Today, we are looking at the best way to manage 301 and 302 redirects on WordPress. If you are a WordPress user, you already heard about 301 and 302 redirects. It is one of the most common redirects used by WordPress users on different scenarios and it improves SEO.
Between jumping into the topic, let’s understand what is 301 and 302 redirect. Let’s get into this.
301 Redirects Explain
301 is a permanent redirect that indicates a web page has been permanently moved from one location to another location. 301 Redirect tells browsers like Chrome or Firefox “The page you are looking has been moved permanently and please send the visitors to the new location” Browser response “Sure, I will send them to the new location right now”.
Google says “301 is the best way to ensure that users and search engines are directed to the correct page. The 301 status code means that a page has permanently moved to a new location.
You can use 301 Redirects when you moved to a new domain and you want to send the old domain visitors to the new domain instantly. If you are merging two websites, 301 redirects will help you to make the transition as seamless as possible. Bloggers like us use 301 redirects more. If you are going to delete an old blog post and you are moving that page content with more information to the new page, you can use 301 redirects to send the old page visitors to the new one easily.
302 Redirects Explain
Unlike 302 redirects, 301 redirects are temporary. You shouldn’t use 302 redirects or meta refresh redirects for permanent redirects. It tells the search engines it is a temporary redirect and directs users to the desired page for a limited amount of time until the 302 removed.
You can use 302 redirects for getting clients’ feedback, A/B testing of a webpage for design, to avoid a broken webpage and you want to maintain a good user experience for the limited time. 302 redirects are not to be used as a permanent solution.
Manage 301 and 302 Redirects on WordPress
The best way to manage 301 and 302 redirects are by using a WordPress Plugin. You can find a lot of WordPress Plugins to manage redirects on the web but our recommendation is WP 301 redirects. Here we go with some of the notable features of the Plugin.
- Compatible with all major versions of WordPress
- Easy to set redirects from Pages, Posts, Custom Post types, etc.
- Import/Export feature for bulk redirects management
- Excellent redirect stats to know how much a redirection is used
Once you installed the Plugin, you can see a dashboard where you can see redirect rules, 404 error log, and import/export redirect rules. Also, you can see a dedicated section to see redirect stats. The Plugin will monitor every post and automatically create a redirect rule the moment URL changes.
Hope this article helps you to know the best way to manage 301 and 302 redirects on your WordPress site. One more tip, resize images will also help you to improve page speed and get some SEO advantages.
