The error “too many redirects”means that the website keeps being redirected between different addresses in a way that will never complete. Often this is the result of competing redirects, one trying to force HTTPS (SSL) and another redirecting back to HTTP (non-SSL), or between www and non-www forms of the URL.
If you are using a CMS like WordPress, Magento, etc., that utilizes a base_url or URL type configuration within the site, you can end up with the configuration in the code or database conflicting with a redirect in a .htaccess file. These conflicting redirects will flip flop back and forth and never complete.
Your browser protects you from this by only allowing a certain number of redirects (often ten or so) before it gives up and reports the error message “too many redirects.” This shows up differently between Chrome, Firefox, and other browsers.
What Causes The Error Too Many Redirects Issue in WordPress?
The ‘Error too many redirects’ is caused by a misconfigured redirection issue in WordPress.
As you know that WordPress uses an SEO-friendly URL structure feature that uses the redirect function.
Similarly, many popular WordPress plugins use this feature to set up temporary redirects, permanent 301 redirects, and for fixing the 404 errors.
In a nutshell, the ERR_TOO_MANY_REDIRECTS message indicates that the page is experiencing a ‘redirect loop’. This often means that your server is pointing in the wrong direction, and the browser can’t figure out where your website is located.
In other words, the server is telling the browser to look for your website in a particular spot. When the browser goes there, however, it gets a message instructing it to look for the site in the original location. This creates an endless redirect loop that makes accessing the page in question impossible.
Here are some methods to get rid of this error:
Clear Browser Cookies and Cache
A common cause of the error could be your web browser cookies. Try accessing your website using a different web browser like Firefox, Safari, Opera, Microsoft Edge, etc.
If you are able to access your website normally using a different browser, then you need to clear browser cookies and cache on your regular browser.
Clear cookies and cache in Google chrome
We have a detailed guide on how to clear browser cache in all major browsers that will help you do that.
On the other hand, if changing the browser doesn’t fix the issue then you can move on to the next step.
If deleting your cookies doesn’t work, the next step to try is purging your WordPress cache. A cache is also a set of stored data that enables sites to load more quickly, and can be kept in various locations (such as your browser or the site’s server).
A redirect loop error may be a sign that some of the site’s cached information is incorrect or out of date. You can test for this by quickly clearing the cache both on your WordPress server and in your browser.
It’s also a good idea to try clearing your browser’s cache, in case you have any problematic files stored locally. Then, restart your browser and visit your site to see if that resolved the issue
Deactivate All WordPress Plugins or disabling corrupted plugins
Since redirect problems can be caused by any incorrectly-configured WordPress add-on, you may want to try quickly disabling your other plugins as well. If the redirect issue is resolved after all of your plugins are disabled, that’s a clear sign that one of them is at fault.
The most common cause of the WordPress redirect loops or ‘Too many redirects’ issue is a plugin conflict. A plugin trying to set up a redirect in a way that conflicts with default WordPress redirects would end up causing this error.
To fix this, you need to deactivate all WordPress plugins on your website. Now, normally you can just go to Plugins » All Plugins page inside the WordPress admin area and deactivate plugins from there.
First, configure your FileZilla client.
- Once you’re logged in, select Remote Site. Go to wp_content and locate the Plugins folder — right-click to Rename.This image shows you how to disabled plugins folder through an FTP client
- Rename the folder to plugins_disabled and try to access your website. If the error message no longer appears, then one or more plugins are corrupted or outdated.
- Rename the folder back to Plugins and remove your plugins one by one to check which one is causing the error. We recommend starting with the one that was most recently installed.
Fix WordPress URLs
Another major cause of this error is a misconfiguration in WordPress URL settings. Normally, you can view these options under Settings » General page.
WordPress URL settings
For most websites, the URLs in the WordPress Address and Site Address field have to be the same. However, some users may end up using www in one URL and non-www URL in the other.
Since you may not have access to the WordPress admin area, you may need to fix the WordPress URLs using an FTP client or the File Manager app.
Simply connect to your WordPress site using an FTP client and go to /wp-content/themes/your-theme-folder/.
Reset WordPress .htaccess File or disable .htaccess File
The .htaccess file is a special file that is used by website servers to manage redirects and other server settings. WordPress also uses this file for SEO friendly URLs and other redirects.
Sometimes WordPress plugins may make changes to your website’s .htaccess file which may trigger this error. It is also possible that deactivating a plugin will not remove those changes from your .htaccess file.
In that case, you’ll need to manually reset your WordPress .htaccess file.
Again, you will need to access your website using an FTP client or the File Manager app in your hosting dashboard. Once connected, you’ll see the .htaccess file in the root folder of your website.
There’s a possibility that some sort of variable in your .htaccess file is making your website go into a loop of redirection. If that’s the case, you can disable your file to regain access to your site.
Access the File Manager via your hosting control panel.
Locate your .htaccess file. If you can’t find it, use this tutorial for guidance.
Right-click to Rename the file. .htaccess_disabled, for example.
Now check if your website is loading correctly.
Preventing Error Too Many Redirects in WordPress
Hopefully, the above mentioned steps would have fixed the redirect issue on your website. If they did not fix the issue, then you may need to talk to your WordPress hosting company to make sure that it is not due to a server issue.
Once they fix the issue on your site, you should also figure out what caused the issue.
If it was a plugin, then you need to report the issue to plugin’s support forum. See our guide on how to ask for WordPress support. However, if you are unable to get help then you can always find an alternative plugin that does the same thing.
If the error was caused by a WordPress site misconfiguration, then you can make a note of it and ensure that your site settings are properly set up.
Since redirect loop errors tend to disable your website’s admin dashboard, they can be tricky to solve. Fortunately, there are a few reliable steps you can take to work towards a solution.
recap of these methods:
- Clear Browser Cookies and Cache
- Clear cookies and cache in Google chrome
- Deactivate All WordPress Plugins or disabling corrupted plugins
- Fix WordPress URLs
- Reset WordPress .htaccess File or disable .htaccess File
- Preventing Error Too Many Redirects in WordPress