Broken Image Links FAQ: Questions People Actually Ask

**What is broken image links, in plain terms?**
A broken image doesn't just look bad — on a product or article page it can be the single biggest trust signal working against you, since visitors read it as a site that isn't maintained.

**How often should this be checked?**
Regularly, not just once. Not checking image URLs on paginated or filtered category pages, where broken thumbnails are easy to miss during a manual review. Set a recurring reminder rather than trusting memory.

**What's the most common mistake here?**
Leaving `alt=""` on meaningful images purely out of habit — empty alt text should be reserved for genuinely decorative images only.

**Does this actually affect rankings, or is it just best practice?**
It's rarely a single ranking factor on its own, but it affects whether search engines and users can do what you actually need them to do — which shows up in rankings indirectly, often more than any one direct factor would.

**What's the fastest way to check this on an existing site?**
Image URL Checker — paste your URL in and it does the check directly, no setup.

Related: our guide to robots.txt file.

Everything in this guide runs directly in your browser — no signup, no install.