: https://aemorph.com/en-au/guides/404-errors/ description: "404 errors for Australian websites: what the code means, when it hurts SEO, how Google and Bing treat 404, 410 and soft 404s, and how to fix them." schema_type: Article publisher: Aemorph publisher_entity: https://aemorph.com/entitymap.json#org_aemorph language: en-AU updated: 2026-10-29 --- Guides # 404 Errors and SEO: Best Practices for Australian Websites **A 404 error is a server's way of saying there is nothing at the web address that was requested, and a handful of them on an Australian site does no damage to its Google rankings.** The trouble starts when a page you still sell from answers 404, when your own menu, links or sitemap send people to a dead address, or when a missing page pretends to work and Google files it as a soft 404. Ahrefs' Australian database records about 1,700 searches a month for "404 error". This guide sets out what each status code tells Google and Bing, and how to track down, repair and redirect broken URLs. [See Aemorph's technical SEO service](https://aemorph.com/en-au/services/technical-seo/) Written by [Kevin Dam](https://aemorph.com/en-au/about/), founder of Aemorph, who has practised SEO since 2010 and sits on the [Forbes Agency Council](https://councils.forbes.com/profile/Kevin-Dam-Global-Search-Architect-%7C-SEO-GEO-AEO-IMO-LLM-Visibility-Aemorph/4c8c7a38-1285-470d-8ea8-e517a310a00b). Aemorph is a [Google Partner](https://www.google.com/partners/agency?id=4441861842). [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevindam) --- ## What Is a 404 Error? **HTTP status code 404 (Not Found) tells the browser or crawler that the server has no resource at that URL.** MDN Web Docs, whose reference tracks the HTTP Semantics standard RFC 9110, notes that links pointing to a 404 are commonly called broken or dead links ([MDN, 404 Not Found](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/HTTP/Reference/Status/404)). Keep two things apart: the code travels in the response header, and the "page not found" screen your visitor reads is just the body that comes with it. ### How is a 404 different from a 410? **410 (Gone) signals a removal the server expects to last, whereas 404 only reports that the address returned nothing.** If you are unsure whether a page is coming back, MDN points you to 404 ([MDN, 410 Gone](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/HTTP/Reference/Status/410)). Google's Search Console Help says Google currently handles the two codes the same way, so for an Australian site that relies mostly on Google the decision carries little weight. ### Which other 4xx status codes matter for SEO? **One rule covers nearly every 4xx code at Google: apart from 429, each one means "no content here", the URL drops out of the index and Googlebot visits it less over time.** The 429 (Too Many Requests) code is handled differently, because Google takes it as a server under strain and treats it as a server error. | Status code | Name | Meaning for the visitor's browser | Where it usually comes from | Google's handling | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 400 | Bad Request | The request reached the server in a form it rejects | A broken or malformed address | Read as missing content; dropped from the index | | 401 | Unauthorized | Valid sign-in details are needed first | A members or staff area | Read as missing content; dropped from the index | | 403 | Forbidden | Access to this resource is refused | A permission setting or security rule | Read as missing content; dropped from the index | | 404 | Not Found | No resource sits at this address | A removed or relocated page, or a link with a typo | Read as missing content; dropped from the index; requested less and less | | 410 | Gone | The resource has been withdrawn for good | A page taken down on purpose | Handled exactly like a 404 | | 429 | Too Many Requests | Requests arrived faster than the server allows | A rate limit at the host or CDN | Handled as a server error; Googlebot backs off | *Common 4xx codes and Google's crawler handling, from Google's crawling documentation.* *[Sources: MDN Web Docs, October 2026 and others](https://aemorph.com/sources/#mdn-web-docs-october-2026-and-others-4xx-codes)* Aemorph's 2024 version of this guide said a 410 meant the resource had "moved to a different location". That is the job of a 301 or 308 redirect, which forwards visitors to the page's new address; a 410 forwards nobody. ## 404 Errors in Australia: Search Share, Devices and Bing **Google carries most Australian searches, but Bing holds close to one in ten, so an Australian site answers missing pages the way both search engines expect.