A permanent server instruction that sends users and crawlers from an old URL to a new one.
ID
SS-DF-026
Confidence
High · 91
Evidence
Strong
Updated
2026-07-08
Definition
A permanent server instruction that sends users and crawlers from an old URL to a new one.
A 301 redirect is an HTTP response that permanently forwards a request from one URL to another, telling search engines the resource has moved for good. It preserves the large majority of ranking signals, making it the correct choice when changing URLs, migrating domains or consolidating duplicate pages. Redirecting to a closely relevant destination matters, as redirects to irrelevant pages or the homepage are often treated as soft 404s and lose their value.