.htaccess Redirect Generator

What .htaccess redirects do

.htaccess is a per-directory configuration file read by the Apache web server (the software behind most cPanel and shared-hosting accounts). Drop one in your site root and you can send visitors and search engines from an old URL to a new one without touching your application code. This builder writes those rules for you using mod_rewrite — RewriteEngine On followed by RewriteCond/RewriteRule lines — so the ordering is deterministic and every source path is anchored and escaped to match only the URL you intend.

301 vs 302, and canonicalisation

A 301 is a permanent redirect: browsers cache it and search engines pass the old page's ranking to the new one — use it when a page has moved for good. A 302 is temporary and tells engines to keep the original URL indexed — use it for short-lived campaigns or A/B tests. Beyond individual pages, the toggles let you force every request onto https:// and pick a single canonical host (www or the naked domain), which prevents duplicate-content splits and keeps one authoritative address for your site.

Where the file goes and how to test it

Copy the generated snippet into a file named exactly .htaccess (note the leading dot, no extension) in your site's document root — usually public_html. If a file already exists, add these rules near the top. Because rules are evaluated top to bottom and each one ends in [L], order matters: put canonicalisation first, then your most specific path redirects. After uploading, visit an old URL and confirm your browser lands on the new address with the expected status code.