16 Best 404 Error Page Examples

In today's webdesign, there are many style of 404 pages on the internet. In this post, I am collecting some great examples of 404 pages design for inspiration. Checkout more examples after the jump.

Note: This gallery was first published in 2013. Some of the sites below have since been redesigned or shut down — those examples were removed. The remaining pages are still live.

Spongebob

404 Page from 6 Wunderkinder

Noupe

404 Page from Desall

404 Page from

Saaspose

Error Page from Path

Nice 404 page from The Vasa Museum

Simple 404 Page from A Feed Apart

Clever 404 Page with clear directions from Deliciously Creative

Whoops! Creative 404 Error Page Design from Deliciously Creative

The page cannot be found on Deaxon!

Silly But Useful 404 Error Page Web Design from Object Adjective

fore….oh….FORE!

404 Error Page with Clear Navigation for Easy User Response from Studio7Designs

BrightKite 404

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes a good 404 error page?

A good 404 page explains in plain language that the page cannot be found, then gives the visitor a clear way forward - a link back to the homepage, a search box, or links to popular pages. Personality and humor are a bonus, but only after the practical recovery options are covered. Keep the page lightweight so it loads even when the rest of the site is struggling.

Does a custom 404 page affect my SEO?

A custom 404 page itself does not hurt your rankings; search engines expect sites to have some broken links. What matters is that the page returns a proper 404 status code - never a 200 "OK" status - so search engines know the page is genuinely missing. You should also fix or redirect internal links that point to dead pages rather than letting them pile up.

Should I redirect 404 pages to my homepage?

Redirecting every missing page to the homepage is generally discouraged, because it confuses both visitors and search engines. If the content moved, set up a redirect to the closest matching page instead. Reserve your 404 page for URLs that truly have no replacement.

How do I create a custom 404 page?

On WordPress, you can add a custom 404 page by creating a 404.php template in your theme (use a child theme so updates do not erase it), or use a page-builder plugin. For static sites, name the file 404.html and upload it to your root directory - most hosts will serve it automatically. Test it by visiting a fake URL on your site.