Technical SEO · Intermediate

Redirect chain

A redirect chain is a series of redirects between the requested URL and the final page, such as A → B → C. Each hop slows visitors and crawlers, and long chains can stop crawlers reaching the page.

By Thryv StudioUpdated

Level
Intermediate
Google follows
Up to 10 hops, then reports an error
Fix
Redirect every old URL straight to the final one
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Redirect Checker

What is a redirect chain?

Chains build up over time. A page moves from /old to /new; later /new moves to /newer; meanwhile the site switches to https. Now a visitor to http://example.com/old passes through several redirects before arriving.

Why it matters

  • Each hop adds a round trip, slowing the page, especially on mobile.
  • Google's crawler follows up to 10 redirect hops; beyond that it reports an error and doesn't reach the page.
  • Chains make migrations fragile and harder to audit.

How to fix it

  1. List redirects and the final destination of each.
  2. Point every old URL directly at the final URL.
  3. Update internal links, canonicals and sitemaps to the final URL.
  4. Make http and www versions reach the preferred version in one hop.

Frequently asked questions

Is one redirect a problem?

No. A single permanent redirect, such as http to https, is normal.

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