Direct Answer
A redirect sends visitors and search engines from one URL to another. Use a 301 (permanent) redirect for renamed pages, removed pages with a relevant replacement, or migrated domains. Use a 302 (temporary) only for short-term redirects that should be reversed. Always redirect — never delete an indexed page without a 301.
Voice answer (≤30 words)
“A redirect sends visitors from one URL to another. Use a three oh one for permanent moves and a three oh two for temporary ones.”
Map old URLs to specific new URLs — never blanket-redirect everything to the homepage. Google treats that as a soft 404.
Redirects pass ~99% of ranking signals — there is no penalty for cleanly redirecting old content.
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