301 redirects are one of the most important tools in SEO. When done correctly, they preserve your search engine rankings, pass link equity, and ensure visitors always reach the right page. Here is everything you need to know.

What Is a 301 Redirect?

A 301 redirect is a permanent redirect that tells search engines and browsers: "This page has permanently moved to a new URL." It passes approximately 95-99% of the original page's link equity (ranking power) to the new destination.

When to Use 301 Redirects

• Domain migration — Moving from oldsite.com to newsite.com
• URL restructuring — Changing /blog/2024/post-title to /post-title
• Merging content — Consolidating multiple pages into one
• Fixing broken links — Redirecting 404 pages to relevant content
• HTTPS migration — Redirecting HTTP to HTTPS
• Campaign tracking — Routing campaign URLs to landing pages

301 vs 302: Which Should You Use?

The choice matters for SEO:

• 301 (Permanent) — Use when the move is permanent. Search engines transfer ranking signals to the new URL.
• 302 (Temporary) — Use when the redirect is temporary (A/B testing, maintenance). Search engines keep the original URL indexed.
• 307 (Temporary Strict) — Like 302, but preserves the HTTP method (POST stays POST).

Setting Up 301 Redirects with LinkVice

With LinkVice, you can set up 301 redirects in seconds without touching server configurations:

1. Add your domain in the Dashboard
2. Point your DNS to our server (A record or nameservers)
3. Create a redirect with HTTP code 301
4. Track performance with real-time analytics

Common SEO Mistakes with Redirects

Redirect Chains

A → B → C → D wastes crawl budget and dilutes link equity. Always redirect directly to the final destination.

Redirecting Everything to Homepage

Don't redirect all old pages to your homepage. Search engines may treat this as a soft 404. Redirect each page to its most relevant equivalent.

Not Updating Internal Links

After setting up redirects, update your internal links to point directly to the new URLs. Redirects should be a safety net, not the primary navigation path.

Forgetting About Canonical Tags

If you have both redirects and canonical tags, make sure they point to the same URL. Conflicting signals confuse search engines.

Monitoring Your Redirects

LinkVice provides detailed analytics for every redirect: click counts, unique visitors, geographic distribution, referrer data, and full click logs. Use this data to verify your redirects are working and identify any issues.

Set up your first 301 redirect for free →