Introduction
What is the 302 Found HTTPS Status code? ( How To Fix) When you type your query on the Internet, the browser talks to the websites to get the desired results. But, sometimes instead of showing the page, the web page shows, wait, that page is temporarily elsewhere.Let’s break it down more easily, so that you can understand.
What is the 302 Found HTTPS status Code?
Just imagine you go to your cousin’s house for a surprise, but when you arrive, you find your cousin has moved to the new house because of construction.He will be back soon.
So that is what 302 found means.
When do websites use 302 Found?
Websites use 302 when they want to redirect the audience to another page temporarily.1. Website under maintenance
The website requires regular maintenance, and sometimes it takes too much time. So what they do is, instead of showing an error to the audience, they redirect to a different page and show that we are fixing this page.For example, you have an e-commerce store, and one page of your website is under maintenance. Suppose it’s the shoe page.
So instead of showing the audience an error, you can show them to a different page by showing We are fixing this and will come back soon and that redirect will not affect the rankings.
2. Testing new designs
You might have encountered that one person observes a different interface of a website, and another observes a different one.This happens because sometimes website owners test different designs and colours, so they try different versions and want to know which version performs better.
So what they do is to use a 302 redirect to show different versions of the website by shifting them to a temporary page for comparing results.
3. Login Pages
When you go to the e-commerce site, it first asks you for a sign-up or a login. Once you do this, it will redirect you to the page where you want to go.For example, you typed men’s shoes online, and here the Amazon site appears, but to see more results, it takes you to a landing page, which is called a 302 code.
4. Location-based pages You will be surprised that the website may show you its website version depending on your IP address and location. If you belong to a different country and then will show you your localised version.
For example, if you live in India, and you type on Google Amazon.com, then it will redirect you to Amazon.in ( The Indian version) with prices in rupees and local deals.
So it’s a 302 redirect, which depends on which country you belong to or are travelling to.
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What’s the problem with a 302 redirect?
302 redirect is for a temporary one, but the problem exists when your page never comes back. Till then, you all are clear that the 302 redirect is for temporary one. But what people commit a mistake is to move out permanently.For example, you have pasted the paper outside that we will be coming back soon, and that creates an impression that you have moved out temporarily and will return in the future. Now your cousins or your friends will send all the mail or postcards to your same address because they are in believe that you will return.
Here is what can go wrong:
1. Search engines get confused
When you use a 302 redirect, it gives the impression to Google that you’re moving out temporarily and you will come back soon.So what Google does is:
- Don’t give weightage to your new page
- Still keep your old page in the search results.
Consequences
- Your new page may not be shown in search results
- SEO score will be impacted
- Your all efforts will go into a new page
2. Traffic will affect adversely
Let’s imagine you are staying in a small shop, which is now not enough for you because your business is expanding, so you’re shifting to the new shop.But the mistake you made is pasting a paper showing that you’re moving to a new shop for a short time, and you’ll have to come back. So the people will think that you are moving to another place for a short time because this is your permanent place.
Right?
New people and maps keep directing people to the old place where your shop is closed.
In the same way, that will happen to your website page too.
What will happen?
- People who are looking for your website may still be redirected to the old page, not the new one.
- If you delete the old page, then it will show an error to the visitors.
- SEO ranking will be impacted because SEO prioritizes good quality content, and if your page is showing no updates and continuous errors, then it will impact the rankings.
How to fix a 302 redirect on your website?
To fix this, you need to see the steps carefully, which are as follows:Step 1: Find the 302 redirects on your website
Before making any changes, first, you need to know where the 302 code is in your website.How to find?
- Through Screaming fog
- Ahrefs
- Semrush
- Google Search Console
Now, what you have to do is:
- Finding where the 302 code is directed to.
- If you feel that you don’t want to retain this page, then change it to a 301 redirect.
Step 2: Decide if the redirect should be permanent or not
Now you have to ask a few questions of yourself- First, do you want the old page to be retained or not?
- Second, you want the new page to rank or not.
Step 3: Change the 302 to 301
You need to consider the consequences. If you are considering a new page to rank and doing all the SEO practices on the new page, then firstly, you need to change the code, otherwise, all your efforts will go in vain.Step 4: Tell Google about the changes
If you’re making any changes to a website, then you need to tell GoogleHow can you do that?
- Open Google Search Console
- You need to enter the old URL in the Inspect section
- After that, you need to" request indexing."
Step 5: You need to monitor
- You need to check whether the necessary pages have the right codes
- Some plugins don’t re-add the old code, so you need to check this
- Once a week or a month, you need to audit the entire site.
FAQs
How is a 302 different from a 301 redirect?
There is quite a high difference between 302 and 301. 302 is for the temporary move, and 301 is for a permanent redirect for long-term or forever.If you want to see Google on a new page, then adopt 301, while if the move is for testing or maintenance, use 302.
Does a 302 redirect affect SEO?
If it is done by mistake, then it adversely affects the SEO. because it won’t give the weightage to your new pageSuppose it is ignored from your side for a long time. In that case, it will affect the ranking and authority because Google gives priority to users, and users want good quality content. If Google sees that this page has a very high bounce rate, it will badly affect the ranking of the website.