Soft 404
A page that returns a success code but looks like an error or an empty page. Google does not index it.
Reviewed by Alexander Yarovenko · Updated: 2026-10-04
A soft 404 is a page that answers with a success status code (2xx) but whose content looks like an error or an empty page, for example “product not found” with HTTP 200. Search Console reports it as a soft 404 and Google does not index it. The server says “fine” while the page says “nothing here”.
What it is and where the boundary lies
A soft 404 is a mismatch between the status code and the content. A normal 404 or 410 is honest: the server says the page does not exist. A soft 404 sends a success code with a not-found message, an empty template or a page with almost nothing on it. Google decides this from the content, so a page can be flagged even though your server never reported an error.
How it differs from similar terms
| Term | Status code | What the page shows |
|---|---|---|
| Soft 404 | 200 | an error message or an empty page |
| 404 error | 404 | a not-found page, honestly reported |
| 410 Gone | 410 | a page removed on purpose |
| 301 redirect | 301 | the visitor is sent to another URL |
Why it matters
Google does not index pages flagged as soft 404, so such pages cannot appear in results. If the flagged page was meant to exist, that is lost visibility. If it was a missing page, the damage is smaller but the signal is muddy: a crawler keeps receiving a success code for something that is not there.
Typical causes
- Not-found pages with status 200: a template that prints “not found” without setting 404.
- Empty listings: category or search pages with no products or results.
- Thin placeholder pages: a page with a heading and nothing else.
- Scripts that fail: a page whose content loads by script and shows an error to the crawler (JavaScript SEO).
- Everything redirected to the home page: removed pages sent to a page that does not match them.
How to fix it
- Open the URL in the URL Inspection tool and see what Google received (URL Inspection tool).
- If the page is truly gone, return 404, or 410 if it was removed on purpose.
- If another page replaces it, use a redirect to a relevant page, not to the home page.
- If the page should exist, make sure it returns real content and the data loads without errors.
- For empty listings, decide whether the page should exist at all when it has no items.
- Fix the template, not only single URLs, if many pages share the cause.
Practical example
| URL type | What it returned | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| discontinued product | 200 with “not available” | 301 to the closest category, or 404 if none |
| search with no results | 200 with an empty list | keep out of the index, or return 404 for empty results |
| deleted article | 200 with a short apology | 410, or 301 to a replacement |
| live product page | 200, but price and text load by script and fail | fix the script so the content renders |
Three pages need a status code change; only the fourth needs a content fix, so the first decision is always “should this page exist”.
Common mistakes
- Redirecting every missing page to the home page: Google advises a relevant page instead.
- Making the page longer to “fix” a page that should be gone: the answer is a 404 or 410.
- Using noindex instead of the right status: it hides the page but leaves the mismatch.
- Fixing single URLs when a template causes it: the same status will return for new pages.
How to validate the result
Check the status code of a fixed URL in the URL Inspection tool or the browser network panel, then look at the Page indexing report after Google has recrawled. The number of URLs in the Soft 404 group should fall; if a live page stays in it, inspect what the crawler actually received.
More questions
Does a soft 404 hurt the whole site?
Google does not document a site-wide penalty. The flagged pages are not indexed.
Should I use 404 or 410?
Both tell Google the page is gone; use 410 when the removal is deliberate and permanent.
Can a short page be a soft 404?
Yes, if its content looks like an empty or error page to Google. Length alone is not a rule.
Next practical step
List the URLs in the Soft 404 group, inspect one per template and decide “exists or not” for each. The technical indexing audit turns that into a queue.
Related concepts
- 404 error — the honest not-found response.
- 301 redirect — sending visitors to a replacement.
- Index coverage — the report where the status appears.
- Thin content — pages with little value, sometimes confused with soft 404.