Crawl errors 2025: What they are & why they matter.

Crawl errors silently kill your rankings. Every broken link, server timeout, or blocked resource represents a missed opportunity for Google to discover and index your content.

Most site owners remain unaware of these issues until traffic declines. This guide covers what crawl errors are, why they matter, and exactly how to fix them.

What are crawl errors?

Crawl errors occur when search engine bots cannot access pages successfully. The bot encounters a failure, logs it, and moves on. Persistent failures may cause Google to stop attempting to crawl those URLs entirely.

There are two main types:

• Site-level errors – affect entire domains (DNS failures, server outages, robots.txt problems)
• URL-level errors – affect specific pages (404s, redirect loops, blocked resources)

Site-level errors require urgent attention since they can prevent Google from crawling any content on your domain.

Why crawl errors matter for SEO.

Every site has a crawl budget—the number of pages Google will crawl during a given timeframe. When Googlebot wastes resources on broken links and error pages, less capacity remains for your actual content.

Cumulative impacts include:

• Wasted crawl budget on dead ends instead of valuable pages
• Broken internal linking that disrupts link equity flow
• Poor user experience driving visitors away
• Delayed indexing of new content
• Negative ranking signals from poor site maintenance

How to find crawl errors.

Google Search Console (free, essential).

Navigate to Indexing → Pages to view:

• Errors – critical indexing blockers
• Valid with warnings – indexed but with issues
• Valid – successfully indexed
• Excluded – intentionally not indexed

Also check Settings → Crawl stats for host availability, DNS problems, and robots.txt fetch failures.

Crawling tools.

• Screaming Frog – industry standard, free tier covers 500 URLs
• Sitebulb – excellent visualizations and prioritized recommendations
• Ahrefs Site Audit – broader SEO context with backlink analysis

Conduct full site crawls monthly minimum; weekly is preferable for larger or frequently updated sites.

Common crawl errors and fixes.

1. 404 errors (page not found).

What it means: The URL no longer exists due to deletion, moved content without redirects, or incorrect links.

Solutions:

• Set up 301 redirects to new URLs if content moved
• Redirect to relevant alternative pages for deleted content
• Update or remove broken internal links
• Remove URLs from XML sitemaps

2. Soft 404s.

What it means: Pages return 200 (OK) status but appear to be error pages—thin content, "not found" text, or nearly empty.

Solutions:

• Add substantial, unique content to legitimate pages
• Return proper 404 or 410 status codes for pages that shouldn't exist
• Investigate template issues creating empty pages

3. Server errors (5xx).

What it means: Server failed to respond properly, either temporarily (overload, timeout) or persistently (misconfiguration, hosting issues).

Solutions:

• Review server logs to identify root causes
• Contact hosting providers for persistent errors
• Upgrade hosting if hitting resource limits
• Implement caching and CDN solutions to reduce server load
• Monitor uptime with UptimeRobot or Pingdom

4. Redirect errors.

What it means: Redirect chains (A → B → C), loops (A → B → A), or redirects to broken pages.

Solutions:

• Update chains to point directly to final destinations
• Break circular redirects by identifying the loop source
• Use 301 (permanent) redirects instead of 302 (temporary) unless genuinely temporary
• Use the Redirect Path Chrome extension to trace chains

5. Blocked by robots.txt.

What it means: robots.txt prevents Google from crawling certain URLs, sometimes unintentionally.

Solutions:

• Review /robots.txt for overly broad Disallow rules
• Ensure CSS, JavaScript, and images aren't blocked
• Use Search Console's robots.txt tester for specific URLs
• Be precise with paths and watch for case sensitivity

6. DNS errors.

What it means: Google cannot resolve domain names to IP addresses.

Solutions:

• Check DNS settings with your registrar
• Verify nameserver configuration
• Consider reliable DNS providers like Cloudflare if uptime is poor

7. Crawled but not indexed.

What it means: Google finds the page but chooses not to index it, often signaling content quality issues.

Solutions:

• Improve content quality and originality
• Add internal links from relevant pages
• Check for duplicate content issues
• Ensure pages have clear purpose and sufficient content
• Build external links to genuinely valuable pages

XML sitemap hygiene.

Sitemaps should contain only URLs that:

• Return 200 status codes
• Represent canonical versions (not duplicates)
• Aren't blocked by robots.txt or noindex
• Deserve indexing

Plugins like Yoast and Rank Math handle this automatically, though periodic verification is recommended. Submit sitemaps to both Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.

Mobile-first indexing considerations.

Google primarily indexes mobile versions of sites, requiring:

• Matching content across mobile and desktop versions
• Working internal links on mobile devices
• Structured data presence on mobile pages
• Mobile page speed affecting crawl efficiency

Test using Search Console's mobile usability report and Google's Mobile-Friendly Test.

Maintenance schedule.

• Weekly: Quick Search Console check for new errors
• Monthly: Full site crawl with Screaming Frog or Sitebulb
• Quarterly: Deep audit including redirect chains, orphan pages, crawl budget analysis
• After major site changes: Immediate crawl to catch issues early

Conclusion.

Crawl errors rank among the most fixable SEO problems. Unlike content quality or backlinks requiring extended development, most crawl errors resolve within an afternoon using proper tools.

Action steps:

1. Start with Search Console
2. Fix critical errors first (server issues, site-level problems)
3. Work systematically through URL-level errors
4. Establish basic monitoring for early issue detection

Small, consistent fixes compound into improved indexing speed, reliable rankings, and reduced worry.