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Fix Guide

How to Fix Redirect Chains

Collapse multi-hop redirects (A→B→C) into a single hop to the final URL.

Medium Medium Impact 15 min

A redirect chain is a URL that redirects to another redirect before reaching the destination. Each hop adds latency for the visitor, and crawlers stop following after a few. Fix it by pointing the first URL straight at the final destination, so every old address resolves in a single hop.

Why It Matters

A redirect chain makes the browser follow several hops before reaching the real page — slowing users, wasting crawl budget, and losing a little link equity at each step. Every redirect should point straight to the final destination.

How to Fix

1

Map the chains

Crawl your redirects and find any URL that redirects to another redirect.
2

Point straight to the end

Rewrite each rule so it 301s directly to the final URL in one hop.
3

Update internal links

Link to the final URL everywhere so the redirect is only a safety net for old external links.

Code Fix

text
Before (broken)
/page   301→  /page/   301→  https://site.com/page/   (3 hops)
After (fixed)
/page   301→  https://site.com/page/   (1 hop to the final URL)

Platform-Specific Instructions

WordPress

Audit your redirection plugin's rules and your host's www/HTTPS redirects so they combine into one hop.

Next.js

Consolidate rules in redirects() so each source maps directly to the final destination.

Fixed that one.
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