What 301 redirect means
When URLs change during a redesign or migration, 301 redirects keep visitors from hitting dead ends and carry most ranking value to the new page. Skipping a redirect plan is one of the fastest ways to lose search traffic after a relaunch. Map every important old URL before launch.
Why it matters for your website
When you change a URL without a redirect, people clicking old links and bookmarks hit a dead end, and the links other sites gave you stop helping. A 301 passes visitors and search signals to the new page, so a redesign or URL cleanup does not quietly wipe out traffic you already earned.
Example
A dental office renames its page from /services/teeth-whitening.html to /teeth-whitening. A 301 from the old address sends patients and Google straight to the new page.
Tips
- Map every old URL to its closest new match before launching a redesign.
- Redirect directly to the final URL instead of chaining several redirects together.
- Update your internal links to the new URL too, rather than relying on the redirect forever.
Common mistakes
- Sending every old page to the homepage, which confuses visitors and search engines.
- Deleting redirects a few months after a migration while old links still point to those URLs.
Questions about 301 redirect
What is 301 redirect?
A permanent redirect that sends visitors and search engines from an old URL to a new one.
Do 301 redirects hurt SEO?
No. Google has said redirects do not cause a loss of ranking signals when they point to a relevant page. Problems usually come from redirecting to unrelated pages or creating long redirect chains.
How long should I keep a 301 redirect in place?
Google recommends keeping redirects for at least a year, and many sites keep them indefinitely. If old links still exist anywhere on the web, leaving the redirect up costs very little.