** StatCounter recorded Google at 87.9% and Bing at 9.17% of Australian search engine market share in September 2026, and phones and computers each carried close to half of Australian page views in the same month ([StatCounter, Australia](https://gs.statcounter.com/search-engine-market-share/all/australia)). | Measure | Figure | Market | Period | Source | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Google search engine market share | 87.9% | Australia | September 2026 | StatCounter | | Bing search engine market share | 9.17% | Australia | September 2026 | StatCounter | | Mobile share of page views | 48.57% | Australia | September 2026 | StatCounter | | Desktop share of page views | 48.48% | Australia | September 2026 | StatCounter | | Searches for "404 error" | 1,700 a month | Australia | October 2026 | Ahrefs | | Searches for "404 not found" | 1,000 a month | Australia | October 2026 | Ahrefs | *[Sources: StatCounter, September 2026 and others](https://aemorph.com/sources/#statcounter-september-2026-and-others-au-404)* **Bing's own rules for removed and moved pages line up with Google's: send a 404 for a page you removed, a 301 for a permanent move and a 302 only for a change lasting under two days.** Bing also asks site owners to report deleted or changed URLs through IndexNow, so its index drops the old address sooner ([Bing Webmaster Guidelines](https://www.bing.com/webmasters/help/webmaster-guidelines-30fba23a)). With mobile and desktop traffic almost level in Australia, check your custom 404 page on both screen sizes. ## What Causes 404 Errors? **Australian sites mostly pick up 404s in three ways: a page is removed or renamed with no redirect left behind, a link carries the wrong address, or a server or CMS rule routes requests to a path that does not exist.** - **Removed content.** A product line ends, a blog post is retired or a campaign landing page is switched off, and no page takes its place. - **Relocated content.** A rebuild, a new URL pattern or a platform migration gives pages new addresses while the old ones get no redirect. - **Faulty links.** A menu item, an internal link or a link on a partner's site holds a typo, an outdated path or a dropped character. - **Typed addresses.** A visitor mistypes a URL in the address bar and lands on a 404 like any other missing page. - **Server set-up.** A rewrite rule, a renamed folder or a CMS setting points requests for live pages at the wrong path. ### Do URLs that never existed matter? **They do not: Google's guidance is that 404s for addresses your site never had are fine to leave alone.** Scraper sites, mangled links elsewhere on the web and faulty code all invent URLs, and a 404 is exactly the answer those addresses deserve ([Google Search Central Blog, Do 404 errors hurt my site?](https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2011/05/do-404s-hurt-my-site)). ## Do 404 Errors Hurt SEO? **Search Console Help states plainly that 404s do not harm a site's indexing or ranking, and calls a 404 the right reply for a deleted page with nothing to replace it.** What a 404 costs is local to the missing URL: Google drops that address from its index, anyone who reaches it hits a dead end, and links from other websites that pointed there stop reaching a live page ([Search Console Help, 404 errors](https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/2445990)). | Scenario | Impact on that URL | Impact on the wider site | Response | Urgency | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | You removed a page and it now returns 404 | Falls out of Google's index in time | None; your other pages hold their positions | Keep the 404 or send a 410 | Low | | A page you still need answers 404 | Falls out of the index and stops ranking | The visitors and links aimed at it have nowhere to land | Bring the page back or redirect it | High | | Your own link or sitemap points at a 404 | Google keeps rediscovering and requesting a dead address | People clicking your own links reach a dead end | Fix the link or the sitemap line | High | | A moved page that other sites link to answers 404 | Falls out of the index | Those referring links no longer reach a live page | 301 redirect to its new home | High | | An address that never existed answers 404 | Nothing lost | None | No action | None | *Where a 404 costs you and where it does not, drawn from Google's Search Console Help.* *[Source: Google Search Console Help, October 2026](https://aemorph.com/sources/#google-search-console-help-404-errors-october-2026)* The 2024 version of this guide also claimed that one 404 makes crawlers abandon the rest of a site and that bounce rate works against you as a ranking signal. Neither appears in Google's crawling documentation: Google removes the missing address, requests it less often and leaves the rest of the site alone. ### Which 404 errors need fixing? **Repair the 404s your own site causes: addresses you link to, addresses in your sitemap, and moved pages that still draw visitors or links from other sites.** Google's Search Console Help limits its advice to 404s you link to yourself or list in a sitemap, plus a redirect for any page that moved. Aemorph also puts old URLs that other websites still link to on the list, since Aemorph treats a link to a dead page as worth nothing to the live site until a redirect recovers it. ### Does Google keep crawling a URL that returns 404? **It does: Googlebot goes on requesting a 404 address for a while, at a falling rate, and there is no way to make Google forget the URL for good.