Websites. Reviewed October 29, 2026
301 redirect
Also called: Permanent redirect, Redirect map
A 301 redirect permanently sends visitors and search engines from an old web address to a new one and passes most of the old page's ranking value along with them.
In practice
Every redesign changes addresses, and every old address that is not redirected becomes a 404 that drops out of Google. The redirect map lists each old page beside the new page that replaces it, one to one.
Sending everything to the home page is the common shortcut and it loses the rankings the old pages held.
Related terms
- Website redesignA website redesign rebuilds the look and structure of an existing site, and done carelessly it loses rankings because old page addresses disappear without redirects.
- Website migrationA website migration moves a site to a new platform, host or domain, and the checklist that protects rankings is a page inventory, a one-to-one redirect map and a Search Console check after launch.
- Canonical URLA canonical URL is the tag that tells Google which version of a page is the original when the same content can be reached at more than one address.
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