# 301 Redirect

The HTTP status code that refers to permanently redirecting one URL to another; it transfers all SEO value from the old page to the new page.

**301 Redirect (Permanent Redirect)** is the HTTP status code that tells search engines a URL has been moved _permanently_ to another URL. All traffic and SEO value coming to the old URL (PageRank, backlinks, anchor text context) are transferred to the new URL.

Situations where a 301 redirect should be used:

- Site redesign or URL structure changes
- Domain change
- Migration from HTTP to HTTPS
- Standardization between WWW and non-WWW
- Merging two similar pieces of content
- Redirecting old/deleted pages to relevant new pages

301 best practices:

- Redirect to a relevant page with similar content (redirecting to an unrelated page is considered a “soft 404”)
- Do not create redirect chains (A → B → C; use A → C instead)
- Avoid infinite loops (A → B → A)
- Implement redirects at the server level (htaccess, nginx); JavaScript redirects are a weaker signal

**Tip:** Before a site redesign, be sure to create an old URL → new URL map. After the redesign, monitor the “404” report in Search Console and complete redirects for any pages that were missed.