Redirects
Redirects are necessary and legitimate in many situations — when URLs change, when content moves, when domains merge. But redirect implementation quality matters significantly for both SEO and user experience. Redirect chains dilute link equity and slow page load; redirect loops create infinite cycles that both users and crawlers cannot resolve; temporary redirects fail to transfer ranking signals; and non-standard redirect methods like meta refresh and JavaScript may not be followed reliably by all crawlers. These ten checks audit every redirect type and configuration the platform detects.
Internal links point to 301-redirected URLs — fix the link, not the redirect target.
302 or 307 redirects do not transfer ranking signals — use 301 for permanent moves.
Multiple redirect hops before reaching the final URL — link equity is lost at each step.
Redirect chain of 3 or more hops — severe performance and link equity impact.
URL redirects back to itself or to another URL in a circular chain — infinite loop.
<meta http-equiv="refresh"> used for redirects — non-standard and not reliably followed.
HTTP Refresh response header used for redirection — use 301/302 instead.
window.location or document.location used to redirect — crawlers must execute JS to follow.
301 redirect based on user location — crawlers from Google's IP ranges see different content.
302 redirect based on user location — may cause the wrong regional URL to be indexed.
Audit every redirectacross your site
A full audit maps every redirect, chain, and loop across your site so you can simplify the redirect architecture and protect link equity.