Skip to content

Redirect map builder

Turn a list of old and new addresses into 301 redirect rules for Apache, nginx or Shopify, with chains, loops and duplicates pointed out. Built in your browser.

Separate the two with a comma, a tab or a space. Pasting two columns from a spreadsheet works. Nothing you type is sent to us.

Where the old addresses will be answered

The rules

Type or paste your pairs of addresses.

Why a move needs a redirect map

When a site moves to another platform, most of its addresses change. A product that lived at one address now lives at another. Every link to the old address, from a search result, another site, an email or a bookmark, reaches a page that is not there, unless the old address answers with a redirect to the new one.

A redirect map is the list of those pairs: each old address and where it now leads. This tool turns the list into rules a server can read, and points out the pairs that would not work.

Making the list

  1. Collect every address the old site answers at. Its sitemap, usually at /sitemap.xml, is the place to start. Add the pages that get visits or have links from other sites, if you can see those.
  2. Put them in the first column of a spreadsheet.
  3. In the second column, write the address of the same page on the new site.
  4. Where a page has no counterpart, choose the nearest page that answers the same need, not the home page.
  5. Paste both columns here.

What it leaves out, and why

  • An old address listed twice. One address can lead to only one place.
  • A chain. If one old address leads to another that is also redirected, a visitor is sent through two hops. The tool tells you where the chain ends, so you can point the first address straight there.
  • A loop. Two addresses that send a visitor to each other never load.
  • An address with a query string. These rules match the path alone.

Each rule matches its old address exactly, with or without the final slash. It does not catch longer addresses that begin the same way.

After the rules are in place

Test a handful of old addresses with the redirect checker. Each should answer 301 and reach its new address in one hop. Keep the redirects for as long as the old addresses are linked from anywhere, which in practice means years.

Moving platform and want the map made and checked for you? See platform migrations.

Common questions

Where do the rules go: on the old site or the new one?
On whichever server answers for the old addresses after the move. If the domain stays the same and now points at the new site, that is the new site's server. If the domain changes, the old domain has to keep pointing at a server that holds these rules.
Should I redirect every old page to the home page?
No. A visitor who followed a link to one product and lands on the home page has not found it, and search engines treat such a redirect much like a missing page. Redirect each address to the page that answers the same need.
Why 301 and not 302?
301 says the move is permanent, which is what a change of platform is. 302 says it is temporary, and asks browsers and search engines to keep using the old address.
My new site runs on WordPress. Can I use a plugin instead?
Yes. A redirect plugin keeps the pairs in the database and needs no change to the server's files. Choose the plain CSV here and import it. Rules in the server's own configuration are answered before WordPress loads, which is a little faster and still works if WordPress does not.

Moving a site and want the redirects done for you?

Tell us what the site is on and where it is going. We reply with what moves by itself, what has to be rebuilt, and a fixed quote.

Get a free migration assessment