WordPress: Use Redirect 301 Over 302 for Your Base Domain

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1. Introduction

Redirections are an essential part of web development and SEO. In WordPress, you often need to redirect traffic from one version of your site to another — for example, from http://example.com to https://www.example.com.

However, the type of redirect you use matters a lot, especially for your base domain (the root of your site).

This post explains why you should use 301 (permanent) redirects instead of 302 (temporary) when redirecting your base domain, and how to set it up correctly.

2. What Are Redirects?

A redirect is an instruction sent by your server to the browser (or search engine) telling it that the content for a URL has moved to another location.

There are many types of redirects, but the two most commonly used are:

  • 301: Permanent redirect
  • 302: Temporary redirect

Example

HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently
Location: https://www.example.com

HTTP/1.1 302 Found
Location: https://www.example.com

3. Why 301 Is Better for Base Domain Redirects

When redirecting your base domain — such as http://example.com to https://www.example.com — using a 301 redirect is the industry best practice.

Benefits of 301:

  • ✅ SEO-friendly: It tells Google and other search engines to treat the destination URL as the canonical version.
  • ✅ Preserves link equity: PageRank and backlink strength are transferred.
  • ✅ Cached by browsers/CDNs: Improves performance by avoiding repeated redirect logic.

If you use a 302 redirect, search engines may:
– Treat the redirect as temporary and continue indexing the old URL.
– Split SEO value across both URLs.
– Confuse analytics and reporting tools.

Good Use of 301:

http://example.com → https://example.com
example.com → www.example.com

4. When 302 Might Be Appropriate

Although 301 is preferred, 302 can be used if and only if the redirection is:

  • Meant to be temporary
  • You expect to reverse the redirect soon

Examples:

  • A/B testing two landing pages
  • Temporarily pointing your domain during maintenance

Even in these cases, be cautious — 302 redirects may still confuse search engines.

5. How to Set Up 301 Redirects in WordPress

Option 1: Using .htaccess (for Apache Servers)

If you’re using Apache (most common for WordPress hosting), add the following to your .htaccess file:

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^example\.com [NC]
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://www.example.com/$1 [L,R=301]

Option 2: Using a Plugin

  • Redirection plugin: Free, easy to use
  • Yoast SEO or Rank Math: Premium versions include redirect manager

Option 3: Cloudflare Page Rules

If you use Cloudflare, set up a page rule:

If URL matches: http://example.com/*
Forwarding URL → 301 Permanent Redirect to https://www.example.com/$1

6. What Happens If You Use 302 Instead?

Let’s say you redirect http://example.com to https://www.example.com using a 302:

  • Google sees the redirect as temporary
  • It might continue indexing the old URL
  • PageRank may not transfer fully
  • You might lose SEO value

This is why 301 is crucial — especially for domain-level redirection.

7. Best Practices for WordPress Domain Redirects

✅ Choose one canonical domain:

  • Pick one: https://example.com OR https://www.example.com

✅ Set up 301 redirects for:

  • http://example.com → https://www.example.com
  • http://www.example.com → https://www.example.com
  • https://example.com → https://www.example.com

✅ Test your redirects:

Use curl or browser dev tools:

curl -I http://example.com

Look for:

HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently

8. Conclusion

Using 301 redirects for your base domain is a small but powerful SEO move. It ensures your website’s authority and traffic are not split between multiple URL variations.

Avoid using 302 unless the redirection is absolutely temporary. If you’re running a WordPress site, setting up 301s is easy through plugins, .htaccess, or your hosting/CDN provider.

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