Attempting to navigate to an online banking portal, shopping site, or productivity web service in Safari on your Mac, only to be blocked by an error message stating “Safari cannot open the page because too many redirects occurred” is an infuriating roadblock. This error indicates an infinite redirection loop: server A tells Safari to visit server B, which in turn bounces the browser back to server A, continuing until Safari triggers a safety threshold and aborts the connection.
While server-side configuration faults can create redirection loops, the vast majority of occurrences in Safari on macOS stem from client-side authentication discrepancies. Stale browser cookies storing expired session tokens, conflicting website data caches, erroneous system clock timestamps, or misrouted network packets via iCloud Private Relay frequently confuse web servers into repeatedly redirecting the user. This guide details how to resolve redirect loops in Safari.
Method 1: Clear Website Data and Cookies for the Specific Domain
Rather than clearing your entire browsing history and logging out of every website on your Mac, Safari allows you to surgically remove cookies and cached files solely for the problematic website.
- Open Safari on your Mac.
- Click Safari in the top menu bar and select Settings… (or Preferences… on older macOS versions).
- Click the Privacy tab.
- Click the Manage Website Data… button.
- In the search box in the upper-right corner of the dialogue, type the domain name of the failing website (e.g., example.com).
- Select the website from the filtered search results.
- Click Remove at the bottom of the list, then click Done.
- Close Safari Settings, return to the webpage, and refresh to initiate a completely fresh login handshake.
Method 2: Empty the Safari Browser Cache via Developer Menu
Cached redirect headers (such as permanent HTTP 301 responses) are saved in Safari’s internal web cache. Emptying this cache purges outdated routing instructions.
- If the Develop menu is not visible in your top menu bar: go to Safari > Settings > Advanced and check the box labelled “Show features for web developers” (or “Show Develop menu in menu bar”).
- Click Develop in the top menu bar.
- Select Empty Caches (or press Option + Command + E).
- Quit Safari completely by pressing Command + Q.
- Relaunch Safari and attempt to load the target URL.
Method 3: Test Website in a Private Browsing Window
Opening a Private Browsing window provides an instantaneous diagnostic test because Private windows run in an isolated sandbox completely devoid of stored cookies, local storage, or cached routing rules.
- In Safari, click File in the top menu bar.
- Select New Private Window (or press Shift + Command + N).
- Enter the target website address and press Return.
- If the website loads perfectly without a redirect loop, your issue is 100% confirmed to be local cookies or extension interference, which can be resolved via Method 1 and Method 4.
Method 4: Temporarily Disable iCloud Private Relay
iCloud Private Relay encrypts DNS requests and routes web traffic through two separate internet relays. Certain regional websites and corporate portals that enforce strict IP-geo matching enter infinite redirect loops when Private Relay alters your visible IP address between page requests.
- Click the Apple menu () and select System Settings.
- Click your Apple Account name at the top of the sidebar.
- Select iCloud, then click Private Relay.
- Toggle the switch to Turn Off.
- You can choose “Turn Off Until Tomorrow” to test temporary connectivity.
- Return to Safari and refresh the problematic website.
Safari Redirect Loop Troubleshooting Reference Table
Refer to this diagnostic matrix to quickly identify the root trigger of Safari redirection loops:
| Observed Symptom | Probable Root Cause | Recommended Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| Loop occurs after login or password reset | Stale session authentication cookie conflict | Remove specific website data in Safari Privacy settings |
| Website works in Private Window only | Corrupted local storage or browser extension hook | Empty Caches (Opt+Cmd+E); disable content blockers |
| Loop strikes banking or regional government sites | iCloud Private Relay dual-hop IP switching | Disable iCloud Private Relay in System Settings |
| Redirect loops across all browsers on Mac | System clock desynchronisation invalidating SSL | Set Date & Time to “Set automatically” in Settings |
| Error persists across multiple network devices | Server-side .htaccess or web server redirect loop | Contact website webmaster; issue is server-side |
Verifying System Date and Time Accuracy
Secure HTTPS websites issue cryptographic authentication cookies tied to strict UTC timestamps. If your Mac system clock is skewed even by a few minutes, servers will reject the session cookie as expired upon issuance, immediately redirecting back to the login gateway. Go to System Settings > General > Date & Time and verify that Set time and date automatically is enabled with Apple’s time server (time.apple.com).