TECHNICAL · SEO GLOSSARY

301 Redirect

A permanent HTTP redirect that passes ~90–99% of link equity from the old URL to the new one — the correct redirect type for permanent URL changes in SEO.

Definition

A 301 redirect is an HTTP response with status code 301 (Moved Permanently) that tells the browser and crawlers that the requested URL has permanently moved to a new location. The response includes a `Location` header with the destination URL. Google treats 301 redirects as passing "link equity" (PageRank) from the old URL to the new URL — the widely cited figure is ~90–99%, though Google has said the transfer is essentially complete for permanent redirects. The alternative, a 302 (Found / Temporary Redirect), signals a temporary move and historically didn't pass link equity reliably, though Google has stated modern Googlebot handles 302s similarly to 301s for long-lived redirects.

Why it matters for SEO

URL migrations are a major source of ranking losses when redirects are implemented incorrectly. Common mistakes: using 302 instead of 301 for permanent moves, creating redirect chains (old → intermediate → new, each hop losing a fraction of equity), redirect loops (A → B → A), and missing redirects for moved pages (returning 404 instead). Every 404 on a previously-ranking URL represents lost link equity and lost ranking potential. When migrating a site — to a new domain, HTTPS, or new URL structure — a redirect map of every old URL to its new equivalent is essential before go-live.

How DeepSEOAnalysis checks this

The audit follows all internal links and checks for redirect chains (3+ hops), redirect loops, and internal links pointing to redirected URLs (which should be updated to point directly to the final destination). It also checks whether HTTPS → HTTP redirects exist (a common misconfiguration after SSL setup). External backlinks pointing to redirected URLs are noted as candidates for outreach to update.