What Is a 301 Redirect?
When a server returns a 301 status code in response to a request, it includes a Location header pointing to the new URL. Browsers automatically follow the redirect and display the destination page. Search engine crawlers follow the redirect, update their index to reflect the new URL, and transfer the accumulated link equity from the old address to the new one.
A 301 differs from a 302 redirect (temporary) and a 307 redirect (temporary, method-safe). For permanent URL changes — moving a page, restructuring a site, or switching domains — 301 is almost always the correct choice.
- The browser sends a request for the old URL; the server replies with 301 + Location header
- Google follows the 301 and eventually replaces the old URL with the new one in its index
- Link equity transfer from a 301 is estimated at 99% — effectively lossless
How 301 Redirects Affect SEO
When you retire a URL and replace it with a new one, all backlinks pointing to the old address still have value — but only if you capture that value with a 301. Without a redirect, a browser requesting the old URL typically gets a 404 error. All the link equity built up by that URL is permanently lost.
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See your internal link equity in 30 seconds →Redirect chains — sequences of multiple successive redirects — dilute equity at each hop and slow down crawling. Every additional hop in a redirect chain increases latency and reduces the equity eventually reaching the final destination. Aim to resolve all chains to single-hop redirects.
- 301 redirects preserve backlink equity during URL changes and site migrations
- Redirect chains dilute equity — always resolve to a single hop where possible
- Internal links should be updated to point directly to the final URL, not through a redirect
Auditing and Managing Redirects
After any migration, run a crawl to verify every redirect returns exactly 301 (not 302 or 307), resolves in a single hop, and lands on a 200-status page with relevant content. A redirect to a 404 or soft-404 destination wastes all the equity it was meant to preserve.
Internal links pointing through redirects waste crawl budget and add latency. Update them to link directly to the final URL. Screaming Frog's redirect chains report makes it easy to identify which internal links still route through old URLs.
- Verify every redirect chain resolves to a live 200-status destination
- Update all internal links to point to the final URL, bypassing any redirects
- Monitor for redirect loops — two URLs each redirecting to the other — which cause crawl failures
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Find your site's weakest links before Google does →Frequently Asked Questions
- Does a 301 redirect pass PageRank?
- Yes. Google has confirmed that 301 redirects pass effectively all link equity from the source URL to the destination. The transfer is not instant — it may take several crawl cycles — but the equity is preserved.
- What is the difference between 301 and 302 redirects?
- A 301 is permanent: search engines update their index to the new URL and transfer equity. A 302 is temporary: search engines keep the original URL in their index and do not permanently transfer equity. Always use 301 for permanent changes.
- How long does a 301 redirect take effect in Google?
- Google typically processes 301 redirects within days to weeks, depending on crawl frequency. High-authority pages are recrawled faster. After processing, the old URL is replaced in the index with the new one.
- Do I need to keep 301 redirects forever?
- Best practice is to keep them indefinitely. Removing a redirect after a year risks broken links for users who bookmarked the old URL or for low-frequency crawlers that have not yet updated their records.
Audit Redirect Chains in Your Internal Link Graph
Upload your Screaming Frog crawl to LinkJuice and see exactly how many internal links route through redirects — then prioritise which ones to fix first.
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