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Redirect Checker
The redirect checker follows the complete redirect chain of any URL and displays each hop with its HTTP status code and Location header. It shows whether redirects are permanent (301, 308) or temporary (302, 307), reveals any intermediate tracking URLs, and identifies the final destination. This is essential for SEO audits, debugging broken redirect chains, and verifying that URL migrations are configured correctly.
What is the Redirect Checker?
The redirect checker is a tool that makes an HTTP request to a URL and follows all redirects automatically, recording each step in the chain. For each hop it records the URL, the HTTP status code, the Location header target, and optionally the response headers. A redirect chain may pass through CDN nodes, HTTP-to-HTTPS upgrades, www-to-non-www normalizations, campaign tracking parameters, and finally the destination page. Seeing the full chain helps diagnose redirect loops, unnecessary hops, and misconfigured rules.
How does it work?
The tool makes a server-side HTTP GET request to the input URL without following redirects automatically. Instead, it reads the Location header from each 3xx response and issues a new request to that URL, repeating until it receives a non-redirect response or reaches a maximum hop limit. Each step is recorded with its status code and URL. The tool also reports the total number of redirects and whether any redirect loop was detected.
Typical Use Cases
- Verifying that an old domain migration uses 301 redirects (not 302) for SEO equity transfer
- Debugging a redirect loop that results in an ERR_TOO_MANY_REDIRECTS browser error
- Inspecting affiliate or tracking link chains to see the final destination
- Confirming that HTTP-to-HTTPS and www-to-non-www redirects are configured in the correct order
Step-by-step Guide
- Step 1: Enter the URL you want to check.
- Step 2: Click Check to follow the redirect chain.
- Step 3: Review each hop with its status code and Location header.
- Step 4: Confirm the final destination URL is correct.
Example
Input
http://www.example.com
Output
301 → https://www.example.com → 301 → https://example.com → 200 OK
Tips & Notes
- Each additional redirect hop adds latency — aim for a single redirect from the old URL to the final destination.
- Use 301 for permanent redirects (SEO-safe) and 302 only for truly temporary situations.
- A redirect chain with mixed 301 and 302 hops may not fully transfer SEO value — ensure all permanent hops use 301 or 308.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between 301 and 308?
Both indicate permanent redirects, but 301 allows the browser to change the request method from POST to GET, while 308 preserves the original method. For form submissions that need to stay as POST after a redirect, use 308.
Why does the redirect chain look different in the browser vs this tool?
Browsers may cache redirects, apply conditional logic based on cookies or headers, or be subject to HSTS preloading that forces HTTPS before the first request. The redirect checker performs a fresh server-side request without cookies or browser cache.
Redirect Checker
Trace HTTP redirects and display the complete redirect chain with status codes.
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