Introduction

Does your website show “ERR_TOO_MANY_REDIRECTS” or “The page isn’t redirecting properly” after connecting your domain to Cloudflare? This usually means your browser is caught in a redirect loop, repeatedly being sent from one URL to another without reaching the page.

A common cause is a mismatch between Cloudflare’s SSL/TLS settings and your hosting server’s HTTPS configuration. Conflicting redirect rules, WordPress URL settings, or other security configurations can also cause this problem.

This guide explains how to diagnose the redirect loop, fix the relevant settings safely, and verify that your website is working again.

Quick Answer: How to Fix the Cloudflare SSL Redirect Loop

Start by checking Cloudflare → SSL/TLS → Overview to identify your current encryption mode.

• If Cloudflare uses Flexible mode while your hosting server automatically redirects HTTP requests to HTTPS, the two systems may create a redirect loop.
• If your hosting server has a valid SSL certificate configured for your domain, consider using Full (strict) mode and verify that HTTPS connections to the origin work correctly.
• If the encryption mode is already correct, check Cloudflare’s Always Use HTTPS setting, redirect rules, and your website’s own HTTPS configuration.

Do not randomly switch SSL settings or disable HTTPS protection. First identify which two settings are conflicting.

What Causes Cloudflare Too Many Redirects?

A redirect tells a browser to visit a different URL. For example, a website may redirect http://example.com to https://example.com to ensure visitors use an encrypted connection.

A redirect loop happens when two or more rules keep sending the browser between URLs.

Common causes include:

• Flexible SSL/TLS mode: Cloudflare connects to the origin server over HTTP, while the server redirects those requests to HTTPS.
• Conflicting HTTPS redirects: Cloudflare and the origin server both apply incompatible redirect rules.
• Incorrect encryption mode: Cloudflare’s SSL/TLS mode does not match the server’s certificate and HTTPS configuration.
• Conflicting redirect rules: Cloudflare rules, hosting settings, or WordPress plugins send requests to different URLs.
• Incorrect WordPress URLs: WordPress’s site address does not match the intended domain or protocol.
• Proxy HTTPS detection problems: A WordPress or server configuration does not correctly recognize that the original visitor connection used HTTPS through Cloudflare.

Cloudflare identifies SSL/TLS encryption mode, edge certificate settings, and redirect rules as common areas to investigate. See its official redirect-loop troubleshooting guide.

How to Fix the Cloudflare SSL Redirect Loop Step by Step

Step 1: Check Your Cloudflare SSL/TLS Encryption Mode

This is the best first check when the problem starts after connecting a domain to Cloudflare or changing SSL settings.

What to check

Find the encryption mode currently selected for your domain.

What to do

1. Sign in to your Cloudflare dashboard.
2. Select your website.
3. Open SSL/TLS → Overview.
4. Check whether the encryption mode is Flexible, Full, or Full (strict).
5. Confirm whether your hosting server has an active SSL certificate configured for the domain.

Cloudflare’s modes work differently:

• Flexible: Encrypts traffic between the visitor and Cloudflare, but uses HTTP between Cloudflare and your origin server.
• Full: Uses HTTPS between Cloudflare and the origin server but does not validate the origin certificate in the same way as Full (strict).
• Full (strict): Uses HTTPS and validates the origin certificate.

How to fix it

If your website uses Flexible mode and your origin server automatically redirects HTTP requests to HTTPS, this mismatch can create a loop.

If your origin server supports HTTPS and has a valid certificate configured for the domain, switch to Full (strict). Confirm that the origin accepts HTTPS connections and that the certificate meets Cloudflare’s requirements before switching.

If your server does not yet support HTTPS, arrange for an appropriate origin certificate to be installed. Do not assume that switching to Full (strict) will work without the required certificate and server configuration.

How to verify

Open your website using its HTTPS address. If the loop disappears and the page loads correctly, the encryption-mode mismatch may have been the cause.

If it still fails

Proceed to the next step. Other redirect rules or application settings may still be creating a loop.

Official reference: Cloudflare SSL/TLS encryption modes.

Step 2: Check Cloudflare’s Always Use HTTPS Setting

Cloudflare’s Always Use HTTPS feature redirects HTTP visitor requests to HTTPS.

This is useful when configured correctly, but it can conflict with redirects at your origin server.

What to check

Open your domain’s Cloudflare dashboard and go to SSL/TLS → Edge Certificates.

Find the Always Use HTTPS setting.

What to do

1. Confirm that your domain has an active Cloudflare edge certificate.
2. Review whether Always Use HTTPS is enabled.
3. Check whether the origin server has a conflicting rule that redirects HTTPS requests back to HTTP.
4. If a conflict exists, correct the origin redirect or the relevant Cloudflare configuration so that requests follow one consistent path.

For example, the desired result is generally:

http://example.com → https://example.com

The request should not then be redirected back to HTTP.

Do not disable HTTPS protection permanently just to make the website load.

How to verify

Test both the HTTP and HTTPS versions of your domain. HTTP should redirect to HTTPS once, and HTTPS should load without repeatedly redirecting.

If it still fails

Review your Cloudflare redirect rules and the redirects configured by your hosting server.

Official reference: Cloudflare Always Use HTTPS.

Step 3: Review Cloudflare Redirect Rules

Cloudflare can redirect URLs through different rules and features. If multiple rules contradict one another, the browser may become stuck in a loop.

What to check

Review the redirect rules associated with your domain.

What to do

1. Open your website in the Cloudflare dashboard.
2. Find the redirect configuration available for your account, including Redirect Rules and any legacy Page Rules that affect the domain.
3. Look for rules that send requests between HTTP and HTTPS.
4. Check whether rules redirect between www.example.com and example.com in conflicting ways.
5. Correct only the rules that you have confirmed are inconsistent.

