What does “Not found (404)” mean in Search Console, and when should you redirect?

What the error means

Google tried to fetch this URL and your site returned HTTP 404: the requested page was not found. That is the correct response for a page that genuinely no longer exists. It is a problem when the URL should still work, or when Google keeps finding old URLs that matter to visitors.

Why Google rejects it

A 404 often follows a deleted page, a changed product handle, a typo in an internal link, or an old URL left in a sitemap. Google may keep reporting a URL for a while after it is removed; the status alone does not mean your whole site has an indexing problem.

How to fix it

1. Open the exact URL in a private browser window and confirm the response. Check the final URL after any redirects; a branded error page can still return 200 instead of 404.
2. If the page should exist, restore it or correct the URL, slug, publishing status, or routing rule that broke it.
3. If it moved to a genuinely equivalent page, add a direct permanent redirect from the old URL to that replacement. Do not send unrelated missing URLs to the home page.
4. If the content is permanently gone and has no close replacement, keep a real 404 or 410 response. Remove the URL from the sitemap and fix internal links that still point to it.
5. Once the URL behaves correctly, inspect it in Search Console. Request indexing for a restored important URL or the new destination of a redirect; Google will recrawl other URLs over time.

Common causes

A product, collection, or page was removed

The URL may have served valid content for months and still be requested by Google after removal. Check whether the item was archived, deleted, unpublished, or intentionally retired. A 404 is appropriate if it is truly gone; it needs action when shoppers or searchers still have a reason to visit it.

The URL changed but links still use the old path

A product handle or page slug change creates an old URL that may return 404 when no redirect was created. Search Console can retain the URL from its earlier crawl, while internal links, email campaigns, or external sites continue to send visitors there. Compare the requested path with the current canonical URL.

A typo or stale link points to a missing route

One incorrect character in a navigation link, product recommendation, or sitemap entry is enough to create a not-found URL. If many 404s share one prefix or differ by a predictable suffix, look for a template or feed rule generating the bad link rather than treating each URL as a separate incident.

A valid page is unpublished or unavailable to anonymous visitors

The page may exist in an admin preview but not on the public site. Draft status, channel publication settings, a removed locale version, or a route that requires a session can make the requested URL unavailable to an ordinary visitor. Test without being logged in and on the exact hostname Google inspected.

An old URL remains in a sitemap

Sitemaps should describe canonical URLs that are meant to be available for crawling. If a deleted or renamed URL remains listed, it repeatedly advertises an address that returns 404. A Search Console report can continue to show the old result after the sitemap is corrected until Google recrawls it.

Fix it on your platform

On Shopify

1. Open the exact product or page in Shopify admin and confirm it is not archived, draft, or unpublished from Online Store. Preview is not enough; open the public URL in a private window.
2. If a product handle changed, check its search engine listing URL and create a redirect from the old path to the same product or a genuinely close replacement. Shopify documents redirects under Content > Menus > View URL Redirects.
3. Check Online Store navigation, collection links, product recommendations, and any theme section using the old path. Fix links at the source so visitors do not keep reaching the obsolete URL.
4. Open https://yourstore.example/sitemap.xml and confirm removed URLs are no longer listed after Shopify regenerates the sitemap.

On WooCommerce

1. Edit the product or page in WordPress and confirm its status is Published, its visibility is Public, and its permalink is the expected URL. WooCommerce's product editor distinguishes Published, Draft, and Private visibility.
2. If the permalink changed, add a permanent redirect through your redirect plugin or server configuration to the equivalent page; update internal links and regenerate the SEO plugin's sitemap.
3. If many URLs under one path fail, inspect permalink and rewrite settings and save the current permalink structure to refresh WordPress rewrite rules.
4. Test the public page after clearing page and CDN caches. Do not rely on an administrator preview that may bypass the public response.

On other platforms

1. Wix: confirm the page is published and not restricted to members, then inspect its current URL slug and any redirect configured after a slug change.
2. Squarespace or BigCommerce: check that the content is published to the public site and that its current URL path matches the path used in links and the sitemap.
3. For a custom site, inspect the route table and deployment version for the exact path; make the route return the page or a deliberate 404/410 response.
4. Across platforms, redirect only to an equivalent replacement, remove dead internal links, and refresh the sitemap from its source.

How to confirm it is fixed

1. Request the exact reported URL from a logged-out browser or external status check and confirm the response and final destination.
2. If restored, confirm it returns 200 with the intended page. If moved, confirm the old URL redirects directly to a relevant live replacement. If permanently gone, keep 404/410 and remove it from links and the sitemap.
3. Run Shipwork's bulk status check on affected URLs to review public HTTP status and redirect destinations.
4. Use Search Console URL Inspection's live test for an important restored URL or its new destination; request indexing when appropriate, then allow the Page indexing report to refresh.

A worked example

Hypothetical case: a home-goods store changes a ceramic mug product handle from /products/blue-cup to /products/blue-ceramic-mug during a catalog cleanup. The product page works from the new URL, but an old blog post and a collection card still link to the earlier path. Search Console reports Not found (404), and shoppers clicking the old guide link land on the theme's error page. The owner adds a direct redirect because the product is the same item, corrects the two internal links, and checks the sitemap no longer lists the old URL. The new URL returns 200 in a live test; the old one now resolves to the matching product.

Other errors like this