308 Vs. 301 Redirects – Which One Is Better For SEO?

Here is the short version. For SEO, Google treats 301 and 308 redirects the same, so neither one ranks better than the other. Use a 301 for almost every redirect you set up. Reach for a 308 only when you need the browser to repeat the exact same request method, so a POST stays a POST. Below is what really separates the two, what Google has said, and how to set either one on WordPress without touching a config file.

What a 308 redirect actually is

A 308 is a permanent redirect. It tells browsers and search engines that a page has moved to a new URL for good, and it passes the ranking power, the link equity, from the old URL to the new one. In that sense it does the same core job as a 301.

The one thing a 308 adds is strictness about the request method. When a browser hits a 308, it has to resend the original request exactly as it was. A form submission that came in as a POST stays a POST on the new URL.

The real difference between a 301 and a 308

Both are permanent and both pass link equity, so the split comes down to that request method.

With a 301, the browser is allowed to change the method. A POST can quietly become a GET on the way to the new URL. Most of the time that does not matter, because the pages people redirect are normal content pages that load with a GET anyway. But if the old URL handled a form or an API call over POST, a 301 can break it. A 308 holds the method in place, so the POST arrives as a POST.

What Google says about 308 redirects

Google’s John Mueller has been clear that there is no ranking gap between the two. He has said 308s are “technically cleaner” when you are not sure which request type a URL gets, but that for most sites, where nearly every request is a GET, the two are the same in practice.

So there is no SEO bonus waiting for you if you switch every 301 to a 308. The decision is technical, not a ranking play.

When to use a 301 and when to use a 308

Match the redirect to the job. For the redirects most site owners deal with, moved posts, changed URLs, a site restructure, a 301 is the right call and the simplest one.

Two quick examples show the split.

A store changes its URLs

You restructure an online store and the product category URLs change. Point every old URL to its new one with 301s. Shoppers land on the right page, and the rankings and link equity the old URLs earned carry over. There is no form data to preserve here, so a 301 is all you need.

An app migrates and has to keep POST requests

You move a web app to a new platform, and some of its URLs accept form submissions over POST. Here a 308 is the safer choice, because it forces the browser to resend those POST requests intact. Swap in a 301 and a submission could arrive as a GET and fail.

How to set a 301 or 308 on WordPress without code

You already know which redirect you want. Adding it is where people get stuck, because the usual routes mean editing your .htaccess file or a server config, and one wrong line there can take the whole site down.

Linkilo’s redirect manager skips all of that. You pick the old URL, set the new one, choose the redirect type, and save. The redirect is live, with no config file and no server access.

It also does the part most redirect setups miss. It watches for redirect chains, the case where one redirect points to a URL that redirects again, which slows every crawl and drains a little link equity at each hop. Linkilo flags the chain so you can point the first URL straight at the final destination. On a site that has been through a few redesigns, that cleanup alone speeds up how fast search and AI crawlers get through your pages.

One honest limit. Linkilo runs on WordPress, so if your redirects live on another platform, you will still be setting those at the server.

The bottom line

For almost every redirect, reach for a 301. It is permanent, it passes link equity, and Google ranks it the same as a 308. Save the 308 for the narrow case where a URL has to keep its POST requests intact, like an app or an API endpoint. Get the type right, set it cleanly, and watch for chains, and your redirects will hold your rankings instead of leaking them.