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Redesign without losing rankings

To redesign a website without losing Google rankings, map every old URL to its new equivalent, redirect each one with a permanent 301, keep the redirects for at least a year, and watch Search Console after launch. Google states that 301 redirects do not cause a loss in PageRank. Expect some movement for a few weeks while Google updates its index.

Why redesigns lose traffic

New colours never cost anyone their rankings. These do:

  1. 01Pages change address and the old addresses return errors
  2. 02Content that ranked is cut or merged without a redirect
  3. 03The staging site's noindex or robots block goes live with the new site
  4. 04Internal links still point to old addresses
  5. 05The new site is slower than the old one

Before launch: build the redirect map

List every URL that matters: your sitemap, the pages with traffic in your analytics, and the top pages in Search Console. Google recommends this mapping step before any move.

For each old URL, write its closest new equivalent. One old page to one new page, no chains of redirects, and no sending everything to the homepage. Keep the titles and content of your best pages unless you have a reason to change them.

Launch day

  1. 01Deploy the 301 redirects together with the new site
  2. 02Remove any noindex tags and staging robots rules
  3. 03Update internal links and canonical tags to the new URLs
  4. 04Submit the new sitemap in Google Search Console
  5. 05If the domain changes, use Search Console's Change of Address tool

After launch: what to watch

Google says to expect temporary fluctuation: for medium-sized sites it can take a few weeks or more before the new URLs replace the old ones in results. Watch the Pages report for errors, fix any 404 that had traffic, and keep the redirects for at least a year.

Sources

  1. Google Search Central: Site moves with URL changes
  2. Google Search Central: Redirects and Google Search
  3. Search Console Help: Change of Address tool

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( Questions )

Quick answers.

Can't find your answer? Ask us directly

No. Google states that 301 and other permanent redirects do not cause a loss in PageRank.

At least one year, according to Google, and longer if old URLs still receive visits.

There is usually some movement for a few weeks while Google recrawls the site. With a complete redirect map, rankings settle back once the new URLs are indexed.

Yes, with the same redirect map plus Google Search Console's Change of Address tool. It is safer to change one thing at a time if you can.

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