301 vs 302 Redirect – Which is Best for SEO?
To help you understand the difference between the 301 and 302 redirect and to explain how to use them, here is a review that explains how they can impact your SEO strategy.
Why Are Redirects Needed?
You may need to implement a 301 or 302 redirect for several reasons. Below are some of the most common ones:
– You will need to make changes to your website as it grows and you keep adding more content
– It is tricky for Google to identify the correct and authentic pages
– It is challenging to change some items such as a page’s structure regarding its URL
– Google might be unable to understand the page that you prefer visitors to go to
– Your search efforts can be damaged by duplicate content thus the need for a redirect
301 Redirect
The 301 redirect is a permanent redirect from a particular URL to a different one. The redirect sends website visitors and search engines to a URL that’s different from the one originally typed into the browser or chosen from the search engine results pages. A 301 redirect is needed for a website page that has moved to a new URL permanently.
You often have to tell search engines what you are doing because they cannot read minds. A 301 redirect thus lets you tell the search engines such as Google or Bing that the old page is no longer valid, which is why you wish to move traffic to a new page. Using the 301 redirect shows Google how you wish to be cooperated with as well as how you wish to recover traffic. However, the recovery may take anywhere from a couple of months to a full year.
302 Redirect
The 302 redirect means that the website page is only being moved temporarily. Here, the challenge is webmasters that use 302 redirects for a permanent move. Due to the temporary purpose and nature of the redirect, it confuses Google since it is no longer sure whether the change is long-term, short-term, or even real. Be particularly cautious when you use the 302 redirect. If you fail to reset the website at a particular point to the original settings or convert the 302 redirect to a 301 redirect you might lose traffic considerably over the long term.
How to Easily Create Redirects
WordPress offers numerous plugins that can help you do the work easily. 3 of the most popular WordPress redirect plugins include SEO Redirection, Simple 301 Redirect, and Redirection.
Which is the Superior Redirect?
In most situations, the 301 redirect is more preferable because it gives you more search credit compared to a 302 redirect. However, if you have several landing pages, you can try testing a 302 redirect because it can be more comfortable in the short-run. You can only decide on the best redirect after you are sure about what you wish to achieve. This will help you choose the most suitable redirect method for your work as well as requirements.