Replace example.com with your own domain when checking your configuration.

How to verify

Test the homepage and the affected URL again. Confirm that the browser reaches one final destination without repeatedly switching between URLs.

If it still fails

Check your hosting control panel, web server redirects, and WordPress plugins. A redirect loop may involve settings outside Cloudflare.

Official reference: Cloudflare redirects documentation.

Step 4: Check Your Hosting Server’s HTTPS Configuration

Your hosting server may enforce HTTPS through its own configuration, independently of Cloudflare.

For example, a rule in Apache, Nginx, or a hosting control panel may redirect every HTTP request to HTTPS.

What to check

Review your hosting control panel’s SSL/TLS status and any available redirect settings.

What to do

1. Sign in to your hosting control panel.
2. Check whether the domain has an active SSL certificate.
3. Review any HTTPS redirect setting in the hosting panel.
4. If you use Apache or Nginx and have server administration access, review the relevant redirect configuration.
5. Compare those rules with your Cloudflare settings.

If you use shared hosting, ask your provider to inspect the origin server configuration rather than editing server files yourself.

Do not remove all HTTPS redirects or delete .htaccess files without understanding what else they control.

How to verify

After correcting a confirmed conflict, test the website again over HTTPS. The origin server should serve the intended content without redirecting the request back to an incompatible URL.

If it still fails

Proceed to your website application’s URL and proxy configuration.

Step 5: Check WordPress URL Settings

If your website uses WordPress, its configured site addresses can contribute to redirect loops.

For example, WordPress may be configured to use HTTP while Cloudflare and your hosting server expect HTTPS.

What to check

If you can access the WordPress dashboard, go to Settings → General and review:

• WordPress Address (URL)
• Site Address (URL)

Both should use the intended domain and protocol.

What to do

1. Check the URLs configured in WordPress.
2. Confirm whether the website should use HTTPS and whether it should include www.
3. If either address is incorrect, correct it only after confirming the intended configuration.
4. If the dashboard is inaccessible, ask your hosting provider or developer to check the relevant WordPress configuration before making database changes.

Some WordPress installations define these URLs in wp-config.php, which overrides the dashboard settings.

If WordPress is behind Cloudflare, the application or server may also need to recognize the original HTTPS connection correctly. Ask your developer or hosting provider to investigate this if the redirect loop persists.

How to verify

Open the homepage and a few internal pages. Check that WordPress consistently uses the correct domain and HTTPS.

If it still fails

Review recent plugin changes and any server-level HTTPS detection configuration. Avoid changing several settings simultaneously.

Step 6: Check Browser Caching and HSTS

Sometimes a browser remembers redirect-related information from previous visits. HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) can instruct a browser to use HTTPS for a domain.

What to check

Determine whether the problem happens in every browser or only in your usual browser.

What to do

1. Open your website in a private or incognito window.
2. Test the domain using another browser or device.
3. If the site works in another browser, investigate local browser caching or stored site data.
4. If the issue affects all browsers, return to the server, Cloudflare, and application redirect settings.

Do not disable HSTS as a first response. HSTS is a security feature, and changing it will not fix the underlying redirect configuration in every case.

How to verify

If the site works in a private window but not your usual browser, browser-specific stored data may be contributing to the problem.

If it still fails

If multiple browsers experience the same loop, investigate the redirects at the server and Cloudflare levels.

How to Verify That the Redirect Loop Is Fixed

After applying a correction, use this checklist:

1. Open the HTTPS version of your domain.
2. Open the HTTP version and confirm that it redirects to HTTPS without looping.
3. Test the www and non-www versions if both are relevant to your website.
4. Open the website in a private browser window.
5. Test the homepage, an internal page, and the WordPress login page if applicable.
6. Confirm that the final URL uses the intended domain and HTTPS.

If the problem continues, record the URL that fails and the sequence of redirects. Your hosting provider or developer can use that information to identify which rule is sending the request back to a previous URL.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Do not switch randomly between Flexible, Full, and Full (strict).
• Do not leave your website using an unnecessarily weak encryption configuration.
• Do not disable HTTPS redirects everywhere without identifying the conflicting rule.
• Do not delete .htaccess or other server configuration files as a quick fix.
• Do not edit WordPress database URLs without a backup and a clear recovery plan.
• Do not assume that clearing browser cookies will fix a redirect loop affecting every visitor.

Before making significant changes, back up relevant configuration files and record the original settings so they can be restored if necessary.

When to Contact Your Hosting Provider

Contact your hosting provider if you cannot access the dashboard, do not have server administration access, or the loop continues after checking Cloudflare settings.

Provide the following details:

• Your affected domain and URL.
• The exact browser error.
• Your current Cloudflare SSL/TLS encryption mode.
• Whether the problem started after enabling Cloudflare or changing HTTPS settings.
• Any recent hosting, WordPress, or redirect-rule changes.
• The troubleshooting steps you have already attempted.

Ask the provider to check the origin SSL certificate, HTTPS redirects, web server configuration, and whether the application correctly recognizes HTTPS requests forwarded through Cloudflare.

Never share passwords, private keys, or other secrets in a public support post.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Cloudflare’s “Too Many Redirects” error often occurs when SSL/TLS settings and HTTPS redirects conflict. Check your encryption mode first, then review Cloudflare’s redirect settings, the origin server, and WordPress URL configuration if applicable.

The safest solution is to identify the conflicting rule and correct it without weakening HTTPS protection or changing unrelated settings.