How to Add URL Redirection in Squarespace
If you have a Squarespace website and you want to redirect your old links to new ones, you need to know how to add URL redirection in Squarespace 7.1.
The process is not difficult, but it does require a bit of technical know-how. In this blog post, we will guide you through the steps to set up URL redirection in Squarespace 7.1.
What is a URL Redirect?
A URL redirect is a technique used to redirect a user from one URL to another. This can happen for various reasons, such as changing the URL of a page, disabling or deleting a page or moving a page or a website to a new domain.
Two main redirect types
There are different types of redirects but here we will discuss the two main types: 301 and 302.
i) 301 Redirect
A 301 redirect is a permanent redirect. It informs the search engines that the page has been moved permanently, and all the link strength and ranking signals will pass from the old URL to the new URL.
This type of redirect is useful when you want to redirect users from an old page to a new page that has similar content or when you want to redirect users from a non-www version of your site to a www version.
ii) 302 Redirect
A 302 redirect, on the other hand, is a temporary redirect. It informs the search engines that the page has been moved temporarily and the link strength and ranking signals won't pass from the old URL to the new URL.
This type of redirect is useful when you want to redirect users to a different page temporarily, such as during website maintenance, a seasonal sale or when the original page is out of stock or other similar reasons.
It's important to use the right type of redirect for your website to avoid any negative impact on your SEO efforts. By using 301 redirects correctly, you can ensure that your website maintains its search engine rankings and that users are redirected to the right page.
How to add URL redirection in Squarespace
Squarespace 7.1 is a website builder that makes it easy to create beautiful, functional websites without any coding knowledge. One of the essential features of Squarespace is URL mapping.
URL mapping allows you to set up redirects from old URLs to new URLs, making it easy for visitors to find your website and navigate through it.
In this blog post, we'll guide you through the process of creating URL mappings in Squarespace 7.1.
To access the URL mapping feature, you need to:
Log in to your Squarespace account
Navigate to the 'Settings' tab
Click on ‘Developer Tools’ drop-down
Click on 'URL Mappings'
Now, add your redirect in the format:
<original url> -> <new url> <redirect type>
Original URL - URL you want to redirect from. This can be any URL on your website, including blog posts, product pages, and homepages. For example, if you want to redirect visitors from an old blog post, enter the blog post's URL in this field.
The Original URL should be a page on your Squarespace site or a page of a domain that is connected to Squarespace. External URLs cannot be added as an original URL
New URL - Enter the URL you want to redirect to. This should be the new URL for the content on your website. For example, if you've moved a blog post to a new URL, enter the new URL in this field.
The new URL field can have external URLs as well. If you are mentioning an external URL then it is essential to mention the complete URL including https://
After the new URL, mention your redirect type. As we discussed earlier, a 301 redirect is a permanent redirect, while a 302 redirect is a temporary redirect. Enter the appropriate redirect type based on your needs.
Once you've entered the original URL, new URL, and redirect type, click on the 'Save’ button. Your URL mapping will now be saved, and visitors who access the old URL will be redirected to the new URL.
Before you publish your website, it's essential to test your URL mappings to ensure they're working correctly. To test a URL mapping, simply enter the old URL in your browser's address bar. If the URL mapping is working correctly, you'll be redirected to the new URL.
Squarespace URL mapping rules
Here is a list of Squarespace URL mapping rules that you should follow while adding any redirect mapping.
You can only redirect URLs of websites that are part of Squarespace. If your website is managed by another hosting provider, then connect it to Squarespace first before using URL mappings.
For eg: If a site example.tld is hosted on Godaddy then you cannot create a URL mapping for this URL in Squarespace. You should first connect this website to Squarespace to add URL redirection.
You can't change the URL of static assets like images or files on your Squarespace site.
The URLs in the mappings are case-sensitive. If the URLs are all in small letters, then your changes should also be in small letters and vice versa.
You cannot use these ?, &, or # symbols in the URLs. Only the RSS feed URLs can contain ? symbol.
Ensure that your URL redirects don't use any reserved URL slugs.
You cannot redirect the home page “/”
There's a limit to how many URL redirects you can add which is currently 400 KB, which is around 2500 redirect lines
The URL redirects follow the top-bottom order priority. This means redirects at the top will have priority over the redirects present below it.
URL redirects will only work if the page you want to change from has been disabled or deleted.
URL mapping examples
/old-url -> /new-url 301 - Common redirect
/blog/[name] -> /posts/[name] - 301 - Redirect items in a collection (eg: blog post, product pages)
/old-url -> /new-url?format=rss - 301 (Redirect RSS feed)
/[name].html -> /blog/[name] - 301 (Redirect items with extension)
In conclusion, URL mapping is an essential tool for any website owner. It allows you to redirect visitors from old URLs to new URLs, ensuring that your website is easy to navigate and that visitors can find the content they're looking for. By following the steps outlined in this blog post, you can easily create URL mappings in Squarespace 7.1 and ensure that your website is optimised for both visitors and search engines.
