Dead Link Checker vs Dr. Link Check (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Dead Link Checker grades higher than Dr. Link Check: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
Dead Link Checker grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Dead Link Checker
Free online broken link checker with scheduled scans by subscription
Dr. Link Check
Online broken link checker with blacklist and scheduled checks
Which one is for you
Pick Dead Link Checker if
- Fits if you want a quick free broken-link check of a small site
- Works for agencies that need scheduled link scans across many client sites
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free, with 2,000 links a scan and no schedule
- Skip it if your links are built with JavaScript, which the crawler doesn't run
- Watch out: subdomains count as separate websites, and pages more than 10 links deep are missed
- Watch out: billing goes through PayPal, though you can pay by card without a PayPal account
Pick Dr. Link Check if
- Fits if you want broken links found and emailed to you on a schedule
- Works for checking outbound links against malware and phishing lists
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if your site builds links with JavaScript, which the crawler doesn't run
- Tight if you stay free, at 1,500 links on 2 sites, run by hand with no export
- Watch out: CSV or PDF export and soft-error checks start on Professional at $49, as do login checks, set up on request
- Pricey if your site has lots of resources, as prices rise per 10,000 links and every unique file counts
- Tight if you check several sites, as only one check runs at a time per account
How we grade them
| 2.4GPADead Link CheckerFair | 2.2GPADr. Link CheckFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BAuto Checker Standard is $9.95 a month for scheduled scans of up to 5 sites and 50,000 links, inside this category's cheapest quarter of $13. Paying $110 a year saves 7.5%. | BStandard is $13 a month for 10,000 links on 5 websites, right at the top of this category's cheapest quarter, $13. Prices rise with the link limit, and Premium is $159 for 200,000. |
| Free plan and trial | CSite Checker and Multi Check are free, but each scan stops at 2,000 links and nothing runs on a schedule. A mid-sized site goes past that. | CThe free Lite plan checks up to 1,500 links on each of 2 websites, by hand, broken links only, with no scheduling, rules or export. Every image and file counts toward the 1,500. |
| Features | CManual scans of one site or a list of sites, and scheduled daily, weekly or monthly scans with emailed reports. It does that job fully, but it's a smaller job, with no JavaScript and a 10-step depth limit. | CChecks links, images and other resources for errors, slow responses and bad SSL, against Google Safe Browsing and PhishTank, on a schedule. It does link checking fully, but that's a smaller job, and the crawler doesn't run JavaScript. |
| Ease of use | BNo rating on record. The Site Checker runs in your browser with no install and no sign-up; only Multi Check needs a free account. | CNo rating on record. You add each website to an account and set rules and schedules, and only one check runs at a time. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, with no app, API or integrations on record. | CWeb only, with email reports and no API on record. |
| Best for | free one-off broken-link scans | scheduled broken-link checks |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Dead Link Checker and Dr. Link Check. How we grade
Price against what you get
Dead Link Checker starts at $9.95 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Dr. Link Check starts at $13 a month and scores 2.0.
Dead Link Checker scores higher and starts $3.05 a month lower. Of the other technical SEO tools on the chart, 5 score higher than Dead Link Checker for less, and 18 score higher than Dr. Link Check for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
At a glance
| Dead Link Checker | Dr. Link Check | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $9.95 per month for up to 5 sites, billed monthly | $13 per month for 10,000 links, billed monthly |
| Free plan | Site Checker and Multi Check are free, up to 2,000 links per scan; Multi Check needs a free account and emails the report. | Lite plan: one-time checks of up to 1,500 links on each of 2 websites, broken link checks only, with no scheduling, rules or export. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | DLC Websites | Wulfsoft |
| Price read from | deadlinkchecker.com | drlinkcheck.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Dead Link Checker
- Free scans stop at 2,000 links; larger scans need an Auto Checker subscription.
- The crawler does not run JavaScript and follows links at most 10 steps deep, so pages with no incoming links are missed.
