Do external links affect my SEO?

Yes. Linking out to high-quality, relevant external resources is seen as a positive quality signal by Google. However, links to spammy or low-quality sites can harm your page's perceived quality.

Should external links be nofollow?

Use nofollow for paid, sponsored, or affiliate links as required by Google's guidelines. Editorial links to genuinely useful resources should be followed (dofollow) — they demonstrate trust in the resource.

How do broken external links affect users?

Broken external links lead users to error pages when they click through, creating a poor user experience. This increases bounce rates and reduces time-on-site, indirectly affecting SEO.

What is a redirect chain?

A redirect chain occurs when a URL redirects to another URL, which then redirects again (e.g., A → B → C). Chains waste crawl budget and dilute link equity — ideally, links should point directly to the final URL.

How often should I audit external links?

Audit external links quarterly or after publishing new content. External sites change often — resources move, domains expire, and content gets deleted. Regular audits keep your outbound links fresh.

On Page Seo

Free

External Link Checker

Analyze all external links on a page — nofollow status, dofollow links, and grouped by target domain.

Analyze external links and their nofollow/dofollow status.

Full implementation coming soon. The infrastructure is ready — this tool fetches the URL server-side and parses the HTML.

Page URL

What is External Link Checker?

The External Link Checker audits all outbound links on a webpage — links pointing to external domains. It tests each link's HTTP status, detects broken links, identifies redirect chains, and flags potentially problematic destinations that could harm your site's SEO reputation.

External links (outbound links) to high-quality, relevant sources signal to Google that your content is well-researched and trustworthy. However, links to low-quality, spammy, or broken pages can negatively affect your site's perceived quality. Managing your external link profile is an important but often neglected on-page SEO task.

Why Use External Link Checker?

A single broken outbound link to a resource you're citing frustrates users and undermines your content's credibility. Links to low-quality or penalised sites can associate your content with spam signals. Regular external link audits keep your outbound link profile clean, authoritative, and user-friendly.

Key Features of External Link Checker

✓Lists all external links with their destination domains
✓Tests each external link for 404, redirect, and server errors
✓Identifies redirect chains (301 → 301 → final URL)
✓Shows follow/nofollow status for each external link
✓Groups links by domain for quick quality assessment

How to Use External Link Checker

1
Enter the page URL
Paste the URL of the page you want to check into the input field.
2
Run the check
Click 'Check External Links'. The tool extracts and tests all outbound URLs.
3
Review link statuses
See which external links are working, broken, or redirecting.
4
Assess link quality
Review destination domains — are they authoritative, relevant sources?
5
Fix or update links
Replace broken links with live alternatives, update outdated URLs, and add nofollow to commercial links.