301 vs 302 Redirect: Which One Is Right for SEO?
Understanding the difference between 301 and 302 redirects is one of the most fundamental steps in technical SEO. Choosing the wrong redirect type can lead to lost link equity, incorrect indexing by Google, and a drop in search rankings. Both redirect types send a browser or search engine bot from one URL to another — but the meaning of that move and its impact on SEO are very different.
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What Is a 301 Redirect
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A 301 redirect (permanent redirect) is an HTTP status code that tells the server a page has permanently moved to a new address. When Google encounters this code, it removes the old URL from its index and replaces it with the new one. The majority of backlinks pointing to the old page are transferred to the new URL.
Use a 301 redirect in these situations:
Domain migration: moving from old-domain.com to new-domain.com
Forcing HTTP to HTTPS across your site
Moving deleted or merged pages to a new URL
Setting a canonical preference between www and non-www versions
Preserving old links after restructuring your URL architecture
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For any long-term address change, a 301 is the safest choice from an SEO standpoint.
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What Is a 302 Redirect
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A 302 redirect (temporary redirect) sends a browser or bot to a different address on a temporary basis. When Google sees this code, it keeps the original URL in its index — because it expects the page to return soon. Link equity is not fully transferred.
Use a 302 redirect in these situations:
Sending users to a maintenance page while your site is being updated
Routing traffic to an alternate URL for short-term A/B testing
Temporarily redirecting logged-out users to a login page
Short-term redirects for seasonal campaign pages
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Using a 302 for permanent changes leads to both indexing errors and wasted link equity.
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The Core SEO Difference
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When Google sees a 301, it treats the destination URL as the final target and transfers link equity accordingly. With a 302, the original URL remains in the index. This can cause two URLs to compete in search results — creating canonicalization conflicts.
A common real-world mistake: developers use 302 redirects during a site rebuild or URL update for convenience, then forget to switch them to 301s after the migration is complete. Google can then spend months oscillating between two URLs, potentially causing ranking losses in the process.
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307 and 308 Redirects
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With HTTP/1.1 came two additional codes: 307 (Temporary Redirect), the modern equivalent of 302, preserves the request method (GET/POST) during the temporary redirect. 308 (Permanent Redirect) is the method-preserving version of 301. From an SEO standpoint, 301 and 302 remain more widely used and well-supported, though 307 is also commonly used for HTTPS redirects.
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Avoid Redirect Chains
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Every redirect causes the browser or bot to make an additional HTTP request. Redirect chains — A → B → C — increase page load time and consume a portion of your link equity along the way. If your site has a redirect chain, shorten it: A should redirect directly to C.
At Blakfy, we examine redirect structures in detail during technical SEO audits, flagging improper 302 usage and redirect chains in our reports. If you'd like an assessment of your site's current redirect setup, learn more about our technical SEO services.
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Setting Up Redirects with .htaccess
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On Apache-based servers, you can define redirects by adding the following lines to your .htaccess file:
301 redirect for a single page:
Redirect 301 /old-page https://www.yoursite.com/new-page
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Redirect HTTP to HTTPS (301):
RewriteEngine On RewriteCond %{HTTPS} off RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://%{HTTP_HOST}%{REQUEST_URI} [L,R=301]
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Temporary 302 redirect:
Redirect 302 /campaign https://www.yoursite.com/campaign-2025
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Setting Up Redirects with Nginx
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In an Nginx server block, redirects are defined as follows:
Permanent 301 redirect — domain migration:
server { listen 80; server_name old-domain.com; return 301 https://new-domain.com$request_uri; }
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Temporary 302 redirect for a single URL:
location /old-page { return 302 https://www.yoursite.com/temporary-page; }
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How to Test Your Redirects
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There are several ways to verify a redirect type:
Open your browser's developer tools (F12), go to the Network tab, and visit the URL. The Status Code column will show 301 or 302.
Use a crawl tool like Screaming Frog to audit all redirects across your site in bulk.
Google Search Console's Coverage report lists pages affected by redirect errors.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Does a 301 redirect pass link equity completely?
Google states the transfer rate is close to 100%, but a full transfer is never guaranteed. Avoid creating redirect chains to preserve as much link equity as possible.
Which redirect should I use for HTTPS migration?
Switching from HTTP to HTTPS is permanent — use a 301 (or 307 on modern servers).
I accidentally used a 302 — what should I do?
Switch the 302 to a 301. It can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months for Google to recognize the change; monitor Search Console during that period.
Do I need to create individual redirects for every old URL?
If your URL structure is changing site-wide, you can use pattern-based redirect rules (in .htaccess or an Nginx config) to handle bulk redirects efficiently.
