301 vs. 302 Redirects: Which to Use for SEO?

When we manage a website, choosing the right type of redirect is extremely important. This not only ensures user experience but also maintains SEO performance. In this article, we'll explain the difference between 301 (permanent) and 302 (temporary) redirects, provide practical examples of their use, and explain their impact on SEO.

Summary of 301 and 302 redirects

What are HTTP response status codes?

When you visit a website, your browser (like Chrome or Safari) requests the website's server to send the page. Search engines also request this information so they can index and rank the page. The server responds with a message that tells the browser or search engine whether the request was successful or whether there were any problems. These messages are called HTTP response status codes.

There are five main categories of HTTP status codes:

• Informational Response (1xx): means that the server has received the request and is working on it, but the process is not complete.
• Successful response (2xx): Everything went well. The server received the request, understood it, and provided the expected page.
• Redirection Response (3xx): This indicates that the webpage has moved somewhere else, and the browser or search engine must navigate to the new location.
• Client Error Response (4xx): This causes problems like the page not being found (eg: 404 Not Found).
• Server Error Response (5xx): The server could not complete the request, usually due to something wrong with the server.

What is a 301 redirect?

A 301 redirect tells browsers and search engines that a webpage has been permanently moved to a new URL. This signals that the original URL should no longer be used, and all traffic should be sent to the new location. According to Google's John Mueller, it's a good practice to maintain 301 redirects for at least a year. By doing this, any links related to the old URL do not get broken.

When to use 301 redirects?

• URL change or transfer: When you change the URL of a page for better organization.
• fixing broken pages: If a page has been removed, use a 301 redirect.
• Switching to a new domain: If you change your domain name, send traffic from the old domain to the new one.
• cleaning and matching pages: If you are merging similar pages into one.
• Redirecting campaign landing pages: Send traffic to the permanent page after promotion.

What is a 302 redirect?

A 302 redirect tells browsers and search engines that a webpage has been temporarily moved to a new URL. This indicates that the original URL will be used again in the future.

When to use 302 redirect?

• Testing or updating the page: When you are working on the page and need to send users to another version temporarily.
• A/B testing: If you want to test two versions of the page.
• temporarily promote another page: If you're running a short-term promotion.
• maintenance or downtime: If you need to take a page offline for maintenance.

Impact of 301 and 302 redirects on SEO

Search engines treat 301 and 302 redirects differently. When using 301, Google transfers the ranking power and backlinks of the old URL to the new location. In contrast, with a 302, Google typically does not pass the ranking power of the old URL to the new URL.

How to implement a redirect

Setting server-side redirects requires redirect headers with server configuration files (e.g., .htaccess file on Apache) or server-side scripts (e.g., PHP).

Tips for WordPress users

• Redirection Plugin: To manage 301 redirects and track 404 errors.
• Simple 301 Redirects Plugin: To create a simple permanent redirect.

Conclusion

Understanding the differences between 301 and 302 redirects is important for maintaining your website's SEO and easily directing users to the correct pages. By choosing the right type of redirect, you can protect your site's ranking power.