# MD042 - No Empty Links
## Description
This rule ensures that Markdown links have both a link text and a URL. Empty links can confuse readers
and cause issues with navigation and accessibility.
Empty links can occur when either the link text or the URL is missing.
## Examples
### Valid
```markdown
[Link text](https://example.com)
[Reference link][reference]
[reference]: https://example.com
```
### Invalid
```markdown
[](https://example.com)
[Empty URL]()
[ ](https://example.com)
[Visit our website]()
```
### Fixed
```markdown
[Link text](https://example.com)
[Link text](https://example.com)
[Link text](https://example.com)
[Visit our website](https://example.com)
```
## Special Cases
- This rule applies to both inline links and reference links
- It checks for empty link text (square brackets with nothing inside)
- It checks for empty URLs (parentheses with nothing inside)
- The rule does not apply to image links (those starting with !)
- Spaces inside link text are not considered empty
## Related Rules
- [MD034 - No bare URLs](md034.md): Ensures URLs are properly formatted
- [MD039 - No space inside link text](md039.md): Ensures proper formatting of link text
- [MD051 - Link fragments should be valid](md051.md): Ensures link fragments point to valid headings