301 vs 302 at a glance
- The page moved for good
- Google shows the new URL
- Use it for migrations and new URLs
- Use it for HTTP to HTTPS moves
- The move is temporary
- Google keeps showing the old URL
- Use it for short promos and tests
- Use it for pages that will return
Why the choice affects rankings and leads
Redirects decide which URL Google shows and where old links send people. Change a URL without the right redirect and old links break. Pages drop out of Google, ads land on 404 errors and calls fall. For a local business, that can mean losing service pages, city pages or landing pages that already bring revenue.
When to use each one
Use a 301 when the new URL is the long-term home. That covers redesigns, cleaner slugs, merged duplicate pages and an old service page you replaced.
Use a 302 when the change is really temporary. A holiday campaign page can stand in for a landing page for two weeks. A test can show a second version of a page while the original stays.
Good example. You move /dental-implants-orlando/ to /services/dental-implants/ as part of a cleaner structure. That move needs a 301.
Bad example. You launch a new site, delete 40 old URLs and send them all to the homepage. Google warns against this, and it may treat those redirects as soft 404 errors. Send each old page to its closest match instead.
Another bad example. You use a 302 for a permanent move and leave it for months. Google keeps showing the old URL, because a 302 says the old page will come back.
Before you launch the change
- Match each old URL to its closest new URL.
- Redirect straight to the final URL, with no chains.
- Point internal links at the final URL, not the redirect.
- Test forms, call buttons, booking and thank-you pages.
- Watch Google Search Console for crawl errors and indexing drops.
Our rule is simple. If the old page is not coming back, use a 301. Before any migration, export your top URLs from Search Console and GA4. Then map every page that brings clicks, calls or forms. That map is where redirect mistakes cost the most.
Our web design and SEO teams build this redirect map before every rebuild, so rankings and leads survive the launch. Read more on redesigning without losing SEO and what an SEO audit covers.