A redirect sends anyone who visits one address on to another. Done well, it is invisible: an old link keeps working, the http version of a site moves people to the secure https version, and a renamed page keeps its visitors. Done badly, it slows every visit, confuses search engines or sends people in circles. The checker above follows a link one hop at a time and shows you every stop along the way, the type of each redirect and where the visitor finally lands.

How the Checker Works

When you enter an address, our server requests it the way a browser would, but with automatic redirects turned off. If the answer is a redirect, the checker records it, reads the address it points to and requests that address next. It repeats this until it reaches a page that loads, an error, a loop or a limit of ten hops.

For each hop you see the status code the server sent, what that code means, the address it came from and how long the server took to answer. If you enter a bare domain such as example.com, the checker starts with the plain http version, because that is what many visitors and old links still use, and it shows whether the site moves them to https.

How to Read Your Results

The top of the result shows the final destination and a short verdict. Below it, the chain lists every hop in order. The colored label on each hop tells you what kind of answer the server gave:

• Green 301 or 308: a permanent redirect, the right choice when a page or site has moved for good
• Amber 302, 303 or 307: a temporary redirect, meant for short-term moves such as a sale page or maintenance
• Green 200: the page loaded, which is where every chain should end
• Red 4xx or 5xx: an error, such as a missing page or a broken server

When something can be improved, a What to Fix box lists each problem in the order it matters, with the change to make. If the path is clean, the box says so.

301 vs 302 Redirects

The difference between a permanent and a temporary redirect is the most common thing people check. A 301 tells browsers and search engines that the old address has moved for good. Search engines replace the old address with the new one in their results and carry its ranking signals over to it. Browsers may also remember a 301 and skip the old address next time.

A 302 says the move is temporary and the old address will be back. Search engines may keep showing the old address and treat the new one as a stand-in. That is exactly right for a page that is down for a day, and exactly wrong for a site that has moved to a new domain. Google has said it may treat a 302 that stays in place for a long time like a 301, but there is no reason to leave it guessing. If a move is permanent, use a 301.

The 307 and 308 codes are newer versions of the same idea. A 307 is temporary and a 308 is permanent, and both promise that a form submission is sent on unchanged. For ordinary page moves, 301 and 302 remain the most widely used.

Redirect Chains

A chain is a redirect that leads to another redirect. A typical one runs from http to https, then from the bare domain to www, then from an old page address to a new one. Each hop costs a round trip to the server, which adds a small delay, and the delays add up on slow mobile connections.

Search engines follow chains, but not forever. Google says its crawler follows up to ten hops before it gives up on a page. Long chains also make it more likely that one link breaks when a site changes again. The fix is simple: point the first address straight at the final one, so every old link reaches the right page in a single step.

Redirect Loops

A loop happens when a redirect sends visitors back to an address they already passed through. The browser bounces between the two until it gives up and shows an error, usually saying the page redirected too many times. Nobody can reach the page, including search engines.

Loops almost always come from two rules that fight each other. One rule adds www and another removes it. Or the hosting company forces https while a CDN in front of the site forces http. The checker shows which addresses form the loop, which tells you which two settings to compare.

Common Redirect Problems

Beyond chains and loops, a few other problems come up again and again:

• A redirect to an error page: the old address redirects correctly, but the new page is missing, so visitors still hit a dead end
• No https redirect: the http version of a site loads on its own instead of moving visitors to the secure version
• Meta refresh redirects: the page loads first and then sends visitors on with a tag in its code, which is slower than a server redirect and less reliable for search engines
• Redirects to another domain: an expired or sold domain that now forwards to an unrelated site, which matters when you are about to buy or link to it

When to Use a Redirect

Use a permanent 301 redirect when you move a site to a new domain, switch from http to https, merge two pages into one, change a page’s address or pick one version of your domain, with or without www, as the main one. Every old address should point to the closest matching new page, not to the homepage, so visitors land on what they came for.

Use a temporary 302 redirect when the change will be undone, such as sending visitors to a holiday sale page for a week or to a maintenance notice during an update. When the temporary period ends, remove the redirect.

Redirects and Domain Names

Domain owners use redirects every day. A company that owns several versions of its name, such as the plural, a common misspelling and other extensions, usually points them all at its main site with permanent redirects. Before you buy a domain, it is worth checking where it currently sends visitors. A name that redirects to an active business may be part of that company’s brand, and one that redirects to a parking page is often for sale.

Why Your Browser May See Something Different

The checker requests each address from our server, with no cookies and a standard browser identity. Some sites redirect visitors based on their country, language, device or whether they are logged in, so you may see a different path in your own browser. If the result surprises you, check the same link in a private browser window, which also starts without cookies.

Your Checks Stay Private

We do not keep a record of the addresses you check or anything about who checked them. Each result is held for ten minutes so a repeated check loads quickly, then deleted. The checker only follows public web addresses and never requests addresses inside private networks.