A redirect that works in your browser does not always work the way you think. The wrong redirect type, a chain that is too long, or a redirect loop — all of these silently hurt SEO rankings and page speed. This guide shows you exactly how to check redirects and fix them.
Why redirects matter for SEO
When a URL changes, Google needs to be told where the content moved. A 301 permanent redirect passes approximately 90-99% of the original page's ranking signals to the new URL. A 302 temporary redirect passes none — Google treats the original URL as still live. Using the wrong redirect type is one of the most common SEO mistakes.
Redirect types — which to use
There are four redirect types you will encounter:
301 — Permanent redirect. Use this when a page has moved permanently. The ranking signals (link equity) flow to the new URL. Use this for URL restructuring, domain migrations and HTTP → HTTPS redirects.
302 — Temporary redirect. Use this when you plan to bring the original URL back. Google keeps the original URL indexed. Misusing 302 instead of 301 is a very common mistake that prevents ranking signal consolidation.
307 — Temporary redirect (HTTP/1.1). Functionally the same as 302 but for HTTP/1.1 specifically. The request method (GET/POST) is preserved.
308 — Permanent redirect (HTTP/1.1). Like 301 but preserves the request method. Mostly used for API endpoints.
How to check a redirect chain
The simplest way is to use the Anonymiz Redirect Checker. Enter the starting URL and the tool follows every hop, showing you:
• The HTTP status code at each step (301, 302, etc.)
• The full URL at each step
• The final destination URL
• Total number of hops
• Total redirect time
A healthy redirect chain has one hop (start URL → final URL). Every extra hop adds 100-300ms of load time and slightly reduces the ranking signal passed through.
What is a redirect loop?
A redirect loop happens when URL A redirects to URL B, which redirects back to URL A. Browsers detect this after a few hops and show an error ("too many redirects"). The redirect checker will identify loops immediately — you will see the same URLs repeating in the chain.
Common redirect problems and how to fix them
HTTP and HTTPS both redirect to each other. Fix: Make sure your .htaccess or server config redirects all HTTP to HTTPS in a single rule, and that your HTTPS site does not have a redirect back to HTTP.
www and non-www both redirect to each other. Fix: Choose your canonical version (www or non-www) and make sure only one redirect exists pointing to it. Check your server config and also your CDN/hosting redirect rules — they can conflict.
Chain of 3+ redirects. Fix: Update the original redirect to point directly to the final URL. If you have old-url → intermediate-url → final-url, change it to old-url → final-url.
302 used instead of 301 for permanent moves. Fix: Change 302 to 301 in your .htaccess or server config. After changing, clear server and CDN caches, then test with the redirect checker again.
Test after every change
After fixing any redirect, always run the Redirect Checker again to confirm the chain is now a single hop with the correct status code. Also test both HTTP and HTTPS versions and both www and non-www versions — four URLs in total for any given page.
Related tools
If redirects are correct but the page is still slow, run a Website Speed Test. If you suspect robots.txt is blocking crawlers from reaching the final URL, use the Robots.txt Tester. All tools are free with no signup required.
