301 vs. 302 Redirects: When to Use Which?

To a user, a redirect is a redirect. To a search engine, the status code matters immensely.

301 Moved Permanently

Use this when a page has moved forever (e.g., you changed your domain or URL structure). This tells Google to transfer all ranking power (SEO value) from the old URL to the new one.

302 Found (Temporary)

Use this when you are doing maintenance or A/B testing. It tells Google "keep the old URL in the index, I'll be back soon." It does not pass link equity effectively.

Not sure what your server is sending? Check it with our Redirect Checker.