Redirect Chain Checker

What this tool does

The Redirect Chain Checker follows a URL through every redirect until it reaches a page, and shows each hop: the status code, where it points, what it changes (http to https, www, trailing slash, path), its response headers and how long it took. Then it checks the chain for the problems that cost rankings and speed.

It works in four ways:

• One URL: follow one address hop by hop.
• http / www variants: check that http://, https://, with and without www all end on the same address in a single permanent redirect.
• List of URLs: check up to 50 URLs at once, each optionally with the URL it should end on. Use it to test a redirect map after a migration, and export the results as CSV.
• Paste curl output: read a chain from curl -sIL, for staging, intranet and VPN-only sites.

When to use it

• After a site migration or URL change, to confirm every old URL lands on the right new page with one 301.
• When setting up https or changing www, to check every variant of the address ends in one place.
• When a page drops out of search results, to find a loop, an error at the end of the chain or a temporary redirect.
• When tracking links lose their campaign data, to see where the query string is dropped.

How to use it

1. Pick a tab, or press Try an example.
2. Enter the address, domain or list. For a list, put the expected URL after each old one, separated by a space, tab, comma or →. Paths starting with / use the site address under the list.
3. Optionally change Visit as to see what phones or Googlebot get.
4. Read the chain on the left and the checks on the right. Open Response headers on any hop to see exactly what the server sent.

What it checks

Check	Why it matters
Redirect loop	Browsers show an error and the URL can’t be indexed.
More than one redirect	Each hop adds a round trip; crawlers may stop following.
Chain ends in 4xx or 5xx	Visitors and search engines land on an error.
Temporary redirect (302, 307) for a permanent change	http→https, www and trailing-slash moves should be 301 or 308 so signals pass to the new URL.
https → http	Visitors are sent to an insecure address.
Query string dropped	Campaign tags and click IDs are lost, so analytics can’t attribute visits.
No HSTS after an http → https redirect	Browsers repeat the insecure request on every visit.
Meta refresh or JavaScript redirect	Slower and less reliable than a server redirect.
Canonical points elsewhere	The final page says another URL is preferred, so redirect straight there.
noindex on the final page	The page where the chain ends won’t be indexed.

Status codes

Code	Meaning	Use it for
301	Moved Permanently	Pages that have moved for good.
308	Permanent Redirect	The same, keeping the request method (for forms and APIs).
302	Found	Temporary moves, where the old URL will come back.
307	Temporary Redirect	The same, keeping the request method.
303	See Other	Sending a browser to a result page after a form is submitted.

Limits

• The live check reaches public sites only, on the standard ports. Use curl output for anything else.
• Times are measured from the checker’s server, so they show the relative cost of each hop rather than what your visitors see.
• Only the first 64 KB of the final page is read for meta refresh and script redirects, and scripts aren’t run, so redirects built at runtime aren’t found.
• Lists are checked two URLs at a time and pause briefly if the rate limit is reached.