Why can't I find the link Siteimprove is referencing?

In some cases, we indicate that a link exists on your page but it's not easily visible within the Page report.

This article helps explain why this happens and gives some tips and tricks for identifying the link. 

Reasons why a link might not be visible

The link only displays at a certain browser width

Many responsive sites contain links for both mobile and desktop versions. The mobile version can be hidden until a mobile browser id detected. Try to resize your browser window to see if the link appears.

The link was not intended to be visible

Links in your source code may not be visible as they were not intended to be interactive. For example, these may be intended for search engines, robots, or other purposes. If the Siteimprove crawler can find these links then search engines and other crawlers can also find them.

Broken CSS or Javascript files

Broken CSS or Javascript files (.css and .js) will highlight the full page on the Page report as the link is not visible on the page. In this case, we suggest you use the"Show HTML" feature on the Page report to help identify the link. See the tips below for further information on this.

The link is on a menu or similar element

The link may be part of a menu or similar interactive element and therefore not immediately visible on the page report. In these cases try enabling and disabling JavaScript and/or CSS using the toggle buttons at the top of the page report.

Tips for finding the missing link

Switch the Page Report into "Show HTML" mode by clicking on the icon at the top of the Page Report. This will often show you where the link resides in the HTML, and reveal the link. 

If after switching to "Show HTML" the link is still not highlighting, try using the "Find" feature (Ctrl+F) in your browser to locate the link.

When searching for the link you may have more success performing a partial match on the link. 

For example, if trying to find,

 http://www.example.com/news/article/2015/02/news.html 

perform a search for "news.html".

You should also try enabling and disabling JavaScript and/or CSS using the toggle buttons at the top of the page report.

In some situations, it may require your developers to explain why the link is not visible, or you can always submit a support ticket and we can review it with you.

Also, see the related article Why is Siteimprove reporting a false positive broken link?