Squarespace 301 redirect: move a page and keep it on Google

What happens to a page’s Google ranking when you rename it?

The ranking stays with the old address, and the old address now leads nowhere. A Squarespace 301 redirect is how you hand that address over to the new page, so the links from Google, newsletters and other sites keep working.

Without one, each of those links lands on a 404 page. To Google, that page is now one more address it cannot find, the same trouble we cover in why a Squarespace site is not showing on Google.

Renames happen most during a redesign, which is when we write redirect maps for the Squarespace sites we design.

Where do you add a Squarespace 301 redirect?

In URL mappings. Squarespace’s guide says to open the Developer tools panel, then click URL mappings. The panel is a single text field, and each redirect is one line:

/old-url -> /new-url 301

The old path goes first, then an arrow, then the new path, then the code. Squarespace also says to keep the same capitalization as your URLs.

Why a 301 and not a 302?

A 301 says the page moved for good. Google’s redirect guide says it reads a permanent redirect “as a signal that the redirect target should be canonical”, which means the new address becomes the one shown in results.

A 302 does the opposite. Googlebot follows it, but Google says the indexing pipeline “doesn’t use the redirect as a signal”, and results keep showing the source page. That suits a page that will come back. A renamed page, a merged page or a post with a new slug all take a 301.

Which rules make a Squarespace redirect fail?

Squarespace’s guide lists them, and each one explains a redirect that “does nothing”:

• The old page still exists. “Redirects only work if the page you’re redirecting from has been deleted or disabled.” This is the one we meet most, often after someone builds a new page on the old slug.
• The order is wrong. The site “activates redirects from top to bottom”, so /blog/old-post must sit above any broader /blog line.
• The line has a query string. “Most URL redirects can’t use ?, &, or # symbols.” RSS feed addresses are the one exception.
• It points at the homepage, an image or a file. The homepage cannot be redirected away, and image and file URLs cannot be redirected at all.

Can one line move a whole blog?

Yes. Squarespace supports a [name] variable that carries the slug across:

/blog/[name] -> /posts/[name] 301

Every post under /blog lands on the same slug under /posts. Lines can also point to another domain, as long as the target starts with https://.

How do you plan the map before you rename anything?

Write the old addresses down first. Google’s site move guide puts it plainly: “It’s important to map your old site’s URLs to the URLs for the new site.”

1. List every slug you will rename, merge or delete, with the address it should go to.
2. Make the changes, then paste one line per old address into URL mappings, specific lines first.
3. Change the internal links on your own pages to the new addresses, as Google advises, so visitors skip the redirect.
4. Point each old address straight at its final page. Google says to avoid chaining redirects.

The field holds 400 KB, which Squarespace puts at about 2,500 lines. That fits the full map of a site coming over from WordPress or Wix.

The same redirect map applies when you leave Wix; our Wix to WordPress post shows where it fits in the order of a move.

When we move pages for a client, we write the mapping file, test every old address against it, and watch Search Console for a week after the change. A renamed page that already dropped off Google is a job for our search fixes on a live site, with Search Console figures before and after.

How do you check that the redirect is live?

Open the old address in a private window and watch the address bar. If the old page still loads, it has not been deleted or disabled. If you get a 404, look for a typo, a missing slash or a capital letter.

For proof rather than a look, read the header. In a terminal, curl -I https://www.yourdomain.com/old-url should show 301 on the first line and the new address after location. A 302 there means the line ends in the wrong code.

Then leave the lines alone. Google’s guide says to keep redirects “for as long as possible, generally at least 1 year”, and warns that search visibility “may fluctuate temporarily during the move”.

Would you rather hand the map to someone?

We design Squarespace sites, and the redirect map is written before any page is renamed. See our Squarespace design service, or send us the pages you plan to move.

Not sure what to ask for? Ask for the free site check: send the site address and we reply in writing within 2 business days. If the site also runs WordPress, one-off fixes are listed here.