How to use the redirect checker
- Paste the address where the journey starts: an old URL, a short link, or the plain
http://version of your domain. - Press “Trace redirects”. Each hop is requested separately, without a browser cache, so you see what a first-time visitor or a crawler sees.
- Read the hop list from top to bottom. Every line shows the status code, the address requested, where it pointed next and how long it took.
- Check the findings below the list, then copy the chain into a ticket for whoever manages the server rules.
How the chain is traced
Browsers follow redirects silently, which hides the extra round trips. This tool sets the request to stop at every redirect, reads the Location header, resolves it against the current address, checks that the new target is a public site, and only then requests it. The trace ends at the first answer that is not a redirect, after 10 hops, when an address repeats, or when 8 seconds have passed.
| Code | Meaning | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| 301 | Moved Permanently | Permanent moves; browsers may switch a POST to GET |
| 308 | Permanent Redirect | Permanent moves that must keep the request method |
| 302 | Found | Short-term moves, such as a sale page |
| 303 | See Other | Sending a form submission on to a result page |
| 307 | Temporary Redirect | Short-term moves that must keep the method |
Worked example
Take a site whose canonical address is the www version over HTTPS, and enter http://example.com. The first hop answers 301 in 41 ms and points to https://example.com/. The second answers 301 in 63 ms and points to https://www.example.com/, which returns 200 OK in 120 ms. That is 2 redirects and 224 ms in total. The checker flags the chain: one server rule that sends http://example.com straight to https://www.example.com/ would save the middle hop for every visitor who types the short address.
What the findings mean
- Redirect loop: two rules send visitors back and forth, often a CDN forcing HTTPS while the server forces HTTP. Browsers show “too many redirects”.
- Several hops: each one costs a full request, which is slow on mobile networks. Point every old address directly at the final URL.
- Temporary code for a permanent move: 302 and 307 tell search engines the old address may come back, so they can keep it in the index longer. Use 301 or 308 for HTTPS, domain and URL-structure changes.
- HTTPS downgrade: a secure page that sends visitors to an http:// address exposes them to interception. It usually comes from a hard-coded old URL in a plugin or a rule.
- www switching: going from non-www to www and back again doubles the hops and confuses canonical signals. Choose one host and use it everywhere.
The checker reads HTTP redirects only. A page that moves visitors with a meta refresh tag or JavaScript returns 200 here, because those redirects happen after the page has loaded in a browser.