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Redirects

Redirect chain

Also known as: redirect chains

A redirect chain is a sequence of two or more redirects between the requested URL and the final page, for example A to B to C. A single redirect leads directly to the target.

At a glance

Class
3xx (several redirects in a row)
Duration
depends on the code of each redirect
In Google
follows up to 10 hops by default
Recommendation
redirect straight to the target; otherwise at most 3, fewer than 5 hops
Specification
RFC 9110, Section 15.4

Last checked:

Why do redirect chains matter for SEO?

Each hop is another request that the client has to make. web.dev counts redirect time as part of Time to First Byte, so every extra hop delays the first response. For crawlers, each hop is an additional fetch before the content arrives.

Google’s crawlers follow up to 10 redirect hops by default, according to Google’s documentation on HTTP status codes. The site move documentation names the same limit for Googlebot but advises redirecting straight to the final destination, or keeping chains ideally to no more than 3 hops and fewer than 5. A chain that stays below the 10-hop limit is still followed, but it costs requests. Longer chains risk not being resolved.

Chains usually appear after several site changes pile up, such as an HTTP to HTTPS redirect, a www redirect, a trailing slash rule and an older URL migration, each added at a different time.

Redirect chain and direct redirectTop: /old reaches the target via two intermediate URLs, three redirects and four requests. Bottom: /old redirects straight to the target, two requests.Chain: 3 redirects, 4 requests/old/products/old/p/new-2019/target/200 OK301301301Direct: 1 redirect, 2 requests/old/target/200 OK301Chains build up after several relaunches when old rules are never pointed at the current URL.
Every hop in a chain is a separate request. Google’s crawlers follow up to 10 redirect hops; Google still recommends redirecting straight to the final destination. Sources: Google Search Central: HTTP status codes, network and DNS errors; Google Search Central: Site moves with URL changes.

Example

Text
http://example.com/old   301 -> https://example.com/old
https://example.com/old  301 -> https://www.example.com/old
https://www.example.com/old 301 -> https://www.example.com/new/

The fix is a single 301 from the first URL to https://www.example.com/new/, plus internal links that point to the final URL.

Common mistakes

Only the newest redirect rule is added, and the older rules pointing to the intermediate URL stay in place.

A case study by searchVIU (2018) shows how a domain move creates chains. The old domain first sent every URL to the same path on the new domain, and a second redirect then forwarded it to the real target, so about 99% of old URLs went through a chain. A guide by searchVIU (2019) therefore recommends running global rules such as HTTP to HTTPS only after the one-to-one redirects and pointing legacy redirects straight to the new targets.

More on the searchVIU blog

Sources

  1. How HTTP status codes, and network and DNS errors affect Google Search – Google Search Centraldevelopers.google.com
  2. Redirects and Google Search – Google Search Centraldevelopers.google.com
  3. Optimize Time to First Byte – web.devweb.dev
  4. Site moves with URL changes – Google Search Centraldevelopers.google.com
  5. Migrating from ccTLDs to a gTLD – The WHY, the HOW, and the WTF – searchVIU blog (2018)searchviu.com
  6. Testing redirects before and after a website migration – searchVIU blog (2019)searchviu.com

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