What are the Best Broken Link Building Techniques?

Broken link building is actually one of the most effective link-building strategies out there—and it often converts better than a lot of the “classic” methods you’ve probably already tried.

In this guide, we’ll break it all down for you. You’ll learn exactly what broken link building is, how it works, and why it can be such a powerful tool for growing your site’s authority. Plus, we’ll walk you through a simple step-by-step method you can use in any niche to start seeing results.

These strategies are straight from our own playbook—and trust us, they work like magic.

So, What Is Broken Link Building?

Broken link building is all about finding web pages in your niche that contain dead (aka broken) links. These are links that lead to error pages—most often the dreaded 404.

Once you spot those dead links, you reach out to the website owner and suggest replacing the broken link with a link to your own (awesome and relevant) content instead.

It’s a win-win:

• They fix a broken link and improve their site’s user experience.
• You get a high-quality backlink.

The cool thing? It’s a white-hat SEO technique. You’re not tricking anyone—you’re offering helpful content and a fix. Webmasters will only link to your page if they genuinely like what you’ve created.

Why Do Links Break?

There are a bunch of reasons a link might stop working. Some of the most common ones include:

🚫 The page it linked to got taken down
🚫 The URL changed
🚫 Someone messed up the link when they first added it
🚫 The whole website is gone or restructured

When any of these happen, users end up landing on an error page. That’s a bad experience—and an opportunity for you.

Is Broken Link Building Really Worth It?

Opinions vary. Some people swear by it. Others think it’s time-consuming or hit-or-miss.

Here’s what we’ve found: if you use smart tactics (we’ll show you how), broken link building can deliver quick wins and long-term value.

You not only get backlinks, but you also build relationships. The more you connect with content creators and webmasters, the more likely they are to work with you again in the future.

And if your link ends up on a few high-authority websites? Your SEO score gets a serious boost.

Also Read: What is the Best Strategy for Link Building Outreach?

Finding Broken Link Opportunities

Okay, so how do you actually find these broken links? That’s the tricky part—but don’t worry, we’ve got three strategies for you based on your time and energy levels.

Strategy 1: Nerdy Time Traveling

⏰ Time needed: A few hours
😎 Mood: “I’m feeling lucky!”

This strategy is simple but requires patience.

Start with resource pages—those curated lists of helpful links you find on blogs and niche websites. They’re goldmines for broken links.

Install a Chrome extension like LinkMiner. It highlights broken links on any page you visit. Super handy.

Once you find a dead link, check how many sites link to it (that’s the number of referring domains). If it’s got a lot, you’ve struck gold.

✅ Why it works:

• Resource pages are packed with relevant links.
• High chance of finding dead links with SEO value.

❌ Downsides:

• It’s time-consuming.
• LinkMiner isn’t always 100% accurate (false positives happen).

Strategy 2: Tricky Star Chasing

⏰ Time needed: Around 40 minutes
😟 Mood: “Oh no, I’m behind on this!”

In this method, you go after the big sites in your niche and look for their broken backlinks.

You’ll need Ahrefs for this.

Let’s say you’re in the health niche. Go to Ahrefs’ Site Explorer, search for a popular site like EverydayHealth, and click on Broken Backlinks.

Boom—you’ll see thousands of broken links.

Instead of checking each one manually (which is painful), do this:

👀 Click Best by Links
👀 Filter by 404 Not Found
👀 Sort by referring domains

Now you’re looking at high-value broken pages you can recreate and pitch.

✅ Why it works:

• Super fast.
• Great for broad topics like “health,” “fitness,” or “tech.”

❌ Downsides:

• Harder to find links for very niche topics.
• Ahrefs isn’t free.

We call it “Star Chasing” because you’re tracking big-name sites and hoping to catch them slipping.

Also Read: How can Local Citations Boost Off‑Page SEO?

Strategy 3: Meticulous Hell Exploring

⏰ Time needed: …let’s not talk about it
😩 Mood: “I’ve hit rock bottom.”

This one’s for when you’re desperate but determined.

Instead of looking at incoming broken links, check outgoing ones from major sites. Still using Ahrefs, go to Outgoing Links > Broken Links.

You’ll see what pages these sites are linking out to that are now dead.

Export the list and plug them into Ahrefs’ Batch Analysis Tool (200 at a time). That will show you which broken pages have the most backlinks.

✅ Why it works:

• Great for finding under-the-radar broken links.
• You get backlink-rich targets.

❌ Downsides:

• A lot of filtering through junk (like affiliate links and irrelevant stuff).
• Takes patience and time.

Recreate the Dead Content

Once you find a good broken link, you’ll want to rebuild the content on your own blog.

Use the Wayback Machine to see what the original page looked like. That way, you know what kind of content to create.

You’ve got two options:

1️⃣ Copy the page (lazy mode) – Just replicate the old page and add a note. We don’t recommend this. It borders on plagiarism.

2️⃣ Create a better version (smart mode) – Write something new and better, with updated stats, improved structure, and fresh visuals.

This not only helps with SEO—it also makes your pitch more convincing.

Also Read: How do Online Directories Boost SEO?

Time to Reach Out

Now that your content is ready, it’s outreach time.

But here’s the deal: generic mass emails won’t get you far. Webmasters see them all the time.

We’ve had great success using a personalized outreach approach, and here’s what works for us:

✍️ Subject Lines that Stand Out
We personalize every subject line—mentioning the webmaster’s name, something they’ve recently posted, or asking a specific question.

🔍 Do Your Research
Before sending anything, check out their site. Know who they are and what kind of content they publish. This makes your email relevant and builds trust.

Want to see a few outreach templates or examples that actually work? Just let me know—I’ve got some you can swipe.