What Is a 301 Redirect, and When Does Your Website Need One?

Short answer: a 301 redirect is a permanent forward from an old web address to a new one. Anyone who visits the old address, whether a person or a search engine, is sent automatically to the new page. You need one whenever a page's address changes or a page is removed and has a sensible replacement.

What is a 301 redirect, in plain words?

Think of it as a change-of-address notice for a web page. When a page moves, the old address doesn't simply stop working. Instead, the server answers "this page has moved permanently" and points to the new address. The browser follows straight away, so visitors usually don't notice anything at all.

The number 301 is just the code servers use for "moved permanently".

When do you need one?

Redirects are needed more often than most business owners expect. Common situations:

• Renamed pages. You change /our-services to /services, or tidy up a blog post's address.
• Removed products or services. A product is discontinued, or two service pages are merged into one.
• A new domain. The business rebrands or moves to a new web address.
• Moving from http to https. Every old http address should forward to its secure version.
• www vs non-www. Pick one version of your address and redirect the other to it.

In each case, the old address may still be in search results, in other sites' links, in old emails and in people's bookmarks. A redirect makes sure all of those still lead somewhere useful.

What is the difference between 301 and 302?

A 301 redirect means the move is permanent. A 302 redirect means it's temporary, for example while a page is briefly offline or during a short promotion.

The difference matters for search. With a permanent redirect, search engines understand that the new address replaces the old one and should be shown instead. With a temporary redirect, they may keep the old address in results because they expect it to come back. If a move is permanent, use a 301.

What goes wrong without them?

When addresses change and nothing is redirected:

• Links break. Other websites, social posts and your own old emails point to pages that no longer exist.
• Bookmarks stop working. Returning customers land on an error page.
• Search results show 404s. People clicking from search see a "page not found" message, and search engines eventually drop the old page without knowing what replaced it.

Each of these loses visitors who were already trying to reach you.

What are the common mistakes?

• Redirect chains. Page A redirects to B, which redirects to C. Each extra step slows things down and makes it harder for search engines to follow. Point old addresses straight at the final page.
• Sending everything to the home page. It's tempting when a lot of pages change, but a visitor looking for a specific product or article is better served by the closest related page.
• Redirect loops. Page A sends to B and B sends back to A, so the page never loads. Always test after setting redirects up.
• Using a temporary redirect for a permanent move. As above, use a 301 when the change is permanent.

How should you plan redirects before a redesign?

The best time to plan redirects is before the new site goes live:

1. List every old address. Include pages, blog posts, products and categories. Your current sitemap is a good starting point; see what an XML sitemap is.
2. Map each one to its closest new page. Use a simple two-column list: old address, new address. Only use the home page if there's genuinely nothing closer.
3. Set the redirects up at launch, not weeks later.
4. Test after launch by visiting a sample of old addresses and checking each lands on the right page in one step.

How do you check it worked?

• Visit old addresses yourself and confirm they arrive at the right new page.
• Watch the coverage or page indexing reports in your search engine's webmaster tools over the following weeks for unexpected errors. If pages are dropping out, our guide on why search engines may not be indexing your pages can help.
• Update your sitemap so it lists only the new addresses.
• Update internal links so your own pages point directly to the new addresses, and make sure each page's canonical tag names the new address too.

Planning a redesign or URL change?

We plan and set up redirects, sitemaps and canonical tags so a move doesn't cost you visitors. See our technical search set-up service, or talk to us on WhatsApp.