301 vs 302 Redirect: Which One to Use (and What Google Actually Does)

A redirect is one line of server config. Pick the wrong one and a page you moved months ago can keep showing its old URL in Google, a migration can take far longer to settle, and a "temporary" campaign redirect can quietly become the version of your page that ranks.

The difference between a 301 and a 302 is simple to state and easy to get wrong in practice. This guide covers what each one tells search engines, whether link value really passes through a 302, where 307 and 308 fit in, how to set redirects up on common platforms, and the mistakes that cost sites traffic.

The short answer#

If the change is permanent, use a 301. If the old URL is coming back, use a 302. Most redirect problems come from using a 302 for something that was never temporary.

What a 301 redirect does#

A 301 tells browsers and search engines that the page has moved permanently to a new address. Browsers cache it, so returning visitors go straight to the new URL. Google treats it as a strong signal that the destination should be the canonical version: over time it swaps the old URL out of its index and shows the new one, and the links pointing at the old URL count towards the new one.

Use a 301 when:

• You change a URL (a new slug, a new folder structure, a renamed product).
• You merge two articles into one and redirect the weaker one.
• You move from HTTP to HTTPS, from non-www to www (or the reverse), or to a new domain.
• You delete a page that has a clear replacement.

What a 302 redirect does#

A 302 says the page is temporarily somewhere else and will come back. Google keeps the original URL as the canonical one and generally keeps showing it in search results, because you have told it the move is not final.

Use a 302 when:

• You run an A/B test that sends some visitors to a variant URL.
• A product is out of stock for a few days and you send visitors to a category.
• A page is under maintenance and you point it to a holding page.
• You route visitors by country, language or device, and the original URL should stay the main one.

Does a 302 pass link value?#

This is the most repeated myth in redirect advice. Google has said for years that 3xx redirects don't lose PageRank, and its documentation treats both permanent and temporary redirects as signals it follows. So a 302 does not "throw away" link value.

What actually differs is which URL Google considers the main one. With a 301, the destination becomes canonical and collects the value. With a 302, the original URL stays canonical, so the destination page usually doesn't rank in its place. If you meant the move to be permanent, that's the problem: your new page waits in the shadows while the old URL keeps the spot.

Google also says that a temporary redirect left in place for a long time may eventually be treated as permanent. "Eventually" is not a plan. If a move is permanent, say so with a 301.

307, 308 and other redirect types#

301 and 302 are not the only options. Google's documentation groups redirects like this:

The difference between 301 and 308 (and between 302 and 307) matters for forms and APIs: 307 and 308 guarantee that a POST stays a POST. For normal pages, Google treats 301 and 308 the same way, and 302 and 307 the same way. Some platforms use 308 and 307 by default, which is fine for SEO.

How to set up a redirect#

Apache (.htaccess):

Redirect 301 /old-page https://example.com/new-page
Redirect 302 /sale https://example.com/holiday-sale

Nginx:

location = /old-page { return 301 https://example.com/new-page; }
location = /sale { return 302 https://example.com/holiday-sale; }

WordPress: use a redirect plugin or the redirect manager built into your SEO plugin. Pick the 301 or 302 type explicitly for each rule.

Shopify: in your admin, search for "URL redirects". Shopify's URL redirects are permanent (301), which is what you want for moved products and collections.

Netlify: add rules to a _redirects file. Rules are 301 by default, and you can add 302 at the end of a line for a temporary one.

Vercel and Next.js: redirects use permanent: true (sent as a 308) or permanent: false (sent as a 307). Google treats those the same as 301 and 302.

How to check a redirect#

Never assume a redirect works because the page "looks right" in your browser. Browsers cache 301s, so your own browser can hide a broken rule.

1. Use a redirect checker. MyKavo's free Redirect Chain Checker shows every hop, the status code of each one and the final destination, so you can see a 302 that should be a 301, or a chain of three hops that should be one.
2. Use the command line. curl -I https://example.com/old-page shows the status code and the Location header without following the redirect.
3. Check Search Console. In Indexing > Pages, "Page with redirect" lists URLs Google found redirecting. URL Inspection shows which URL Google picked as canonical.
4. Check in bulk after a migration. Paste your old URLs into a bulk URL status checker and confirm every one returns a single 301 to the right page.

The redirect mistakes that cost traffic#

A 302 that was never temporary. The most common one. A developer or plugin used a 302 during a launch "for now", and two years later the old URL still shows in search. Audit your redirects and switch permanent moves to 301.

Redirect chains. http://example.com → https://example.com → https://www.example.com → https://www.example.com/home. Every hop adds a delay for visitors, and Google stops following after a limited number of hops (up to 10). Point every old URL straight at its final destination.

Redirect loops. Page A redirects to B, and B back to A. Visitors get an error, and the page disappears from search. Loops usually come from two rules fighting each other, for example a plugin and a server rule both forcing a trailing slash.

Redirecting everything to the homepage. Tempting after a redesign, but visitors land somewhere irrelevant and Google often treats mass homepage redirects as soft 404s, so the old pages' value doesn't carry over. Redirect each URL to its closest match.

Removing redirects too early. Google recommends keeping redirects for at least a year after a move. Remove them sooner and old links and bookmarks start hitting 404s again.

Internal links still pointing at old URLs. Redirects are a safety net, not a linking strategy. Update your navigation, sitemaps and internal links to the new URLs so crawlers and visitors don't take a detour on every click.

Redirecting to a page that redirects again, or to a 404. After a second migration, old redirects often point at URLs that have since moved. Re-check old redirect rules every time you restructure.

Keep redirects from breaking silently#

Redirects change without anyone deciding to change them: a plugin update adds a trailing-slash rule, a CDN setting forces a new hostname, a developer leaves a test redirect live. Nothing errors. Pages just start sending visitors and crawlers somewhere else.

MyKavo watches the pages you choose against an approved baseline and alerts you when a page starts redirecting, when its redirect destination changes, or when it begins returning a 404 or 500, with the before and after side by side. If you're planning a bigger move, our guide to redesigning a website without losing SEO walks through the redirect map step by step.

The bottom line#

Use a 301 (or 308) when a page has moved for good, and a 302 (or 307) only when the original URL is coming back. Point every old URL straight at its final destination, keep redirects for at least a year, and update your internal links.

Check your most important URLs now with the free Redirect Chain Checker, then start free with MyKavo so you hear about the next unexpected redirect the day it appears.