How to Redirect a Domain or Page (301 Redirects)

301 or 302?

Type	Means	Use for	SEO
301 — Permanent	“This has moved for good”	Rebrands, new domain, renamed pages, extra domains	Passes ranking value to the new address ✅
302 — Temporary	“Back soon”	Short promotions, maintenance pages	Google keeps the old address indexed

When in doubt, use 301.

Before you start

• The domain you are redirecting from must be on your hosting account (as the main domain, an addon domain, or added under Domains → Domains) and point to our nameservers.
• If the old domain has its own website that should disappear, back it up first.

Method 1: cPanel Redirects

Step 1: Open Redirects

In cPanel, go to Domains → Redirects.

Step 2: Fill in the redirect

1. Type: Permanent (301).
2. https?://(www.)? — choose the domain to redirect from (or ALL Public Domains).
3. Path after the /: leave empty to redirect the whole domain, or type a page path like old-page.html.
4. Redirects to: the full destination, e.g. https://newbrand.co.ke/.
5. www. redirection: Redirect with or without www. (recommended).
6. Wild Card Redirect: tick it so oldbrand.co.ke/about goes to newbrand.co.ke/about (same path on the new domain). Leave it unticked to send everything to the homepage.
7. Click Add.

Step 3: Test

Open the old address in a private window — it should jump to the new one. To confirm it is a 301, use httpstatus.io or redirect-checker.org: the result should show 301 Moved Permanently.

Method 2: .htaccess (more control)

Edit .htaccess in the old site’s folder with File Manager (Settings → Show Hidden Files to see it). Add rules at the top:

Redirect one page:

Redirect 301 /old-page.html https://yourbusiness.co.ke/new-page/

Redirect a whole domain, keeping the path:

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^(www.)?oldbrand.co.ke$ [NC]
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://newbrand.co.ke/$1 [R=301,L]

Always use the non-www version of your own domain:

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^www.yourbusiness.co.ke$ [NC]
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://yourbusiness.co.ke/$1 [R=301,L]

WordPress sites

For individual pages inside WordPress, the free Redirection plugin is easiest: Tools → Redirection → Add new (source URL → target URL, 301). It also logs 404 errors so you can catch broken links.

Keep your rankings after a rebrand

1. Redirect every old page to its matching new page (wildcard), not just to the homepage.
2. Keep the old domain registered and redirecting for at least a year.
3. In Google Search Console, add the new domain and use Change of Address.
4. Update links on your social profiles, Google Business Profile and email signatures.

Removing a redirect

In Domains → Redirects, scroll to Current Redirects and click Delete. Browsers cache 301s, so test in a private window.

Troubleshooting

Problem	Cause	Fix
Redirect not happening	Old domain not on this account, or DNS points elsewhere	Add the domain under Domains and point it to us
“Too many redirects”	Destination redirects back to the source	Check both sides; remove the conflicting rule
Goes to homepage instead of same page	Wild Card Redirect not ticked	Delete and recreate with Wild Card
Still redirecting after deleting	Browser cached the 301	Clear cache or test in private mode

Frequently asked questions

Can I redirect a domain registered elsewhere?
Yes — point its nameservers to AutoHost, add it under Domains, then redirect.

Does a redirect affect email on that domain?
No. Email follows MX records, not web redirects.