Tutorials
How to Master Redirects in Squarespace
Redirects are how you move a page without breaking links or losing your search rankings. If you’ve renamed a page, restructured your navigation, or migrated an old church website onto Squarespace, you need redirects to send both visitors and Google from the old URLs to the new ones. This guide covers exactly how to set them up in Squarespace — the steps, the syntax, the 301-vs-302 decision, wildcards for bulk moves, and the gotchas that trip most people up.
In This Guide
How to Add a Redirect in Squarespace (Step by Step)
Squarespace handles redirects through a feature called URL Mappings. Here’s the whole process:
- Open URL Mappings. From your Squarespace dashboard, go to Settings → Advanced → URL Mappings. (On older 7.0 sites it may appear under Settings → Developer Tools → URL Mappings.)
- Write the redirect rule. Each rule goes on its own line using this format:
/old-page -> /new-page 301
The->arrow points from the old path to the new one, and the number at the end is the redirect type (301 or 302). - Use site-relative paths. For internal redirects, start each path with a
/(don’t include your domain). For example, redirect/old-sermonsto/messageswith:/old-sermons -> /messages 301 - Add one rule per line. Need to redirect 30 old pages? Add 30 lines. Each is evaluated independently.
- Save. Click Save in the top-left. Changes take effect within a minute or two.
- Test in a private window. Open an incognito/private browser window and visit the old URL. You should land on the new one. (Test in private mode so your browser cache doesn’t fool you.)
301 vs. 302: Which Redirect Should You Use?
This is the decision that matters most for SEO. In almost every real-world case — renaming a page, restructuring your site, migrating from an old website — you want a 301.
| 301 (Permanent) | 302 (Temporary) | |
|---|---|---|
| Use when | The move is permanent (renamed/restructured/migrated page) | The move is temporary (a short campaign, a page under maintenance) |
| Passes SEO authority? | Yes — link equity transfers to the new URL | No — Google keeps the old URL indexed |
| Google updates the index to the new URL? | Yes | No |
| Syntax | /old -> /new 301 | /old -> /new 302 |
Bulk Redirects with Wildcards
If you’ve moved an entire section — say every page under /old-blog/ to /news/ — you don’t need a separate line for each page. Squarespace supports a wildcard variable in square brackets:
/old-blog/[slug] -> /news/[slug] 301
Here [slug] captures whatever comes after /old-blog/ and reuses it on the destination. So /old-blog/easter-service automatically redirects to /news/easter-service. You can name the variable anything ([name], [x]) as long as it matches on both sides.
Redirecting to an External Site
To send visitors to a different domain entirely, put the full URL (including https://) on the destination side:
/give -> https://yourchurch.tithe.ly 301
This is handy for pointing a friendly short path on your church site (like /give or /app) to an external giving page, app store listing, or registration form.
Gotchas & Limitations (Read Before You Save)
- The old page must not still exist. A redirect only fires when there’s no live page at that URL. If a real page still lives at the old path, delete or disable it first — otherwise the redirect is ignored.
- Capitalization matters.
/Sermonsand/sermonsare treated as different paths. Match the exact case of the original URL. - Special characters can break rules. Paths containing
?,&, or#(query strings and anchors) don’t redirect reliably through URL Mappings. - There’s a size limit. The URL Mappings field caps out around 400 KB (roughly a few thousand lines). Huge migrations may need to be prioritized down to your most important URLs.
- Don’t chain redirects. Redirecting A → B → C slows the visitor and dilutes SEO value. Always point the old URL straight to the final destination.
- Keep a log. Save your redirect list in a spreadsheet. When you next restructure, you’ll know exactly what already points where.
Migrating a whole church website onto Squarespace? Redirects are the single most important step for keeping your Google rankings — see our Squarespace for churches guide for the full migration picture.
Frequently Asked Questions
My Squarespace redirect isn’t working — why?
The most common cause is that the old page still exists. Redirects only fire when there’s no live page at that URL, so delete or disable the original page first. Also double-check capitalization, make sure each rule is on its own line, and test in a private/incognito window so a cached version doesn’t mislead you.
Should I use a 301 or a 302?
Use a 301 for any permanent move — it passes your SEO authority to the new URL and updates Google’s index. Only use a 302 for genuinely temporary changes (a short-term campaign or a page under maintenance). When unsure, choose 301.
Where is URL Mappings in Squarespace?
Settings → Advanced → URL Mappings on current (7.1) sites. On older 7.0 sites it can appear under Settings → Developer Tools → URL Mappings.
Can I redirect a whole folder at once?
Yes — use a wildcard variable in square brackets: /old-folder/[slug] -> /new-folder/[slug] 301. The bracketed name carries whatever follows the folder path over to the new location.
How do I test that a redirect works?
Open a private/incognito window and visit the old URL. You should land on the new page, and the address bar should show the new URL. Testing in private mode avoids your browser serving a cached copy of the old page.
