Link Checker - Test URL Accessibility
Check any URL to verify it's accessible and working. See HTTP status codes, redirect chains, response times, and identify broken or problematic links.
Understanding This Tool
What It Does
This tool checks whether a single web address (URL) is reachable and what HTTP response it returns. When you submit a URL, ShowMyIP's server sends an HTTP HEAD request to it, following up to 5 redirects with a 10-second timeout, and reports the final HTTP status code along with a plain Working or Broken label. The check runs server-side from ShowMyIP, so it reflects whether our server can reach the address, not your own browser or network. If the request cannot be completed, the tool shows an Error message instead of a status.
Understanding the Results
- HTTP Status: The numeric HTTP status code returned by the final destination, such as 200, 301, 404, or 503. Because redirects are followed automatically (up to 5 hops), this is the code from the page the URL ultimately lands on, not necessarily the first response.
- Status: A plain label derived from the code. It shows Working when the code is in the 200-399 range (success or redirect) and Broken for any other code, such as 4xx client errors or 5xx server errors. This is a simple pass/fail reading of the status code, not a measure of page content, speed, or quality.
- Error: If the URL cannot be checked at all, an Error message is shown instead of a status. This happens when the address is malformed or not HTTP/HTTPS, the host name cannot be resolved, the connection or SSL handshake fails, the request times out, or the URL points to a blocked target (private or reserved IPs, localhost, cloud metadata endpoints, internal host names, or certain restricted ports).
Common Use Cases
- Confirm a link is live: Quickly verify that a page you are about to share, publish, or link to returns a successful status rather than a 404 or server error.
- Spot broken links from the outside: Check whether a public URL is reachable from an independent third-party server (ours), useful when a page works for you locally but you want a separate reachability check.
- Catch server errors: Identify 5xx responses that suggest the destination server is failing or temporarily down, as distinct from the page simply not existing.
- Validate a URL after changes: After a site migration, redirect setup, or URL rename, confirm the address still resolves to a successful final status.
- Sanity-check an unfamiliar link: See whether a URL actually responds before relying on it, without opening it in your own browser.
Pro Tips & Best Practices
- Include the protocol: Enter the full address with http:// or https://. Only HTTP and HTTPS URLs are accepted; other schemes are rejected as invalid.
- Working means reachable, not correct: A Working result only means the final status code was 200-399. It does not confirm the page shows the right content, loads fully, or is free of errors inside the page.
- Redirects are followed silently: Because the tool follows up to 5 redirects, a URL that redirects to a working page reports the final code (often 200), so you will not see the intermediate 301 or 302 here.
- Private and internal addresses are blocked: URLs pointing to localhost, private or reserved network IPs, internal host names, or cloud metadata endpoints return an Error by design, as a security measure, not as a sign the target is down.
Frequently Asked Questions
It runs from ShowMyIP's server. The tool sends the request to the URL on our side and reports the result, so a Working status means our server could reach the address. A site that is blocked or down only from your own network may still show as Working here, and the reverse can also happen.
It is based solely on the final HTTP status code. Codes from 200 to 399 (success and redirects) are labeled Working, and everything else, including 4xx not-found errors and 5xx server errors, is labeled Broken. It is not a measure of page speed, content, or overall site health.
An Error appears when the tool could not complete the request at all. Common reasons are an invalid or unsupported URL, a host name that cannot be resolved, a connection or SSL failure, a request that exceeded the 10-second timeout, or a URL pointing to a blocked target such as a private or reserved IP, localhost, an internal host name, a cloud metadata endpoint, or a restricted port.
No. The tool follows up to 5 redirects internally but only reports the single final HTTP status code and the Working or Broken label. It does not display the list of redirect hops or how long the request took.
No. For security, the tool blocks requests to private and reserved IP addresses, localhost, internal host names, cloud metadata endpoints, and certain service ports. Such URLs return an Error rather than a status, because the tool is intended only for publicly reachable web addresses.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the check run from my computer or from ShowMyIP?
It runs from ShowMyIP's server. The tool sends the request to the URL on our side and reports the result, so a Working status means our server could reach the address. A site that is blocked or down only from your own network may still show as Working here, and the reverse can also happen.
What does the Working or Broken label actually mean?
It is based solely on the final HTTP status code. Codes from 200 to 399 (success and redirects) are labeled Working, and everything else, including 4xx not-found errors and 5xx server errors, is labeled Broken. It is not a measure of page speed, content, or overall site health.
Why did I get an Error instead of a status code?
An Error appears when the tool could not complete the request at all. Common reasons are an invalid or unsupported URL, a host name that cannot be resolved, a connection or SSL failure, a request that exceeded the 10-second timeout, or a URL pointing to a blocked target such as a private or reserved IP, localhost, an internal host name, a cloud metadata endpoint, or a restricted port.
Does it show me the redirect chain or response time?
No. The tool follows up to 5 redirects internally but only reports the single final HTTP status code and the Working or Broken label. It does not display the list of redirect hops or how long the request took.
Can I check a page on my home network or an internal company site?
No. For security, the tool blocks requests to private and reserved IP addresses, localhost, internal host names, cloud metadata endpoints, and certain service ports. Such URLs return an Error rather than a status, because the tool is intended only for publicly reachable web addresses.
Last reviewed:
How this tool works: This tool runs in your browser and on our server in real time. Depending on the tool, results are computed directly from the input you provide or retrieved from live, authoritative data sources at the moment you run a lookup. We do not sell your data, and your lookups are kept private — any history shown here is stored only on your device.