HTTP Status 301

HTTP status 301HTTP status 301 signals a permanent redirect: a URL has been permanently replaced by another. Search engines transfer the signals to the target URL.Open glossary entry → stands for a permanent redirectA redirect forwards users and search engines from one URL to another. It can be permanent (301) or temporary (302) and transfers signals to the target URL.Open glossary entry →. It tells users and search engines that a URL has been permanently replaced by another.

Typical use cases:

• a page was moved or renamed,
• content was merged,
• switching from httpHTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) is the protocol through which browsers and servers exchange web content. HTTPS is the encrypted, secure variant of this protocol.Open glossary entry → to https or www to non-www,
• an old URL with backlinks should point to a suitable successor page.

The 301 transfers signals to the target URL. The target should be topically relevant and return status 200. Avoid blanket redirects of all error pages to the homepage as well as redirect chains. Internal linksInternal linking refers to links that connect pages within the same website. They control how search engines and users find and thematically classify content.Open glossary entry → should point directly to the final URL rather than permanently running through a redirect. Google recommends keeping redirects in place long term, at least about a year. 301 URLs do not belong in the sitemapAn XML sitemap is a machine-readable file listing a website's important URLs. It helps search engines discover content more efficiently but does not replace internal linking or guarantee indexing.Open glossary entry →.