Redirect Chain Checker
Enter any URL and trace every redirect hop. See status codes, response times, and get warnings for loops, long chains, and protocol downgrades.
What This Tool Checks
Redirect chains
Traces every hop from the initial URL to the final destination
Redirect loops
Detects when redirects cycle back to a previously visited URL
301 vs 302 usage
Flags 302 (temporary) redirects that should be 301 (permanent)
HTTP → HTTPS downgrades
Catches insecure protocol switches in the redirect chain
Response times per hop
Measures latency at each redirect to identify slow hops
Chain length warnings
Flags chains longer than 3 hops that should be consolidated
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a redirect chain?
A redirect chain occurs when a URL redirects to another URL, which then redirects to yet another URL, creating a series of hops. For example: Page A → 301 → Page B → 301 → Page C. Each hop adds latency and dilutes link equity. Ideally, every redirect should go directly to the final destination in a single hop.
Why are redirect chains bad for SEO?
Redirect chains hurt SEO in three ways: they waste crawl budget (Googlebot may stop following after 5+ hops), they dilute PageRank/link equity with each hop, and they slow down page load times. Google recommends consolidating chains into single direct redirects.
What's the difference between a 301 and 302 redirect?
A 301 redirect is permanent — it tells search engines the page has permanently moved and to transfer all ranking signals to the new URL. A 302 redirect is temporary — search engines keep the original URL indexed. Using 302 when you mean 301 prevents link equity from passing to the new URL.
How many redirects is too many?
Google follows at least 5 redirect hops, but best practice is a single hop — one redirect from the old URL directly to the final URL. Chains of 3+ hops should be consolidated. Our tool flags chains longer than 3 hops as warnings.
What is a redirect loop?
A redirect loop occurs when URL A redirects to URL B, and URL B redirects back to URL A (or through a longer cycle that returns to the start). Loops prevent pages from ever loading and cause crawl errors in Google Search Console.
How do I fix a redirect chain?
Update each redirect in the chain to point directly to the final destination URL. For example, if A → B → C, update the redirect for A to go directly to C, and update B to also go directly to C. Then test with this tool to confirm the chain is resolved.
Find every redirect issue across your entire site
CrawlRaven audits 200+ technical SEO factors including redirect chains, loops, and broken redirects — across every page on your site.