HTTP 200 that is an error page

Some sites show a “page not found” template but still answer HTTP 200. Search engines can keep that URL as a normal page. A real missing URL should answer 404 or 410.

What we look for

On an indexable HTTP 200 URL that is not the homepage, we read the title and the H1. This opens when that text is an error phrase, such as “page not found” or “siden findes ikke”, and the page has 80 words or fewer. Login, cart, and feed URLs are left alone. A longer article that mentions 404 is left alone. A page with no title stays on the missing-title check.

What to do

If the product is gone, return 404 or 410, and point useful internal links somewhere that still exists. If the URL should rank, replace the error template with that page’s own title, H1, and content.

Example

A retired guide should not answer 200 with the error template. Either remove it from the index, or give /guides/leather-care its own page:

<title>Page not found</title>
<h1>Siden findes ikke</h1>

<title>How to care for a leather tote</title>
<h1>How to care for a leather tote</h1>
<p>Wipe the leather with a dry cloth, then a little conditioner.</p>

Technical note

The check does not compare the title with the homepage title, and it does not treat every short page as an error. The row names whether the phrase was in the title or the H1, and the word count we saw.