What is the difference between 301 and 302 redirects?

A 301 redirect is permanent and tells search engines to transfer ranking signals (link equity) to the new URL. A 302 redirect is temporary and signals that the original URL may return, so search engines keep indexing the old address. Use 301 for permanent moves and 302 for short-term redirections.

What is the difference between Redirect and RewriteRule?

The Redirect directive is simpler and works without mod_rewrite enabled. RewriteRule is more powerful — it supports regex patterns and is required for dynamic URL rewriting. For straightforward path-to-path redirects, Redirect is sufficient and easier to read.

Does the old URL need to be a full URL or just a path?

For the Redirect directive the old URL must be a root-relative path starting with / (e.g. /old-page). For the new URL you can use either a full URL (https://example.com/new-page) or a root-relative path. RewriteRule format follows the same convention.

Do I need mod_rewrite enabled for these rules?

If you choose the RewriteRule format, yes — mod_rewrite must be enabled on your Apache server and the .htaccess file must contain RewriteEngine On before the rules. If you choose the Redirect format, mod_rewrite is not required.

Where do I place the generated rules in my .htaccess file?

Place Redirect directives anywhere in the file. For RewriteRule directives, place them inside a RewriteEngine On block. If your .htaccess already has WordPress or other rewrite rules, add your redirect rules before those existing blocks so they are evaluated first.

Will these rules work on Nginx?

No. .htaccess files and RewriteRule/Redirect directives are Apache-specific. For Nginx, you need to add return 301 or rewrite directives in your server block configuration file.

Htaccess Redirect Generator

Name: Htaccess Redirect Generator
Availability: InStock
Author: Nham Vu

Paste your old-URL to new-URL pairs, choose 301 or 302, and get ready-to-copy .htaccess redirect directives instantly.

Redirect Pairs

One pair per line — /old-path /new-url

Redirect Type

301 — Permanent 302 — Temporary

Directive Format

Redirect RewriteRule

.htaccess Output

Enter redirect pairs on the left and click Generate.

Usage Notes

Old paths must start with /. New URLs can be absolute or root-relative.
For RewriteRule format, make sure your .htaccess includes RewriteEngine On.
Place redirect rules before CMS rewrite rules (e.g. WordPress) in your .htaccess.
Lines starting with # and blank lines are ignored.

Copied!

Summary

Paste your old-URL to new-URL pairs, choose 301 or 302, and get ready-to-copy .htaccess redirect directives instantly.

How it works

Enter one redirect pair per line in the format: /old-path /new-url
Choose the redirect type: 301 Permanent or 302 Temporary.
Select the directive format: Redirect or RewriteRule.
Click Generate to produce the .htaccess rules.
Review the output and click Copy to copy it to your clipboard.
Paste the rules into your .htaccess file, below any existing RewriteEngine On directive.

Use cases

Redirect old blog post URLs to new paths after a site restructure.
Forward traffic from deleted pages to relevant replacement content.
Migrate a site to a new domain while preserving SEO link equity with 301s.
Temporarily redirect users during maintenance with a 302.
Bulk-generate redirect rules from a spreadsheet export of old and new URLs.
Consolidate duplicate URLs into a single canonical page.
Redirect category or tag pages removed during a CMS migration.
Set up vanity URLs that point to longer internal paths.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Last updated: 2026-05-29 · Reviewed by Nham Vu