When to Use ValidateLinks

June 27, 2026 · ValidateLinks

Choose between single link validation, Page Scan, paste HTML, and attribution debugging based on your affiliate QA scenario.

ValidateLinks helps affiliate publishers and performance marketers verify redirect chains before links go live or when conversions stop attributing. Use the right tool for your scenario.

When should I validate a single link?#

Use the link validator (Links tab) when you have one URL to check:

• A new campaign link before you publish it in content or ads
• A short URL or deep link where you cannot see the full path
• A specific link that is underperforming or not attributing conversions
• Any link where you need hop-by-hop status codes, latency, and query param deltas

Paste the full URL, click Validate Link, and review each redirect hop. Share the result URL with your team without re-running the check. See How to validate a link for step-by-step instructions.

When should I run a Page Scan?#

Use Page Scan when you need to audit every outbound link on a page:

• Product roundups, comparison tables, or "best of" lists with dozens of affiliate links
• Pre-launch QA on a high-traffic article or landing page
• Periodic audits to catch broken, zombie, or leaking links that crept in over time
• Verifying that every affiliate link on the page uses the intended program and aggregator

Enter the page URL or paste HTML if the site blocks crawlers. You get one report with broken, blocked, zombie, and attribution-leak counts. See Page Scan validation.

When should I debug attribution or conversion loss?#

Use the link validator plus these guides when clicks look fine but conversions disappear:

• Double redirection and conversion loss — stacked tracking hops, lost query params, moving to postbacks
• Affiliate links and why validation matters — canonical attribution path and direct-linking risks
• Link validation details — parameter persistence warnings and status code interpretation

Look for "Program query params have been lost" warnings and extra program hops in the chain.

When should I paste HTML instead of a URL?#

Use Paste HTML when Page Scan cannot fetch the page:

• Paywalled or bot-blocked publisher sites (e.g. some Forbes-style pages)
• Pages that return 403 to automated requests but work in your browser

Load the page in your browser, copy the page source (View Source), paste it into Page Scan, and validate every link without our servers requesting the page.

Summary#

For terminology, see the affiliate link glossary.