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Surfilby Adam Hafez
Free tool

HTTP status code lookup for Google crawling

HTTP status code lookup: see how Google's crawlers handle each code you paste, plus a redirect hop count against the 10-hop limit. Free, runs in browser.

Runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you enter is uploaded, logged or stored.

Nothing you paste here is sent anywhere; it is read in your browser only.

    Key takeaways

    • Google treats a 301 as a strong signal that the redirect target should be processed, and a 302 as a weak one.
    • A 307 is handled like a 302 and a 308 like a 301, though Google advises using the code that fits so other clients benefit.
    • Google's crawlers follow up to 10 redirect hops by default, though specific products' crawlers may have different limits.
    • A 429 is treated as a server error that signals overload, the same as 5xx codes, and makes Google's crawlers slow down.
    • A 2xx status only lets Google consider the content for processing; it does not guarantee the page gets indexed.

    What it takes

    • A list of HTTP status codes, one per line
    • An optional URL before each code
    • Optionally, the order of a redirect chain, to count hops

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    How to use it

    1. 1Paste one status code per linePut the code at the end of the line. A URL before it is fine, and a URL containing digits will not confuse the reader, since only the last three-digit token counts.
    2. 2Read the handling next to each codeEach line shows what Google's documentation says its crawlers do with that status, and whether the result is a signal to process the target, a not-found, or a server error.
    3. 3Tick the redirect chain box if the lines are a chainThe tool then counts the 3xx lines as hops and compares the total to the 10 hops Google follows by default.
    4. 4Fix codes flagged as errors firstA 429 or a 5xx makes Google's crawlers slow down, so a page returning one to a crawler is the most expensive mismatch to leave in place.
    5. 5Replace 302 with 301 where the move is permanentA 302 is only a weak signal that the target should be processed, so a permanent move should use a 301 or 308.

    What the lookup checks

    Google’s page on how status codes affect its crawlers covers “the top 20 status codes that Google encounters on the web”. The tool maps each pasted code to that page’s wording, line by line:

    • 301 and 308. Followed, a strong signal that the redirect target should be processed.
    • 302 and 307. Followed, a weak signal. Google says 307 is equivalent to 302 and 308 to 301.
    • 304. The content is the same as last time it was crawled.
    • Other 2xx. Considered for processing. Google says a 2xx “doesn’t guarantee indexing”.
    • 404 and 410. Content not used, indexed URLs removed over time, crawled less often.
    • 429. Treated as a server error that signals overload, so crawling slows down.
    • Other 4xx. Content not used, and previously indexed URLs are eventually removed.
    • 5xx. Crawling temporarily slows, and indexed URLs eventually drop out if it persists.
    • Other 3xx. Reported as not individually documented, and counted as a redirect hop.

    Tick “Treat the lines as one redirect chain” and every 3xx line counts as one hop, compared with Google’s statement: “By default, Google’s crawlers follow up to 10 redirect hops.”

    How to read the results

    The summary line says how many codes were read and flags any line with no three-digit code at the end. Each line is coloured by outcome: green for success and permanent redirects, grey for weak or informational signals, amber for not found and other client errors, red for 429 and 5xx.

    Red lines cost the most. Google’s crawlers slow down on 429 and 5xx, and Google says the drop in crawl rate “is proportionate to the number of individual URLs that are returning a server error”.

    Two rows are simpler than Google’s page. The tool calls 303 undocumented, but Google’s table groups 303 with 302 as a weak signal. And 204 gets the generic 2xx text, though Google says it “wasn’t able to receive any content and therefore can’t process it”.

    Worked example

    The tool loads with five lines: an old page at 301, a new page at 200, a removed page at 410, a busy endpoint at 429 and a broken one at 503. It reads “5 codes read” and returns two green lines, one amber and two red: the 301 as a strong signal, the 200 as considered for processing, the 410 as not found, the 429 as a server error and the 503 as a server error that slows crawling.

    Tick the chain box and the summary adds “1 redirect hop, within the 10 Google follows by default”. Paste twelve lines of 301 followed by a 200 and it reports 12 hops, in red, over the limit.

    Common mistakes it catches

    • A 302 on a permanent move. It shows in grey as a weak signal; use a 301 or 308.
    • A 429 or 5xx served to crawlers, the red lines that slow crawling of the whole site.
    • Long redirect chains stacked up over several migrations, counted against the 10-hop default.
    • Pages meant to stay indexed that return 404 or 410, shown in amber.

    It cannot catch a soft 404. Google says Search Console shows one when a 2xx page’s content suggests an error, such as an empty page or an error message, and only a look at the content reveals that. Nor does it flag 401 or 403 used to slow crawling, which Google says not to do.

    Sources

    1. 1.How HTTP status codes affect Google's crawlers - Google for DevelopersPrimary
    2. 2.RFC 9110: HTTP Semantics - IETF

    Common questions

    Does this tool fetch my URLs?

    No. It reads the codes you paste and states what Google documents for each. To see what a server returns to Googlebot today, pair it with a crawl or your server logs.

    Is a 404 bad for crawl budget?

    Google says all 4xx errors except 429 have no effect on crawl rate. It stops using the URL over time, and the crawling frequency gradually decreases.

    Can I use 403 or 401 to slow Googlebot down?

    No. Google says not to use 401 and 403 for limiting the crawl rate. A 429 or a 5xx is what makes its crawlers slow down.

    What happens to indexed pages that return 5xx?

    Google says already indexed URLs are preserved for a while but eventually dropped, and that URLs that persistently return a server error are removed from the index.

    Is a 404 or a 410 better for a removed page?

    Google's page treats all 4xx errors except 429 the same way, so for Google Search the two have the same effect.

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