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January 27, 2006
Recently, someone asked me about
moving from one domain to another. They had
read that
Google recommends using a 301 redirect
to let Googlebot know about the move, but they weren't sure if they should do that. They wondered
if Googlebot would follow the 301 to the new site, see that it contained the same
content as the pages already indexed from the old site, and think it was duplicate content (and
therefore not index it). They wondered if a 302 redirect would be a better option.
I told them that a 301 redirect was exactly what they should do. A
302
redirect tells Googlebot that the move is temporary and that Google should continue to index the
old domain. A
301
redirect tells Googlebot that the move is permanent and that Google should start indexing the new
domain instead. Googlebot won't see the new site as duplicate content, but as moved
content. And that's exactly what someone who is changing domains wants.
They also wondered how long it would take for the new site to show up in Google search results.
They thought that a new site could take longer to index than new pages of an existing site. I told
them that if they noticed that it took a while for a new site to be indexed, it was generally
because it took Googlebot a while to learn about the new site. Googlebot learns about new pages to
crawl by following links from other pages and from Sitemaps. If Googlebot already knows about a
site, it generally finds out about new pages on that site quickly, since the site links to the
new pages.
I told them that by using a 301 to redirect Googlebot from the old domain to the new
one and by submitting a Sitemap for the new domain, Googlebot could much more quickly learn about
the new domain than it might otherwise. They could also let other sites that link to their site
know about the domain change so that other sites could update their links.
The crawling and indexing processes are completely automated, so I couldn't tell them exactly when
the domain would start showing up in results. But letting Googlebot know about the site (using a
301 redirect and a Sitemap) is an important first step in that process.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],[],[[["\u003cp\u003eThis blog post may contain outdated information; refer to the up-to-date documentation for site moves.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eWhen changing domains, use a 301 redirect to signal a permanent move to Googlebot, ensuring the new site is indexed instead of the old one.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eGooglebot treats content moved with a 301 redirect as \u003cem\u003emoved\u003c/em\u003e content, not duplicate content.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eTo help Googlebot discover and index your new site quickly, submit a Sitemap and update links from other sites.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eWhile the exact indexing timeframe is uncertain, using a 301 redirect and Sitemap are crucial steps in getting your new domain recognized by Google.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],["Site owners moving to a new domain should use a `301` redirect, signaling to Googlebot that the move is permanent and to index the new domain. A `302` redirect indicates a temporary move. Googlebot will recognize the content as moved, not duplicate. To expedite indexing, submit a Sitemap for the new domain, use `301` redirects, and ask other sites linking to the old domain to update their links. Googlebot learns about new pages via links and Sitemaps.\n"],null,["| It's been a while since we published this blog post. Some of the information may be outdated (for example, some images may be missing, and some links may not work anymore). Read the up-to-date documentation about [site moves](/search/docs/crawling-indexing/site-move-with-url-changes).\n\nJanuary 27, 2006\n\n\nRecently, someone asked me about\n[moving from one domain](/search/blog/2005/11/changing-domains) to another. They had\nread that\n[Google recommends using a `301` redirect](/search/docs/crawling-indexing/site-move-with-url-changes)\nto let Googlebot know about the move, but they weren't sure if they should do that. They wondered\nif Googlebot would follow the `301` to the new site, see that it contained the same\ncontent as the pages already indexed from the old site, and think it was duplicate content (and\ntherefore not index it). They wondered if a `302` redirect would be a better option.\n\n\nI told them that a `301` redirect was exactly what they should do. A\n[`302`](https://www.w3.org/Protocols/rfc2616/rfc2616-sec10.html#sec10.3.3)\nredirect tells Googlebot that the move is temporary and that Google should continue to index the\nold domain. A\n[`301`](https://www.w3.org/Protocols/rfc2616/rfc2616-sec10.html#sec10.3.2)\nredirect tells Googlebot that the move is permanent and that Google should start indexing the new\ndomain instead. Googlebot won't see the new site as duplicate content, but as *moved*\ncontent. And that's exactly what someone who is changing domains wants.\n\n\nThey also wondered how long it would take for the new site to show up in Google search results.\nThey thought that a new site could take longer to index than new pages of an existing site. I told\nthem that if they noticed that it took a while for a new site to be indexed, it was generally\nbecause it took Googlebot a while to learn about the new site. Googlebot learns about new pages to\ncrawl by following links from other pages and from Sitemaps. If Googlebot already knows about a\nsite, it generally finds out about new pages on that site quickly, since the site links to the\nnew pages.\n\n\nI told them that by using a `301` to redirect Googlebot from the old domain to the new\none and by submitting a Sitemap for the new domain, Googlebot could much more quickly learn about\nthe new domain than it might otherwise. They could also let other sites that link to their site\nknow about the domain change so that other sites could update their links.\n\n\nThe crawling and indexing processes are completely automated, so I couldn't tell them exactly when\nthe domain would start showing up in results. But letting Googlebot know about the site (using a\n`301` redirect and a Sitemap) is an important first step in that process.\n\n\nYou can find out more about\n[submitting a Sitemap in our documentation](/search/docs/crawling-indexing/sitemaps/build-sitemap)\nand you can find out more about how to use a `301` redirect by doing a Google search\nfor [`301` redirect](https://www.google.com/search?q=301+redirect).\n\nPosted by [Vanessa Fox](https://www.vanessafox.com/)"]]