** Search Console's Page indexing report says so under "Not found (404)", and adds that a 404 for a page removed with no replacement is not necessarily a problem ([Search Console Help, Page indexing report](https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/7440203)). Aemorph's guide to [how search engines work](https://aemorph.com/en-au/guides/how-search-engines-work/) explains how Google crawls, renders, indexes and ranks pages. ## What Is a Soft 404 Error? **A soft 404 shows visitors a "not found" style message while the server reports 200 (success), so Google is handed what looks like a working page that is really an error.** Google applies the same label to pages with no main content and to blank pages. Google keeps soft 404 pages out of Search, and the Page indexing report lists them under "Soft 404" ([Google Search Central, Troubleshoot crawling errors](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/troubleshoot-crawling-errors)). ### What produces soft 404 errors? **A soft 404 appears when the site displays an error but sends a success code, or when every unknown URL is redirected to the home page.** Google's examples are a missing server-side include, a lost database connection, an internal search page with no results and a JavaScript file that never loaded. Search Console Help names the blanket redirect to the home page as another cause. On a large site, Google keeps crawling soft 404 pages, which eats into crawl budget ([Google, Crawl budget management](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/large-site-managing-crawl-budget)). ### How do you fix a soft 404? **Send the response that matches the page's real state: 404 or 410 for content that is gone, a 301 for content that moved, and a rendering repair for a genuine page.** | Case | Illustration | Correct response | Code to return | How to confirm it | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | The content is gone and nothing replaces it | A product line that ended with no successor | Answer with not found or gone | 404 or 410 | Fetch the URL and read the status line in the response header | | The content moved or has a clear successor | A service page renamed during a rebuild | Redirect to the new address | 301 | Search Console's URL Inspection tool | | The page is genuine but flagged as a soft 404 | A page whose main content relies on a blocked script | Remove what blocks rendering: blocked or failing resources, too many resources, server errors, slow or oversized files | 200, with the content showing | URL Inspection, View tested page, for the rendered page and status code | *How to clear a soft 404, from Google Search Central.* *[Source: Google Search Central, October 2026](https://aemorph.com/sources/#google-search-central-soft-404-october-2026)* ### How do single-page apps avoid soft 404s? **When a single-page app routes in the browser, the server rarely knows a page is missing, so Google gives two remedies: redirect with JavaScript to an address that returns a true 404, such as /not-found, or inject a robots noindex tag into the error view.** Google's JavaScript [SEO](https://aemorph.com/en-au/glossary/#seo-search-engine-optimisation) basics page sets out both, with sample code ([Google Search Central, JavaScript SEO basics](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/javascript/javascript-seo-basics)). ## How Do You Find 404 Errors on Your Site? **Pull from four places: Search Console for the URLs Google hit, a crawler for broken links inside your site, a backlink tool for dead pages other sites still link to, and server logs for the rest.** 1. **Page indexing report in Search Console.** The "Not found (404)" and "Soft 404" rows list the addresses Google failed to index, with example URLs. 2. **URL Inspection tool.** For one address it shows the code Google received, the rendered page and where Google discovered the URL. 3. **A site crawler.** Screaming Frog and similar crawlers read the site as a search engine does and report each link returning a 4xx code alongside the page holding it. 4. **A backlink tool.** Ahrefs and its peers list links from other domains that land on 404 addresses, which tells you which dead pages still attract links. 5. **Server access logs.** Logs record every 404 request from people and bots, including addresses no report surfaces. For the Bing share of Australian search, Bing Webmaster Tools and IndexNow cover the same ground on Bing's side ([Bing Webmaster Guidelines](https://www.bing.com/webmasters/help/webmaster-guidelines-30fba23a)). ## How Do You Fix a 404 Error? **Work out, URL by URL, whether the content moved, was replaced or no longer exists, then redirect, correct the link or leave the 404 in place accordingly.