Security Headers Checker — Grade & Fix HTTP Headers
Audit HTTP security headers and get a letter grade. Copy ready-made Apache, Nginx, and Cloudflare config snippets to fix issues fast. Free and instant.
What is a Security Headers Checker?
The Security Headers Checker fetches the HTTP response headers for any URL and evaluates them against the current web security baseline. It checks for the presence and correctness of Content-Security-Policy, X-Frame-Options, X-Content-Type-Options, Strict-Transport-Security, Referrer-Policy, and Permissions-Policy. Each check produces a pass, warning, or fail result, and the tool assigns an overall letter grade from A to F.
When Should You Use Security Headers Checker?
Run this on your site before a launch, after a hosting or CDN migration, or any time your web server configuration changes. It is useful for security audits, client reports, and verifying that a new server environment has been hardened correctly. While security headers are not a direct ranking factor, HTTPS enforcement and mixed-content prevention can affect how pages are crawled and whether browsers flag them as insecure.
How to Read Security Headers Checker Results
A letter grade of A or B indicates a solid security posture. C and below means important headers are missing or misconfigured. Focus on critical failures first — missing HSTS on an HTTPS site, or no Content-Security-Policy on pages that handle user input or payment data, are the highest-priority issues to resolve.
What Should You Know Before Using Security Headers Checker?
The tool generates copy-paste configuration snippets for Apache, Nginx, and Cloudflare for every recommended header — use these directly rather than writing rules from scratch. If you are on managed hosting, check whether headers can be added via .htaccess or a Cloudflare Transform Rule. After making changes, re-run the checker to confirm new headers are being served correctly before marking the work done.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are HTTP security headers?
HTTP security headers are server response headers that instruct browsers how to handle a page's content. They protect against clickjacking (X-Frame-Options), cross-site scripting (Content-Security-Policy), and protocol downgrade attacks (Strict-Transport-Security). Implementing them correctly hardens site security without directly affecting SEO rankings.
What is a Content Security Policy header?
Content-Security-Policy (CSP) tells the browser which sources of scripts, styles, and images are trusted for a given page. It is the primary defence against XSS attacks, preventing malicious scripts injected via third-party plugins or ad networks from executing on your pages.
What is HSTS and why is it important?
HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) forces browsers to connect to your site over HTTPS only, eliminating the vulnerability window between an initial HTTP request and the redirect to HTTPS. Without HSTS, attackers can intercept that first request and downgrade the connection to steal data.
Do security headers affect Google rankings?
Security headers are not a direct ranking factor. However, HTTPS is a confirmed signal, and HSTS enforces it consistently. Mixed content warnings caused by missing Content-Security-Policy can prevent pages from loading correctly in Chrome, affecting user experience metrics that indirectly influence rankings.
How do I add security headers to WordPress?
The Security Headers Checker provides copy-paste config snippets for Apache, Nginx, and Cloudflare. For WordPress, add headers via .htaccess (for Apache hosting) or a plugin such as Headers & Footers by WPCode. After adding headers, re-run the checker to confirm all are being served correctly.
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