301 Redirect
Permanent redirect from old URL to new. Passes SEO weight, unlike 302.
Full definition
301 redirect is the HTTP "Moved Permanently" status indicating a page has permanently moved to a new URL. Transfers ~100% of SEO equity from the old address to the new one.
When to use
- •Site URL structure changes
- •HTTP to HTTPS migration
- •Domain name change
- •Merging two pages into one
- •Closing an old section with content relocation
- •Consolidating www / non-www versions
301 vs 302 vs 307
| Code | Purpose | Passes SEO equity | |---|---|---| | 301 | Permanent | ✅ 100% | | 302 | Temporary | ❌ no | | 307 | Temporary (HTTP/1.1) | ❌ no |
Using 302 instead of 301 is a common mistake, especially during migrations. Google eventually "understands" intent, but the process takes months.
How to set up
Nginx:
location /old-page {
return 301 https://example.com/new-page;
}Apache (.htaccess):
Redirect 301 /old-page /new-pageWordPress: Yoast SEO, Rank Math, Redirection plugins.
Top mistakes
1. Redirect chains — A → B → C → D. Google loses equity. Max 3 hops, ideally 1. 2. Circular redirect — A → B → A. Browser error 508. 3. Redirect to irrelevant page — drops CTR and behavioral signals. 4. 301 instead of 410 for deleted pages — leaves useless URLs in the index.