What the number means
Every time a browser asks a server for a page, the server replies with a status code. A status code is a number that says what happened. We read Google's page on redirects on 9 October 2026. It says the 301 and 308 codes mean a page has permanently moved to a new location.
The temporary codes are 302, 303 and 307. A temporary redirect says the move is not for good.
Permanent or temporary: what changes in Google
- Permanent: Google treats the new address as the canonical one, so the new address appears in search results. Google says to use a permanent redirect only when you will not undo it.
- Temporary: the old address stays the one shown in results. Google gives the example of a service that is down for a short time.
Google also says that, after a move, both old and new addresses are kept, and one becomes the canonical one while the other is an alternate. Old addresses may still show up in results for a while, and this fades without action. See canonical tag.
Which type of redirect to use
Google ranks the methods this way.
- Server-side redirects such as 301. Google calls these the most likely to be understood correctly and gives examples for PHP (a programming language), Apache and NGINX (two web server programs). Your developer or host can set one up.
- Meta refresh is a fallback when you cannot do a server-side redirect. Google treats an instant one as permanent and a delayed one as temporary.
- JavaScript redirects only if the first two are not possible. Google renders JavaScript after crawling, and that step can fail, so Google might never see the redirect.
Google also says not to rely on a plain link that explains the move, which it calls a crypto redirect.
A made-up example
A shirt maker in Tiruppur moves a page from /products/cotton-shirts-2019/ to /shirts/cotton/.
- The developer adds a 301 redirect from the old address to the new one.
- The shop opens the old address in a browser and checks that it lands on the new page.
- The shop changes its own menus and links to use the new address, and updates its sitemap as well.
- Later, the shop looks in Search Console to see that the new address is indexed.
Google's page does not say how long to keep a redirect, so we do not quote a time. Our advice is to keep it until you are sure it is no longer needed.
Common mistakes
- Using a temporary redirect (302) for a permanent move. Google then keeps showing the old address.
- Sending every old page to the home page. We suggest sending each old page to the page that now covers the same thing.
- Long redirect chains, where one address leads to another and then another. Google's crawl budget page says to avoid them because they slow crawling.
- Forgetting to update your own links and sitemap, so they still use the old address.
- Using JavaScript when a server-side redirect was possible.
Related terms
- Canonical tag: a line of code that names the main version of a page.
- Indexing: when a search engine stores a page so it can show it in results.
- Sitemap: a file that lists the pages you want found.
- Crawl budget: how many pages a search engine will fetch from your site in a given time.
- Backlink: a link to your site from another site.
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Sources
- Google Search Central, "Redirects and Google Search" (developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/301-redirects), last updated 14 April 2026, read 9 October 2026.
- Google Search Central, "Managing crawl budget for large sites" (developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/large-site-managing-crawl-budget), read 9 October 2026.
