What Is a 302 Redirect? When to Use It vs a 301

302 redirect hero graphic showing a temporary detour that keeps the original URL indexed

TL;DR. A 302 redirect moves visitors and crawlers to a new URL temporarily while telling search engines the original address should stay indexed and is coming back. A/B tests, short campaigns, anything reversible, that's the natural home for a 302, since browsers don't cache it the way they cache a 301, trading a little speed for an easy path back.

Infographic explaining 302 temporary redirects, when to use them, 302 versus 307, and the three-month conversion rule

What is a 302 redirect?

A 302 redirect is an HTTP status code sending users and crawlers to a different URL while signaling that the move won't last. Search engines keep the original URL indexed on the expectation it will become active again.

A 302 is effectively a promise to search engines that the destination isn't final. Leave it in place indefinitely and that promise breaks, creating precisely the ranking confusion the code exists to prevent.

Stat card showing a 302 redirect keeps ranking authority on the original URL rather than passing it forward

Key highlights

Google's own documentation confirms a 302 keeps ranking authority parked on the original URL rather than transferring it forward, the opposite of what a 301 does.
Browsers typically cache a 301 but not a 302, which makes the permanent version faster on repeat visits and the temporary version easier to walk back if the change doesn't stick.
Common SEO guidance treats three months as the point where a redirect left in place should convert from a 302 to a 301, since Google may start treating a long-lived 302 as effectively permanent regardless of the code.

302 redirect vs 301 redirect

A 301 redirect tells engines the old URL is gone for good and moves its ranking signals to the new one. A 302 tells engines the old URL is still the real one, just unavailable at the moment, so signals mostly stay put.

Picking the wrong one is the common mistake here. A 302 left in place for something permanent strands ranking authority on a URL that no longer reflects the live content, while a 301 used for something meant to be temporary can hand authority to a page you're actually planning to retire.

When to use a 302 redirect

A/B testing a new landing page design against the current one.
A short seasonal sale or campaign page set to retire back to the original.
Site maintenance, where visitors need somewhere else to land briefly.
Geolocation or device based redirects, where the destination shifts by context rather than by a permanent move.

302 vs 307

A 307 redirect is the stricter, more modern version of a temporary one. It guarantees the request method, GET or POST, stays identical on the new URL, where a 302 technically allows some clients to swap it. For most SEO purposes the two behave the same, but 307 is the sharper choice when redirecting form submissions specifically.

How to set up a 302 redirect

Configure it at the server or CDN level, not through JavaScript or a meta refresh, which crawlers handle far less reliably.
Confirm the response actually returns a 302 using browser developer tools or a header checker.
Set a reminder to revisit it, since 302s are among the most commonly forgotten items in technical SEO.
Convert it to a 301 the moment the change becomes permanent rather than leaving the temporary code in place by default.

Card showing how a forgotten 302 redirect splits ranking signals between the old and new URL

Frequently asked questions

What actually happens to ranking authority under a 302?

It stays put on the original URL rather than moving forward, exactly the opposite of a 301. Google's documentation confirms this directly, since a 302 signals the redirect is short-lived and the original page is expected to return to active use.

How long can a 302 stay live before it should become a 301?

Around three months, by common guidance, is the point where a lingering 302 starts getting treated as effectively permanent by Google regardless of what the code technically says. Converting it deliberately at that point beats letting Google guess.

What goes wrong if a 302 gets left in place by mistake?

Ranking signals end up split between the old URL, which Google still treats as canonical, and the new URL actually holding the live content, and that split can suppress both from ranking as well as they should. Switching the redirect to a 301 as soon as the change is confirmed permanent resolves it.

Is there a real difference between 302 and 307 for SEO purposes?

Barely one. Both signal a temporary move. A 307 strictly preserves the original request method, which matters for redirecting form submissions correctly, while a 302 technically permits some clients to change the method. For typical page redirects the practical SEO gap between them is close to nothing.

Why doesn't a browser cache a 302 the way it caches a 301?

Because a 302 explicitly signals the destination might change again soon, so caching it would risk sending a returning visitor to a URL that's no longer correct. A 301's permanence is exactly what makes it safe to cache, and exactly what makes it harder to walk back if the situation changes.

Real-world example

A retailer 302 redirected its homepage to a dedicated sale landing page for a two week flash sale, correctly signaling the change was temporary. When the sale quietly turned into a permanent seasonal campaign, nobody switched the 302 to a 301. Four months later Google was still treating the original homepage as canonical while the actual live content sat on the sale page, splitting ranking signals between two URLs. Converting the redirect to a 301 once the change was confirmed permanent resolved the split within a few weeks. (Illustrative, drawn from a pattern common to campaign redirects.)

302 Redirect