HTTP Header CheckerGet HTTP Headers for Any URL

The Kwebby HTTP header checker fetches a URL and shows you the response headers the server sent back. Type an address, click Fetch, and read the status code, the final URL and a table of headers. This guide explains what each part of the result means, how redirects change it, and how to use the headers to check caching, compression and security settings. More server checks live in our Free Developer Tools.

Key Takeaways

• The Kwebby tool fetches any URL and shows its status code, status text, final URL and a full table of response headers.
• It follows redirects, lists each redirect hop with its status code and Location header, and shows the full headers of the final page.
• Eighteen key headers are starred and listed first, including content-type, cache-control, content-encoding, x-robots-tag and strict-transport-security.
• According to MDN, headers let the client and the server pass extra information with a request or a response.
• Google recommends the X-Robots-Tag header to block indexing of non-HTML files such as PDFs.
• The tool is free and needs no account.

What Is the Kwebby Get HTTP Headers Tool?

The Kwebby Get HTTP Headers tool is a free online HTTP header checker that fetches a web address and lists the response headers the server returned. You enter a URL, the tool makes the request for you, and the result appears below the box.

MDN describes HTTP headers this way: they let the client and the server pass additional information with a message in a request or response. A response header is the server's side of that exchange.

Key Features and How It Works

The result has up to three parts: a summary card on top, a list of redirect hops when the address redirected, and a header table. The tool sends a GET request with a browser user agent, as a browser would, and shows the response time.

Status Code and Final URL

The summary card shows the status code in large type, with the status text and the final URL under it. The color tells you the class of response: green for codes below 300, orange for 300 to 399, and red for 400 and above.

For a test on https://example.com on 4 October 2026, the card showed 200 OK. An address that does not exist on the same site, such as example.org/nothing-here-xyz, returned 404 Not Found.

A Header and Value Table

The table lists every header the server sent, with the header name on the left and its value on the right. Eighteen headers that matter for caching, SEO and security get a star and appear at the top:

• content-type
• server
• cache-control
• x-powered-by
• strict-transport-security
• x-frame-options
• x-content-type-options
• content-encoding
• set-cookie
• location
• access-control-allow-origin
• x-robots-tag
• content-security-policy
• etag
• vary
• referrer-policy
• permissions-policy
• last-modified

Every other header still appears in the table, just without a star.

Redirects Are Followed

The tool follows up to 10 redirects one hop at a time. If the address you entered redirected, a Redirect Hops box lists each hop with its status code, its URL and its Location header, and the summary card shows the final status and URL with the note "Redirected from original URL". A test on http://github.com on 4 October 2026 ended on a 200 status at https://github.com/.

The header table shows the headers of the final response only. To compare how the http, https, www and non-www versions of a domain redirect, use the WWW Redirect Checker.

What the Main HTTP Headers Mean

Each header answers a narrow question about the response. These are the ones you will meet most often:

• Content-Type gives the media type of the response, such as text/html.
• Cache-Control sets caching rules. MDN explains that max-age=N keeps a response fresh for N seconds, no-cache requires validation before each reuse, no-store tells caches not to store the response, and private allows only a browser cache.
• Content-Encoding shows whether the server compresses responses, with values such as gzip or br.
• Strict-Transport-Security tells browsers to use only HTTPS for the host. MDN notes that a host must send it over HTTPS, because browsers ignore it over plain HTTP.
• Location appears on redirect responses and gives the new address.
• X-Robots-Tag carries indexing rules for any file type.
• Server and X-Powered-By can name the web server or software behind a site.
• Set-Cookie sends a cookie to the browser.

Why Checking HTTP Headers Matters

Headers decide how browsers, caches and crawlers treat a response, so a wrong value can change what users and search engines get. A missing compression header means larger files over the wire. A short cache lifetime means repeat visitors download the same file again. A 404 where you expected a 200 means a page is not reachable.

A header check takes seconds and shows the facts: the server sends what it sends. That makes it a quick first step when a page loads slowly, a file will not cache, or a PDF shows up in search results when it should not.

How to Use the HTTP Header Checker

1. Open the tool and click the box that reads https://example.com.
2. Type or paste the full address of the page or file you want to check.
3. Click Fetch, or press Enter. The button reads "Fetching..." while the request runs.
4. Read the status code, the status text and the final address in the summary card.
5. If you see "Redirected from original URL", note the final address, because the headers below belong to it.
6. Scan the starred headers first, then read the rest of the table.

If a red message appears, such as "Unable to resolve hostname", check the address for typos.

Best Practices for Reading Headers

Check the Final URL First

Confirm the final address matches the page you meant to test. If the tool redirected you to a different host or protocol, the headers describe that page, not the one you typed.

Look for Compression

Find content-encoding in the table. A value of gzip or br means the server compressed the response. If the header is missing on a text page, run the Check Gzip Compression tool next.

Read Cache-Control With Its Directives

A value such as max-age=14400 keeps a response fresh for four hours, according to the MDN definition. Compare the lifetime with how often the file really changes. Use no-store only for responses that no cache should keep.

Use X-Robots-Tag for Non-HTML Files

Google says to use the X-Robots-Tag response header to block indexing of non-HTML resources, such as PDF, video and image files. Check the Google robots meta tag guide for the exact rules, then use the header check to confirm your server sends them.

Decide What to Reveal

The server and x-powered-by headers can name your web server and software. Decide whether you want that information public, and remove what you do not need.

Pair HSTS With a Valid Certificate

If you see strict-transport-security, confirm the certificate behind it is healthy with the SSL Checker.

Common Use Cases

• Caching checks. Read cache-control and etag to see how browsers and CDNs will store a file.
• Compression checks. Confirm that content-encoding is present on HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
• Security reviews. Look for strict-transport-security, x-frame-options and x-content-type-options.
• File indexing. Check that PDFs and images send the x-robots-tag you set.
• Status checks. See whether a URL returns 200, 404 or a server error.
• Speed work. Fix caching, then measure the result with the Page Speed Checker.

Related Kwebby Tools

• Check Gzip Compression tests whether a site compresses its responses.
• WWW Redirect Checker tests redirect behavior for your domain.
• SSL Checker checks the HTTPS certificate of a site.
• Page Speed Checker tests how quickly a page loads.
• Get Source Code of Webpage shows the HTML behind the headers.
• Server Status Checker checks whether a site is up.

Final Thoughts

Headers show how a server really answers a request, so they settle many questions that guessing cannot. Enter your most important URL now, check the status, the cache lifetime and the content encoding, and note anything that looks wrong. Then run the Check Gzip Compression tool to test compression in more detail.