Broken link building is the rare tactic where you do the linker a favor: you find a dead page they still point to, offer a working replacement, and earn a link by being useful. The tool’s job is to surface those dead pages—ideally the ones with the most referring domains—fast. Our top pick is Ahrefs, with an SR Score of 90, for the Broken Backlinks report backed by a fresh crawl. Screaming Frog (86) is the best-value desktop crawler, and the free Check My Links (80) extension covers quick page-level checks.
The ranking
| Rank | Tool | Best for | Entry price | SR Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ahrefs | Broken backlinks at scale | Starter ~$129/mo | 90 |
| 2 | Screaming Frog | Crawling for broken links | £199/yr (~$259) | 86 |
| 3 | Check My Links | Free page-level checks | Free | 80 |
| 4 | Semrush | Broken links inside a suite | Pro $139.95/mo | 84 |
| 5 | Majestic | Quality context on dead links | Lite $49.99/mo | 81 |
| 6 | Ahrefs Webmaster Tools | Free checks on your own site | Free (verified) | 78 |
| 7 | Google Search Console | Free 404/coverage data | Free | 72 |
Methodology
The Tool Score v2026 rubric weights five criteria summing to 100:
- Broken-link discovery (30) — how reliably it finds dead pages, especially competitor ones.
- Prospect data & context (25) — referring-domain counts and authority on each broken page.
- Value for money (20) — coverage and limits at a realistic plan.
- Workflow & exports (15) — filtering, exports into outreach tools, repeatability.
- Transparency (10) — published pricing and honest limits.
Discovery and prospect context lead because the win is finding dead pages with many quality referring domains. Re-weight toward value and Screaming Frog or the free tools climb.
Ahrefs
Ahrefs is purpose-built for this: the Broken Backlinks report on any domain shows dead pages sorted by referring domains, and Site Explorer reveals competitors’ 404s with their full link profiles. Its fresh crawl catches recently broken pages early. Starter ~$129/month, Standard ~$249/month.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Broken-link discovery | 29/30 |
| Prospect data & context | 24/25 |
| Value for money | 15/20 |
| Workflow & exports | 13/15 |
| Transparency | 10/10 |
Trade-off: credit limits on lower tiers; no built-in outreach sender.
Screaming Frog
The SEO Spider crawls a site and reports broken internal and external links in detail. The free version handles up to 500 URLs; the paid license is £199/year (about $259). Ideal for crawling resource pages and competitor sites to map dead outbound links.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Broken-link discovery | 26/30 |
| Prospect data & context | 18/25 |
| Value for money | 19/20 |
| Workflow & exports | 14/15 |
| Transparency | 10/10 |
Trade-off: no backlink index—it finds dead links on pages you crawl, not who links to a dead page.
Check My Links
A free Chrome extension that highlights broken links on any page in red as you browse. Perfect for vetting a resource page before pitching. Entirely manual and page-by-page, with no data layer.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Broken-link discovery | 24/30 |
| Prospect data & context | 14/25 |
| Value for money | 20/20 |
| Workflow & exports | 8/15 |
| Transparency | 9/10 |
Trade-off: one page at a time; doesn’t scale.
Semrush
Semrush’s Backlink Analytics and Site Audit surface broken links, and Bulk Analysis helps compare dead pages across competitors. Pro is $139.95/month. Capable, with the largest raw index, but broken-link discovery is a feature rather than a focused report.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Broken-link discovery | 24/30 |
| Prospect data & context | 22/25 |
| Value for money | 16/20 |
| Workflow & exports | 13/15 |
| Transparency | 10/10 |
Trade-off: less direct than Ahrefs’ dedicated Broken Backlinks view.
Majestic
Majestic shows referring domains to a dead page and adds Trust Flow context to judge whether reclaiming a given broken link is worth it. Lite is $49.99/month. Strong quality signals; the workflow for broken-link discovery is more manual than Ahrefs.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Broken-link discovery | 22/30 |
| Prospect data & context | 22/25 |
| Value for money | 18/20 |
| Workflow & exports | 11/15 |
| Transparency | 9/10 |
Trade-off: dated UI; no purpose-built broken-backlinks report.
Ahrefs Webmaster Tools
Free for verified sites, AWT shows broken backlinks pointing at your own domain—the basis for reclaiming links to pages you’ve moved or deleted. Best free option for your own properties; no competitor data.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Broken-link discovery | 25/30 |
| Prospect data & context | 18/25 |
| Value for money | 19/20 |
| Workflow & exports | 9/15 |
| Transparency | 9/10 |
Trade-off: limited to sites you verify.
Google Search Console
GSC’s Pages report flags 404s and crawl errors on your site for free—useful for catching your own broken pages that still attract links. It’s diagnostic, not a prospecting tool, and shows nothing about competitors.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Broken-link discovery | 20/30 |
| Prospect data & context | 14/25 |
| Value for money | 20/20 |
| Workflow & exports | 9/15 |
| Transparency | 9/10 |
Trade-off: own-site only; minimal link context.
Verification
- Ahrefs — Broken Backlinks report and pricing verified on ahrefs.com.
- Screaming Frog — 500-URL free cap, £199/year license, and broken-link crawl verified on screamingfrog.co.uk.
- Check My Links — free Chrome extension verified via the Chrome Web Store.
- Semrush — Backlink Analytics/Site Audit and pricing verified on semrush.com.
- Majestic — referring-domain and Trust Flow context and pricing verified on majestic.com.
- Ahrefs Webmaster Tools — free-for-verified broken-backlinks data verified on ahrefs.com.
- Google Search Console — free 404/coverage reporting verified via Google documentation.
Related rankings
- Best Backlink Checker Tools 2026: 6 Indexes Scored
- Best Backlink Monitoring Tools 2026: 6 Scored
- Best Link Building Tools 2026: 7 Platforms Scored
- Best Link Building Tools for Agencies 2026
Frequently asked questions
- What is broken link building?
- You find a dead page (404) that other sites still link to, create or identify equivalent content, then ask those linking sites to swap the broken link for your working one. It's a legitimate, value-add tactic because you're fixing the linker's broken reference.
- What is the best broken link building tool in 2026?
- Ahrefs tops our scoring because its Broken Backlinks report and fresh index quickly show dead pages with the most referring domains. Screaming Frog is the best-value desktop crawler, and the free Check My Links extension handles page-level checks.
- Can I find broken links for free?
- Yes, partially. Screaming Frog's free version crawls up to 500 URLs, the Check My Links extension flags dead links on any page, and Ahrefs Webmaster Tools shows broken backlinks on sites you verify. For competitor analysis at scale, a paid index helps.
- Does broken link building still work?
- Yes, when done well. It's slower than buying links but earns editorial links that survive algorithm updates. The key is offering a genuinely equivalent replacement, not just any page, and pitching the linking site a real favor.