Website Redirect Audit Checklist

A redirect audit checks whether old website URLs lead people and search engines to the right current pages. It is one of the simplest ways to protect useful search and referral traffic during a redesign, migration, or platform change.

Redirects are not a substitute for useful content. They are a map between URLs when the page address changes.

Build the complete old URL list

Collect URLs from the current sitemap, analytics, Search Console, server logs, CMS, backlinks, internal links, campaign documents, and redirect rules. Include PDFs, images, old landing pages, and URLs known by customers.

Mark traffic, links, conversions, page type, owner, and whether the content still exists. Do not rely on the new site's navigation to reveal every old URL.

Map each URL to the closest useful destination

Map an old service page to the current version of that service, an old product page to the current product or category, and an old article to a relevant updated article. If no useful equivalent exists, decide whether the old URL should return a controlled 404 or 410 instead of redirecting to the home page.

A mass redirect to the home page may remove context and create a poor customer experience.

Check status codes and chains

Important redirects should normally resolve in one step to the final HTTPS URL. Find chains, loops, redirects to error pages, mixed protocols, and changes between www and non-www. Check the final page's canonical URL, title, content, and form.

Review internal links

Update the site's own links so customers do not click through an old URL unnecessarily. Check navigation, footer, related articles, PDFs, campaign links, and structured data. Redirects are a safety net; internal links should point to current pages.

Control parameters and duplicate paths

Review query parameters, tracking links, sort and filter URLs, print versions, trailing slashes, casing, and file extensions. Decide which versions are valid, which should canonicalize, and which should not be crawled or indexed.

Do not create an endless redirect rule based on a broad pattern that catches unrelated paths.

Test special content

Check images, downloads, forms, booking links, login redirects, API endpoints, language versions, and location paths. A page can return a successful status while a critical asset or action is broken.

Monitor after launch

Watch 404s, redirect hits, crawl reports, landing pages, referrals, forms, calls, and page traffic. Compare the first weeks with a meaningful baseline and investigate pages that lose visits or conversions.

The website relaunch checklist and migration guide cover the broader launch process.

Keep the map documented

Store the old URL, destination, reason, owner, implementation date, test result, and removal review date. A redirect map becomes a maintenance asset when the site changes again.

A good redirect audit protects useful paths without hiding the need for accurate, relevant pages at the destination.