What is a redirect loop and how do I fix it?

Understanding and Fixing Redirect Loops

A redirect loop occurs when a chain of HTTP redirects points back to itself, creating an infinite cycle. Instead of redirecting users to the intended destination, a redirect loop sends them in circles: URL A redirects to URL B, which redirects back to URL A (or through a longer chain that eventually loops back). This creates an error state where pages become unreachable, users see error messages, search engines waste crawl budget following the infinite chain, and your site's functionality breaks completely.

Redirect loops are among the most frustrating issues to diagnose because the problem is often invisible until users encounter the broken page. Search engines see the issue as a crawl error, browsers display error messages, and website functionality deteriorates. However, with systematic debugging techniques, redirect loops can be identified quickly and fixed efficiently.

What Exactly Is a Redirect Loop?

Anatomy of a Redirect Loop

A simple redirect loop:

URL: example.com/page
Response: 302 Redirect to example.com/new-page
↓
URL: example.com/new-page
Response: 302 Redirect to example.com/page
↓
(Back to start - infinite cycle)

More complex loops involve multiple URLs:

example.com/page1 → example.com/page2 → example.com/page3 → example.com/page1

How Browsers Handle Loops

Modern browsers detect redirect loops and stop following redirects after typically 20-30 iterations (varies by browser):

Chrome/Edge: Usually stops after 20 redirects Firefox: Usually stops after 5-10 redirects Safari: Usually stops after 20 redirects

When the browser detects a loop, users see an error message:

• Chrome: "ERR_TOO_MANY_REDIRECTS"
• Firefox: "The page isn't redirecting properly"
• Safari: "Too many redirects"

These error messages mean the page is completely unreachable to the user.

How Search Engines Handle Loops

Search engines handle redirect loops by:

1. Detecting the Loop: After following several redirects to the same URL, they recognize the pattern
2. Stopping Crawl: They stop following the redirect chain
3. Recording Error: The page is recorded as having a crawl error
4. Skipping Indexation: The page (and all pages in the loop) are not indexed
5. Reporting in Search Console: You see crawl errors in Google Search Console

The result: pages caught in redirect loops disappear from search results.

Why Redirect Loops Occur

Misconfigured Redirect Rules

Scenario: You want to redirect /old to /new but accidentally set up bidirectional redirects:

/old → /new  (intentional)
/new → /old  (accidental configuration)

This happens when redirect configuration systems allow creating rules without checking for logical consistency.

Case-Sensitivity Issues

Scenario: Your server treats URLs case-sensitively:

/Products → /products (redirect for consistency)
/products → /Products (another rule for different reason)
Result: Loop between /Products and /products

Different operating systems and servers handle case sensitivity differently:

• Linux/Unix: Case-sensitive (PRODUCTS ≠ products)
• Windows: Case-insensitive (PRODUCTS = products)

Migrating between systems without accounting for this creates loops.

Trailing Slash Redirects

Scenario: One rule removes trailing slashes, another adds them:

/page/ → /page (remove trailing slash)
/page → /page/ (add trailing slash)
Result: Infinite loop between /page and /page/

Parameter Handling Issues

Scenario: Redirects based on URL parameters that are being rewritten:

User requests: /product?id=123
Server adds: ?utm_source=search
Result: Redirect rule matches again, adding another parameter
Infinite loop of parameter additions

Domain Redirect Conflicts

Scenario: Multiple domain redirects point to each other:

example.com → exampletest.com (redirect rule)
exampletest.com → example.com (backup redirect rule)
Result: Infinite loop between domains

Application-Level Redirects

Scenario: Your application or CMS performs redirects based on certain conditions:

User visits /admin
Application redirects non-authenticated users to /login
/login has logic that redirects back to /admin
Infinite loop for unauthenticated users

Identifying Redirect Loops

Browser Testing

Manual Method:

1. Open the browser's Developer Tools (F12)
2. Navigate to the problematic URL
3. Watch the Network tab as requests occur
4. Observe the redirect chain until the browser stops
5. The error message appears

What to Look For:

• "ERR_TOO_MANY_REDIRECTS" or equivalent error
• Multiple requests to similar URLs in quick succession
• No final response with actual page content

Browser Extension Tools

Redirect Tracers:

• "Redirect Path" (Chrome): Shows complete redirect chain
• "Redirects Viewer" (Firefox): Detailed redirect information
• "Redirect Checker" (various): Identifies redirect issues

These extensions show the complete chain visually, making the loop obvious.

Command-Line Tools

Using curl (shows response headers):

curl -i -L https://example.com/page

The -L flag follows redirects. If a loop exists, curl will eventually timeout or show repeated requests.

Using wget:

wget --max-redirect=5 https://example.com/page

This limits redirects to 5 hops, preventing infinite requests. If the page fails with 5 hops, likely a loop.

Google Search Console

Crawl Errors Report:

1. Go to Google Search Console
2. Navigate to Coverage or Crawl Errors
3. Look for "Redirect" or "Crawl" errors
4. Click error to see affected URLs
5. Often indicates which URLs are looping

Search Results Tab:

• Pages caught in loops won't appear in search results
• If pages suddenly disappear from search, investigate redirects

Online Redirect Checkers

Services like:

• Redirect Checker Tools: Input URL and get complete redirect chain
• SEO Tools: Moz, Semrush, Ahrefs all show redirect information
• httpstatus.io: Shows response codes and redirect paths

How to Fix Redirect Loops

Step 1: Identify the Exact Loop

Before fixing, you must understand exactly which URLs are involved:

Create a Redirect Map:

Document each URL and where it redirects:
/page1 → /page2
/page2 → /page3
/page3 → /page1  ← Loop detected!

