Footer links open — then 404.

Several “404” bugs look alike. They do not share a fix. This page is only when a link rendered in the theme footer returns Shopify 404 — menu item, policy, collection, page, blog, or custom URL in the footer block. Collection pagination “page 2+” 404 is shopify-pagination-404.

Soft-check shopify-breadcrumb-wrong when the breadcrumb trail is wrong (not footer menus), and soft-link shopify-soft-404-sold-out when sold-out / deleted product URLs are the leftover gap. Soft-link shopify-megamenu-not-opening when desktop header mega menu — not footer — is broken.

Open the live footer. Soft-check Online Store → Navigation for the menu assigned to the footer section: each item’s link type and whether the target still exists and is published to Online Store. Soft-check deleted / unpublished pages, collections, and blog posts still listed in the menu. Soft-check Markets / locale prefixes so a primary-market path is not hardcoded into another market’s footer. Soft-check theme footer blocks that paste raw http URLs instead of menu references. Soft-check third-party footer / mega-menu apps. Soft-check Current theme vs draft.

Capture: screenshot of the dead footer link, the exact URL that 404s, Navigation menu JSON/export or admin item list, Markets locale, theme footer section settings, and App embeds on Current.

Update or remove dead menu items. Republish or recreate pages / collections, or point links at live URLs. Fix Markets-aware paths. Replace drifting hardcoded footer-block URLs with Navigation menu links. Disable conflicting footer apps one at a time. Publish Current, hard-refresh on desktop and phone.

Honest retest: click every footer link → expect 200 or an intentional redirect, not theme 404. Soft-link shopify-pagination-404 when only collection “next” pages 404. Soft-link shopify-breadcrumb-wrong when only breadcrumbs are wrong. Soft-link shopify-predictive-search-blank when search — not footer — is the leftover gap.

Collection pagination returning 404 is shopify-pagination-404. Breadcrumb trail wrong is shopify-breadcrumb-wrong. Sold-out / deleted product soft-404 is shopify-soft-404-sold-out.

The only honest test for this page: a URL rendered in the theme footer returns Shopify 404. Anything else is a different product.

Stay DIY if you can spend one afternoon on the list above: prove Navigation vs deleted resource vs Markets vs theme footer vs app, repair, retest. That is the whole playbook. No agency required. Short answers also live on the merchant FAQ. Related pages: pagination 404, breadcrumb wrong, soft-404 sold-out.

Pay for help when the work is not the dead footer link itself — it is connecting the stack you already have so storefront / navigation / 404 exceptions land in a channel you already check, and the live store is one workflow instead of a spreadsheet plus a Slack bot you forgot. That is the Latch AI Ops install.

What $997 USD one-time buys: lead capture on the live store, ops alerts in a channel you already check, and a checkout-ready workflow. 72 hours after collaborator access, not after payment. One live Shopify store. Access plus a delivery thread. Store URL collected at checkout. Not a SaaS seat, not a theme rebuild retainer, not a conversion guarantee, not a brand or theme job.

Other shops' public ranges, not testimonials: a checkout / ops install typically runs $500–$2,500. A full ops consulting block typically runs $2,000–$5,000. $997 is the cheap end of that work, sold as a 72-hour install of three systems — not as an earnings number or conversion-lift claim.

What it does not buy: more orders, recovered revenue, a forever footer-link guarantee, or a case study. Latch AI Ops has not published customer proof because there are no customers yet. You are buying the install.

Checkout is on Whop. Operator is Nico. United States offer. You can revoke collaborator access after handoff. We do not take owner passwords.