Redirects send users and search engines from one URL to another. They are essential for keeping a site healthy as it evolves — but choosing the wrong type can quietly cost you rankings. The two you will use most are the 301 (permanent) and the 302 (temporary), and understanding the difference is one of the most practical pieces of technical SEO knowledge.

301: permanent redirect

A 301 tells search engines that a page has moved permanently to a new URL. Crucially, it passes the ranking signals — links, authority and history — from the old URL to the new one. Use a 301 whenever a move is permanent: changing a URL, merging two pages, migrating to HTTPS, or consolidating duplicate content. This is the redirect you will reach for most of the time.

302: temporary redirect

A 302 signals that a page has moved only temporarily and the original will return. Because the move is temporary, Google generally keeps the original URL indexed and does not transfer ranking signals the way a 301 does. Use a 302 only for genuinely short-term situations: A/B testing, a temporary promotion, or a page that is briefly unavailable.

The cost of choosing wrong

The most common mistake is using a 302 when you mean a 301 — often because a platform or plugin defaults to 302. If you permanently move a page but use a 302, you risk Google keeping the old URL indexed and not fully transferring authority to the new page, which can stall or drop your rankings. When in doubt for a permanent change, use a 301.

Other redirect types

  • 307 — the HTTP/1.1 temporary redirect, similar in effect to a 302.
  • 308 — a permanent redirect that preserves the request method; behaves like a 301 for SEO.
  • Meta refresh and JavaScript redirects — slower and less reliable for SEO; prefer server-side redirects.

Avoid redirect chains and loops

A redirect chain (A redirects to B, which redirects to C) wastes crawl budget, slows users, and can leak a little authority at each hop. A redirect loop traps users entirely. Always redirect directly to the final destination in a single hop. Trace the full chain of any URL with the Redirect & HTTP Status Checker to spot and collapse these problems.

How to implement and verify redirects

On Apache servers, redirects are typically set in the .htaccess file. Generate clean, correct rules — including HTTP-to-HTTPS and www handling — with the .htaccess Redirect Generator. After implementing, confirm the status code and final destination with the Redirect & HTTP Status Checker and inspect the raw response with the HTTP Header Checker.

Frequently asked questions

Do 301 redirects pass full link authority?

Yes, essentially. Google has stated that 301 (and 308) redirects pass full PageRank, with no meaningful loss. This is why the 301 is the standard choice for permanent moves where you want to preserve rankings.

How long should I keep a redirect in place?

Keep permanent (301) redirects for as long as possible — ideally indefinitely — so any lingering links and bookmarks to the old URL continue to work and pass value. Removing them too early can resurrect 404 errors and waste the authority you preserved.

Conclusion

The rule is simple: use a 301 for permanent moves to preserve rankings, and a 302 only for genuinely temporary changes. Avoid chains, redirect in a single hop, and keep permanent redirects in place long-term. Generate rules with the .htaccess Redirect Generator and verify them with the Redirect & HTTP Status Checker as part of your technical SEO audit.

Whenever you make a structural change — renaming a category, retiring a product, or reorganizing your blog — make redirect planning part of the task rather than an afterthought. Map every old URL to its closest new equivalent before you publish the change, and verify the redirects immediately afterward. Pages that simply 404 lose every bit of authority they had earned, while a clean 301 carries that value forward. Treating redirects as a first-class part of any migration is what separates sites that grow through change from those that quietly lose ground.