- Subdomains count as separate websites, so their pages are not crawled as part of the main site.
- Paid plans bill through PayPal; a card can be used without a PayPal account.
Dr. Link Check
- The crawler does not run JavaScript, so links created by scripts are missed unless you start from the XML sitemap.
- Prices rise with the link limit, billed per 10,000 links; each website counts unique resources, not just pages.
- Export to CSV or PDF and soft error checks start at Professional; checking behind a login is set up by request on Professional and up.
- Only one check runs at a time per account, and payment is by card or PayPal only.
Key features
Dead Link Checker
- Site Checker
- Scans a whole website or a single page from your browser and lists each broken link with its status and source link text.
- Multi Check
- With a free account, scans a list of websites in one go and emails the report when it finishes.
- Auto Check scheduling
- Paid plans scan chosen sites daily, weekly or monthly at a set depth and email a report after each run, also kept online.
- Competitor link checks
- Any site can be scanned, so the vendor suggests it for finding broken links on competitors' sites for link building.
Dr. Link Check
- Whole-site link crawl
- Starts from one URL and checks internal links, outbound links, images, style sheets and other resources found in the HTML and CSS.
- Several checks per link
- Looks at URL format, server response time, error codes such as 404 and 500, and, on paid plans, SSL certificate validity.
- Malware and phishing blacklists
- Paid plans check outbound links against Google Safe Browsing, Professional adds PhishTank, and Premium two more lists.
- Soft error detection
- From Professional, flags pages that answer 200 OK but whose content shows an error or placeholder message.
- Scheduled checks and reports
- Runs checks monthly, biweekly, weekly or daily depending on plan, and emails a status report to chosen recipients.
- URL lists and rules
- Accepts up to 10,000 URLs to check in bulk, and lets you include or exclude URLs and limit crawl speed.
Plans
Dead Link Checker
Site Checker and Multi Check$0
Manual scans of one site, or of a list of sites with an emailed report after a free sign-up, up to 2,000 links.
Auto Checker Standard$9.95
per month for up to 5 sites, billed monthly
Scheduled daily, weekly or monthly scans of up to 5 websites and 50,000 links a month, with emailed reports. Or $110 a year.
Auto Checker Premium$39.95
per month for up to 100 sites, billed monthly
Scheduled scans of up to 100 websites and 500,000 links a month. Or $440 a year.
Auto Checker Professional$79.90
per month for up to 200 sites, billed monthly
Scheduled scans of up to 200 websites and 1,000,000 links a month. Or $880 a year.
Dr. Link Check
Lite$0
2 websites and 1,500 links each, broken link checks only, run one at a time by hand.
Standard$13
per month for 10,000 links, billed monthly
5 websites, Google Safe Browsing blacklist checks, SSL checks, include and exclude rules, and monthly or biweekly scheduled checks.
Professional$49
per month for 50,000 links, billed monthly
10 websites, soft error checks, PhishTank, weekly checks and CSV or PDF export. Can be set from 20,000 links; the price follows the limit.
Premium$159
per month for 200,000 links, billed monthly
15 websites, two more blacklists and daily checks. Can be set from 30,000 links; the price follows the limit.
Ways to pay less
Dead Link Checker
- Annual discount
Save up to 8% with annual payment
The subscription page lists a single yearly payment of $110 for Standard (7.5% off), and $440 and $880 for Premium and Professional (8% off).
Dr. Link Check
- Annual discount
One month free with yearly billing
Dr. Link Check's pricing page offers yearly billing with one month free compared with paying monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Dead Link Checker or Dr. Link Check?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Dead Link Checker is cheaper to start with: $9.95 a month, against $13 a month for Dr. Link Check. Dead Link Checker starts at $9.95 per month for up to 5 sites, billed monthly, and Dr. Link Check starts at $13 per month for 10,000 links, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Dead Link Checker or Dr. Link Check?
As of Oct 23, 2026, both Dead Link Checker and Dr. Link Check have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.