How to Fix Error Too Many Redirects Issue in WordPress
July 18. 2021
For years, WordPress has been a synonym for the most popular and reliable platform for website building. However, even the most sophisticated systems, such as this, are not immune to errors. For WordPress, it’s a common practice to use different external sources, like plugins, for example. As a result, it’s not strange that those third-party assets cause conflicts in the code or settings. And one of the most typical errors both users and admins notice is redirection issues. Basically, it can lock users and even admins out from accessing websites. Fortunately, it’s not so hard to fix this “error too many redirects” issue in WordPress and make your website function properly again.
Ways to handle Error Too Many Redirects Issue in WordPress
The error “Too Many Redirects” (ERR_TOO_MANY_REDIRECTS) occurs when a browser is unable to connect to the right server of a website. In essence, the browser gets stuck in a redirect loop because of an unresolved URL request. This mostly happens due to conflict in the configuration of plugins, but it can also be a misconfiguration in website files. If your website is managed by WordPress professionals, this issue is almost nonexistent. But, if you are managing your website as a beginner, there are a few solutions you should be aware of.
To be able to handle this error in WordPress, here are several useful methods that can help:
- Clear browser data – cookies and cache
- Delete WordPress cache
- Check if plugins are causing the “Error Too Many Redirects”
- Inspect WordPress URLs
- Fix the redirection error by recreating the .htaccess file
1) Clear browser data – cookies and cache
Most people are probably aware that while browsing the internet, browsers are storing all kinds of information. Some of the most popular and well-known are cookies and browser cache. However, this data often causes the “error too many redirects” in WordPress websites due to corruption. This is not a rare issue, and most major browsers like Chrome, Firefox, Safari are prone to it.
If you have problems with accessing a website, the first thing to do is to try to access it from a different browser. If it gives you positive results, then clearing your browser data will most likely solve the problem. Generally speaking, you can set your browser to delete selected information automatically upon closing the browser. Or, you can prevent your browser from storing this data. However, that is not a recommendation since sometimes it can affect your browsing experience. Nevertheless, every browser allows you to easily access the “clearing” options through its settings.
2) Delete WordPress Cache
Sometimes, the reason for this error lies in WordPress itself. WordPress stores a copy of a website in its cache to speed up the websites and provide a better user experience. Since most caching options are conducted by caching plugins, they usually offer an option to clear it. If not, there are many WordPress caching plugins like WP Super Cache, that can make it easy for you to manage and delete the cache.
3) Check if plugins are causing the “Error Too Many Redirects”
After browser data, the second most common causes for redirection errors are plugins. Due to misconfiguration, or the error in code, sometimes they are in conflict with WordPress. If you can’t access the website, the best course of action is to check which plugin is causing the error. It can be easy to access “Plugins” options inside WordPress and disable them one by one. Until you discover the faulty one. However, due to the nature of redirect error, it often happens that even the admin can’t access the WordPress dashboard. Fortunately, there is another way to deactivate plugins.
Basically, you will need an FTP client or File Manager inside your hosting control panel. This way, you will be able to access the locked area and fix the problem. Simply browse inside your wp-content folder, find the plugin folder, and rename it. Don’t delete it, just in case you need to bring it back. After renaming, WordPress will automatically deactivate plugins and you will be able to access your website. That is if plugins are causing the redirect error.
4) Inspect WordPress URLs
WordPress URL settings are another major cause of redirection headaches. Again, if you can access your dashboard, you can find URL options in settings under the “General” tab. Once inside, check if WordPress Address (URL) and Site Address (URL) is the same. It should be. Pay attention to the extra “www” because many make this mistake here.
If you can’t access your dashboard, again, you need to use the FTP client like FileZilla or your hosting’s File Manager. Just navigate to the wp-config.php file, open it, and find the “define” properties. Just like in the previous example, you have to make sure that both ‘WP_HOME’ and ‘WP_SITEURL’ are the same.
5) Fix the redirection error by recreating the .htaccess file
Sometimes, the cause for infinite redirection can be information inside your .htaccess file. It’s a specific file server use to store different settings. Among others, it uses it to manage different types of redirects for WordPress websites. It’s also a place that stores plugin settings, so to fix the problem, you will have to manually disable this file. However, make sure to make a backup copy of the file before any changes. Once you have it backed up, simply delete the file. Inside WordPress, now with regain access, find the “Permalinks” settings and save. This will trigger WordPress to recreate the .htaccess file.
WordPress is overall quite a stable and well-coded system. But, sometimes errors happen, and it’s usually because of misconfiguration or the third-party addons like plugins. Most of the problems are easy to solve if you have the access to your admin dashboard. But, sometimes, like with redirection errors, it can cut you completely off from your website. Fortunately, by using these steps, you can easily fix the error “too many redirects” issue in WordPress and regain your access.