** Search Console Help also suggests sending common misspellings of a live URL to the right page with a redirect. | Case | Illustration | Repair | Code | Reason | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Content moved to a new address | /services/seo-audit.html became /services/seo-audit/ | Redirect old to new | 301 | Visitors and Google arrive at the new page; Google reads a 301 as a strong sign the target is the page to show | | Content replaced by a close equivalent | A retired offer page succeeded by a current one | Redirect to the successor | 301 | The old address still meets the visitor's need | | Your menu or link has a typo | A menu link to /contcat/ | Fix the link where it lives | None once fixed | A redirect only papers over a link you control | | Your sitemap lists a dead address | A deleted post left in sitemap.xml | Take it out of the sitemap | None once fixed | Sitemaps list only live pages you want indexed | | A frequent misspelling of a live URL | /jewellery/ typed as /jewelry/ | Redirect the misspelling | 301 | People who mistype still get there | | Content gone with no replacement | A past event page | Keep the 404 or send a 410 | 404 or 410 | The proper answer for removed content; pointing it at the home page makes a soft 404 | *Matching each 404 to its repair.* ### Which redirect fits each move? **A permanent move takes a server-side 301 or 308, and a brief, temporary one takes a 302 or 307.** Google reads 301 and 308 as permanent and shows the new address in results, while 302, 303 and 307 are temporary and keep the original address showing ([Google Search Central, Redirects and Google Search](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/301-redirects)). Bing agrees, and keeps 302 redirects for "very short-term changes (less than 2 days)" ([Bing Webmaster Guidelines](https://www.bing.com/webmasters/help/webmaster-guidelines-30fba23a)). ### Why do redirect chains matter? **Google's crawl budget guide says long redirect chains hold back crawling, and Googlebot follows up to 10 hops by default.** Each hop adds a request before Google reaches the page you want indexed. Send every old URL directly to its final page, and rewrite older redirects whenever a page moves again. *[Sources: Google Search Central, October 2026 and others](https://aemorph.com/sources/#google-search-central-october-2026-and-others-redirects)* ## What Makes a Good Custom 404 Page? **An effective custom 404 page states clearly that the page is missing, keeps your header, footer and navigation, and gives visitors somewhere useful to go, while the server still sends a 404 code.** Google's guidance for a helpful 404 page lists four points ([Google Search Central, Troubleshoot crawling errors](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/troubleshoot-crawling-errors)): 1. **Tell visitors in friendly words** that the page is not there. 2. **Match the design and navigation** of the rest of the site. 3. **Link to your most visited pages** and your home page. 4. **Give visitors a way to report the broken link.** ### What else helps visitors on a 404 page? **A search box, links to your main product or service categories and a contact link give a stranded visitor a way back into the site.** Those ideas carry over from Aemorph's 2024 guide and still hold: someone hunting for a discontinued product finds its replacement, and someone needing help reaches your team. Brand humour suits some Australian brands, provided the message stays clear. ### Does the custom 404 page need a 404 status code? **It does: Google calls custom 404 pages useful only to people and useless to search engines, so the server sends a 404 code to keep them out of the index.** An attractive error page that answers 200 is precisely the soft 404 covered above. After every change to your CMS, theme or hosting set-up, read the status code in the response header, because the page itself never shows which code the server sent. ## Keep Broken URLs From Costing Your Australian Site Visitors **404s stay harmless when every page you want found answers 200, every moved page redirects in a single hop and every removed page answers a true 404 or 410.** Review the Page indexing report monthly, crawl the site after each redesign or migration, and recover dead URLs that still carry links with one-to-one redirects. If you want an experienced team to handle this for your Australian site, Aemorph's [technical SEO service](https://aemorph.com/en-au/services/technical-seo/) crawls the site with Screaming Frog, lists status code faults, redirect chains and broken links, and writes each fix at the template for your developers, who decide the pace. The [SEO audit](https://aemorph.com/en-au/services/seo-audit/) folds the same checks into a wider review, and the [on-page SEO audit guide](https://aemorph.com/en-au/guides/on-page-seo-audit/) covers the page-level checks that sit alongside them. Aemorph is headquartered in Singapore and has no office in Australia. Aemorph's guide to [web design and development](https://aemorph.com/en-au/guides/web-design-and-development/) sets out how to plan, build and launch a site with search built in. THE STRATEGIC CONVERSATION ## Start with a free *strategic conversation*. Every Aemorph engagement starts with a free strategic conversation. It is the fastest way to see whether Aemorph fits your business before you commit budget. [Book a strategic conversation →](https://aemorph.com/en-au/contact/) STARTING POINT Free You talk through your goals with Aemorph, and Aemorph quotes your engagement after the conversation.