Use browser tools, curl, or online checkers to build this map.

Step 2: Determine the Intended Destination

Decide where users should ultimately end up:

Questions:

• What is the canonical/final URL?
• Which URL contains the actual content?
• Which URL should be in search results?
• What was the original intention?

Example:

Loop identified: /old → /new → /final → /old
Intended destination: /final (the content is here)
Solution: Update all rules to go directly to /final

Step 3: Break the Loop

Update redirect rules to point directly to the final destination:

Before:

.htaccess or nginx config:
/old → /new
/new → /final
/final → /old (the problem!)

After:

/old → /final
/new → /final
/final → (no redirect, this is the canonical URL)

Step 4: Test the Fix

Verify Each URL:

curl -i -L https://example.com/old
curl -i -L https://example.com/new
curl -i -L https://example.com/final

All should eventually reach /final without loops.

Browser Testing:

• Visit each URL in browser
• Verify you reach the correct page
• No error message should appear
• Page should load normally

Step 5: Monitor Search Console

After Fixing:

1. Submit sitemap to Google Search Console
2. Monitor crawl errors (should decrease)
3. Check coverage to verify proper indexing
4. Monitor search rankings
5. Expect 1-2 weeks for full recovery

Common Redirect Loop Scenarios and Solutions

Scenario: Case Sensitivity Loop

Problem:

/Products → /products (Linux server, case-sensitive)
/products → /Products (another rule)
Loop!

Solution: Standardize to one case throughout:

/Products → /products (only rule)
/products → (no redirect, canonical URL)

Prevention: Use lowercase URLs consistently across entire site.

Scenario: Trailing Slash Loop

Problem:

/page/ → /page (remove trailing slash)
/page → /page/ (add trailing slash)

Solution: Pick one standard:

Option A - Always use trailing slash:

/page → /page/ (only rule)

Option B - Never use trailing slash:

/page/ → /page (only rule)

Prevention: Use URL rewrite rules consistently for all pages.

Scenario: www vs Non-www Loop

Problem:

www.example.com → example.com
example.com → www.example.com

Solution: Pick one canonical:

Option A - Use www:

example.com → www.example.com (only rule)

Option B - No www:

www.example.com → example.com (only rule)

Scenario: Domain Migration Loop

Problem:

old-domain.com → new-domain.com
new-domain.com → old-domain.com (backup redirect)

Solution: Remove bidirectional redirects:

old-domain.com → new-domain.com (only rule)
new-domain.com → (no redirect, canonical)

Preventing Redirect Loops

Best Practices

1. Centralized Redirect Management:

• Maintain a single source of truth for redirects
• Use one configuration file or system
• Avoid multiple tools creating conflicting rules

2. Testing Before Deployment:

• Test all redirect chains before going live
• Use redirect checkers to verify no loops exist
• Document the intended chain

3. Regular Audits:

• Quarterly review of all active redirects
• Use Screaming Frog or similar to audit entire site
• Remove obsolete redirects

4. Logical Review:

• Before creating a redirect, think through the chain
• Ask: "Where will this ultimately lead?"
• Verify the destination has no redirects pointing back

5. Version Control:

• Keep .htaccess and redirect configs in version control
• Track changes and reasons
• Easy rollback if issues occur

6. Monitoring:

• Set up alerts for crawl errors in Search Console
• Monitor "too many redirects" errors
• Track 3xx response codes in server logs

Tools for Prevention and Detection

Screaming Frog SEO Spider: Desktop crawler that identifies redirect chains and loops

Google Search Console: Built-in crawl error reporting

SEMrush, Ahrefs, Moz: All include redirect auditing tools

Redirect Tester Browser Extensions: Show redirect chains in real-time

Custom Monitoring Scripts: Automated checks of critical URL redirects

Troubleshooting Persistent Loop Issues

If the Loop Still Exists After Fixes:

1. Clear Caches:

   • Clear browser cache
   • Clear CDN caches
   • Restart web server
   • Cached redirect rules may override new ones

2. Check All Redirect Sources:

   • .htaccess file (if using Apache)
   • nginx.conf (if using Nginx)
   • Web server configuration
   • Application-level redirects (CMS, custom code)
   • CDN redirect rules
   • Firewall/WAF rules

3. Verify File Upload:

   • Confirm new .htaccess is actually uploaded
   • Check file permissions
   • Verify syntax is correct

4. Restart Services:

   • Restart web server
   • Restart application
   • Restart caching layer
   • May need service restart to load new config

5. Check Application Logic:

   • If using CMS, check for redirect plugins
   • Search code for redirect() functions
   • Verify no conflicting logic

Conclusion

Redirect loops are serious issues that completely break page accessibility and search visibility. However, they're also straightforward to diagnose and fix once you understand how to trace the redirect chain. By systematically identifying the loop, determining the correct destination, updating redirect rules to point directly there, and testing thoroughly, you can resolve redirect loops quickly. Implementing best practices like centralized redirect management, thorough testing before deployment, and regular audits prevents most redirect loops from occurring in the first place. When loops do occur, treating them as high-priority issues and addressing them promptly minimizes damage to user experience and SEO.