You redesigned your site and changed all your URLs. You renamed a page slug. You moved to a new domain. Your old URLs are gone but they still have ranking power. Visitors still link to them. Search engines still know about them. Redirects preserve that power by telling search engines where the content moved. Get redirects right and you lose nothing. Get them wrong and you throw away years of built-up authority.
What are redirects?
A redirect is an instruction that sends visitors and search engines from one URL to another. When someone visits the old URL, the server says "that page moved. Go here instead" and sends them to the new URL automatically. Redirects preserve rankings because they transfer all the ranking power and authority from the old URL to the new one.
Without a redirect, an old URL would return a 404 (not found) and drop out of search results. All the links pointing to it would be wasted. All the authority would be lost. A redirect preserves it by saying "this page is still here, just at a new address."
301 redirects: permanent moves
A 301 redirect means "this page has permanently moved to a new URL." Search engines transfer all ranking power to the new URL. Links pointing to the old URL pass all their authority to the new one. Use 301 for permanent moves.
Google recommends 301 redirects for most permanent moves. The old URL eventually drops out of the search index as Google re-crawls and sees the 301. The new URL keeps all the ranking power.
301 redirects are permanent. They tell search engines to treat the move as permanent. If you change your mind and want to move the page again, you will create a redirect chain, which is inefficient.
302 redirects: temporary moves
A 302 redirect means "this page has temporarily moved to a new URL." Search engines keep the old URL in their index. They do not transfer ranking power. Use 302 only if you plan to move the page back to its original location.
In practice, most moves are permanent. Most sites never move a page back to its original URL. Using 302 for a permanent move wastes opportunity. Google now treats 302 redirects similarly to 301 (transferring ranking power), but 301 is still the correct choice for permanent moves.
If you are doing temporary maintenance or testing, use 302. If you are moving a page permanently, use 301.
Other redirect types
307 Temporary Redirect is like 302 but preserves the HTTP method (POST stays POST instead of converting to GET). Use for temporary redirects where method matters.
308 Permanent Redirect is like 301 but preserves the HTTP method. Use for permanent redirects where method matters.
Meta refreshes are HTML-based redirects that wait a few seconds before redirecting. They are not ideal for SEO. Use server-side redirects (301, 302) instead.
JavaScript redirects use code to redirect users. Search engines may or may not follow them. Avoid relying on JavaScript for important redirects. Use server-side redirects.
Setting up redirects
The method depends on your hosting and setup. Most CMS and website platforms have built-in redirect tools. Use those if available.
On Apache servers, use .htaccess. Add a line like: Redirect 301 /old-page /new-page
On Nginx servers, use the server configuration. Add: rewrite ^/old-page$ /new-page permanent;
Some hosting providers have redirect managers in their control panels. Check your hosting documentation.
Always use absolute URLs when possible. Point to the full URL (https://example.com/new-page) not relative paths (/new-page).
Redirect chains and best practices
Avoid redirect chains. A redirect chain happens when URL A redirects to URL B which redirects to URL C. Search engines follow the chain, but it wastes crawl budget and can lose some ranking power with each hop.
Always redirect to the final destination. If you are moving page A to URL B and URL B already exists, redirect A straight to B. Do not create an intermediate redirect.
Monitor redirect chains in Google Search Console and crawl tools. Find chains and consolidate them into single redirects.
Set up redirects before taking down old pages. If you delete a page and then set up a redirect, the redirect does not help the old URL. The page is already gone from the index.
Keep redirects for at least one year. Old redirects can eventually be removed, but keep them for a long time to catch any remaining inbound links and traffic.
When redirects lose ranking power
Long redirect chains lose power. Each redirect in the chain potentially loses some authority. Keep chains to one hop maximum.
Cross-domain redirects sometimes lose power. Redirecting from example.com to different-site.com may lose some authority. Within-domain redirects preserve authority better.
Slow redirects lose power. Redirects that take several seconds may lose some authority. Fast server-side redirects preserve authority best.
Frequently asked questions
Do 301 redirects lose any ranking power?
No, 301 redirects preserve all ranking power. Google explicitly says 301 redirects pass all PageRank to the new URL. However, very long redirect chains may lose some power with each hop. Keep redirects simple: old URL to new URL, no intermediate hops. With WEMASY's website builder, you can set this up directly on your website.
How long should I keep old redirects active?
At least one year, ideally longer. Keep redirects for two to three years to catch any remaining inbound links. Eventually you can remove them (old links will return 404), but the longer you keep them, the better. Some sites keep redirects permanently.
Can I redirect many old URLs to one new URL?
Technically yes, but avoid it when possible. If you merge many articles into one, you can redirect all the old URLs to the new one. However, this can confuse users (landing on content that may not match what they expected). When possible, redirect to closely related content instead.
Do 302 redirects pass ranking power?
Google says it now treats 302 redirects similarly to 301 (passing ranking power). However, 301 is still the correct and safe choice for permanent moves. If Google's behavior ever changes, 301 will protect you. Use 301 for permanent moves, 302 only for temporary redirects.
Should I use redirects or canonical tags?
They serve different purposes. Use redirects when you want to permanently move a page and eliminate the old URL. Use canonical tags when you want to keep multiple URLs but tell search engines which one to rank. If you are consolidating content, use a redirect. If you are managing duplicates, use a canonical tag.
How do I test if my redirect is working?
Use the URL Inspection tool in Google Search Console. Enter the old URL and Google will show you what it found. It should show the redirect and the final URL. Check that it points to the right place. You can also visit the old URL in your browser and confirm you are redirected to the new one.