Redirect Loop: When URLs Keep Redirecting in a Circle
A redirect loop bounces a browser between two or more URLs forever. Learn what causes it, how it hurts SEO, and how to break the circle.
A redirect loop is a circular set of redirects where URL A sends visitors to B, which sends them back to A, so the page never resolves.
What a Redirect Loop Does
Browsers cap the number of redirects they will follow, then give up with an error like ERR_TOO_MANY_REDIRECTS. The page is unreachable for users and crawlers alike.
How Loops Form
- Conflicting rules that point two URLs at each other.
- HTTP and HTTPS, or www and non-www rules that disagree.
- Directory and path rules that redirect into each other.
- Plugin or CDN rules applied at two different layers.
Why Loops Hurt SEO
- The page can never be indexed.
- Crawlers waste requests trying to reach it.
- Backlinks point to a page that never renders.
- A loop on the homepage can stall the whole site.
How to Find and Fix a Loop
- Open the Network tab and watch the 3xx requests bounce between two URLs.
- Check .htaccess, nginx config, CDN rules, and redirect plugins.
- Remove or correct the rule that creates the circle.
- Test in incognito and with a redirect checker, then spot-check key pages.
The change: the host force-redirects HTTP to HTTPS.
The setup: a plugin rule sends HTTPS back to HTTP.
The reading: every visitor bounces between the two until the browser gives up.
Why it works: removing the plugin rule breaks the circle and the page loads normally.
Quick Tip
The browser error usually names the culprit. Open the Network tab and you will see the two URLs bouncing back and forth.
Frequently Asked Questions
Redirect Loops, Bottom Line
A redirect loop is an availability failure, not just a performance problem.
Trace the circle back to its source and break it.