Soft 404

Also called: soft 404 error

Updated November 9, 2026

A soft 404 is a page that tells visitors it doesn't exist, or shows almost nothing, while the server reports that it loaded fine. Google treats it as an error page and leaves it out of search.

Why it matters on a small site

Search Console lists these pages in the Page indexing report, with the reason Soft 404. It is Google's judgement based on what the page shows, not a code your server sent, and it covers two different problems.

Either a page is really gone but your site still answers that all is well, like a deleted post showing a friendly not found message. Or a real page looked empty or broken to Google, because a script, a database connection or other files didn't load. An empty internal search results page is another example Google gives.

How to check and fix it

Our guide to why a site is not on Google covers the other reasons in the same report.

In Search Console, open the Page indexing report and click the Soft 404 row to see example addresses.
Paste one into URL Inspection, click Test live URL, then View tested page to see what Google got.
If the page is gone and has no replacement, make it return a real 404 or 410 code. Your friendly not found page can stay, as long as the code behind it is 404.
If the content moved to another address, set up a 301 redirect to it.
If the page is real but looked empty to Google, fix what didn't load, then click Validate fix in the report.

Mistakes to avoid

Redirecting every missing page to the home page. Google suggests a 301 when the content has moved or has a clear replacement; when it is simply gone, the answer is a 404.
Chasing every real 404. Google says a 404 is not necessarily a problem when a page was removed for good, and advises fixing those you link to yourself or list in your sitemap.

Often confused with

301 redirect
A soft 404 is a label Google gives a page that looks like an error while claiming to work. A 301 redirect is an answer you set on purpose to send people and Google to a new address, and it is one of the fixes for a soft 404.

Frequently asked questions

›Is a soft 404 bad for my site?

It matters for the pages you want on Google, because pages flagged as soft 404 are excluded from search. For pages that are really gone, returning a proper 404 is the correct answer.

›What is the difference between a 404 and a soft 404?

A 404 is a code your server sends to say a page doesn't exist. A soft 404 is Google's label for a page that looks like an error but was sent with a success code.

Sources

Google Search Central Troubleshoot Google Search Crawling Errors
Search Console Help Page indexing report