Redirect Checker

What the Redirect Checker checks

A redirect tells the browser, and search engine crawlers, that the content lives at another address. Each hop costs a full request and response, and the status code says whether the move is permanent (301 or 308) or temporary (302 or 307).

This checker requests the URL you enter and follows the redirects one hop at a time, recording each address and status code. It reports the chain length, flags temporary redirects that look like permanent moves, and warns when a hop goes from HTTPS back to plain HTTP. It also requests the http:// version of your address and the www or non-www counterpart, so you can see whether all variants end up on one canonical URL.

Why it matters

Every extra hop adds latency before the first byte of the real page, which is most noticeable on mobile networks. Search engines follow chains but treat them as a cost, and long or looping chains can stop crawlers before they reach the content.

The status code also carries meaning. A 301 or 308 signals that the old URL should be replaced by the new one in search results; a 302 or 307 says the old URL is still the one to keep. Using a temporary redirect for a permanent move sends mixed signals. A hop from HTTPS to HTTP exposes the visitor to interception, even if a later hop returns to HTTPS.

How to fix common problems

Point every old URL directly at its final destination instead of chaining through intermediate addresses. After a migration, update the old redirect rules too, so http://example.com goes straight to https://example.com/ in one hop rather than via https://example.com and then https://www.example.com.

Choose one canonical host, either www or apex, and redirect the other with a permanent redirect: return 301 https://example.com$request_uri; in nginx, or a single Cloudflare redirect rule. Use 308 instead of 301 when the request method must be kept, for example for form posts. Read more about redirect chains and www vs non-www.

Update internal links, canonical tags and your sitemap to the final URLs, so visitors and crawlers do not hit the redirect at all. PerfoMetrix checks redirects in its full audit along with 170+ other performance, security and SEO checks.

Questions

What is the difference between 301 and 308?

Both are permanent. A 308 requires the client to repeat the request with the same method and body, while a 301 lets clients change a POST into a GET. For normal page moves either works; 308 is safer for API or form endpoints.

How many redirects are too many?

Aim for one hop at most from any variant of your address to the final page. This tool warns when a chain has more than two hops.

Do redirects lose SEO value?

Google states that permanent redirects pass ranking signals. The practical costs are crawl time and latency, which is why short chains to the final URL are still worth fixing.

Does this tool follow JavaScript or meta refresh redirects?

It follows HTTP redirects. Meta refresh and JavaScript redirects are reported by the full audit, which reads the page HTML.