What is a 301 redirect? What means of that in websites?
What is a 301 redirect?
154
08-Jun-2025
Mahee Pandey
11-Jun-2025This is one of the HTTP status codes, now before understanding 301 redirect, we need to understand what is an HTTP status code and how does it work?
HTTP Status Code is a three-digit number which is sent by the web server as an act of response to the request of the client (which is you). They serve as a “mean of communication” between the web server and the client.
What happen here is; when you go visit a website or click on a URL, what is happening is that your browser (like chrome) is sending an HTTP request to the server. The server will respond back with a status code saying if the request was successful, redirect or had an error.
There are a lot of HTTP status codes, however they are categorized in 5 types.
HTTP Status Code starting with 100: will refer that the request which you have sent has been received, and the server is continuing to process it. (It is an internal communication between the client and the server, so user will not be able to see it.)
HTTP Status Code starting with 200: The request which you have made was successfully completed, and the response contains the requested resource. (users typically do not get any visible notice of this code, you directly see the page you were looking for)
HTTP Status Code starting with 300: It is a redirect status which means that the request was received successfully, but that the resource was found elsewhere. Basically, the content was moved to another URL, and you are redirected there. (This will happen quickly so most of the time you will not be able to see it happening, and then you will on that piece of content which you were looking for)
HTTP Status Code starting with 400: This refers that the website or the page could not be reached and either the page is unavailable.
(Most of these messages you will be able to see it, especially the classic one 404 error which says page not found)
HTTP Status Code starting with 500: means something went wrong on the website's server, but the server doesn’t know exactly what the problem is. The request from the user was fine, but the server couldn’t complete it because of an internal issue. (the user will be able to see some of them but not every code)
now we could understand what 301 redirect means: A 301 redirect means that the page you were trying to access has been permanently moved to a new web address. When someone visits the old URL, the server automatically redirects them to the new URL, and the browser updates to show the new address. This type of redirect also informs search engines to update their indexes and transfer most of the original page’s SEO value to the new URL.
What is the purpose or importance of 301 redirects on websites?
301 redirects help websites ensure that both users and search engines reach the correct page when a page has been moved or deleted. For example, if you delete or change a page, you can set up a 301 redirect to automatically send visitors from the old URL to a new page with similar or updated information. This ensures users get the right content and prevents them from seeing errors. Additionally, it helps preserve the site's authority, SEO value, and traffic.