301 Redirects on 9 Static Hosts: Setup and Pricing

The short answer: A 301 redirect permanently moves a URL and passes its SEO value to the new destination. Not every static hosting platform handles them the same way. Only Netlify and Cloudflare Pages support the _redirects file. Others require platform-specific config, and GitHub Pages cannot do server-side 301 redirects at all.

Moving or renaming pages without proper redirects is one of the fastest ways to lose search rankings. When Google finds a 404 instead of a redirect, the link equity that page earned over months disappears. If your business runs on static hosting, here is how to handle 301 redirects on every major platform, and what each one costs.

Why 301 Redirects Matter for SEO

When a page moves, a 301 tells search engines the change is permanent. Google transfers the old page's ranking signals to the new URL. Without it, incoming links point nowhere, crawlers index a 404, and rankings drop. This is critical during site migrations where dozens of URLs change at once.

If you are planning a URL restructure, get a free audit so we can map every redirect you need before traffic drops.

How to Configure 301 Redirects by Platform

Netlify and Cloudflare Pages

Both support the _redirects file. Place it in your public/ folder:

/old-page    /new-page    301
/blog/old    /blog/new    301

Vercel

Uses vercel.json in your project root:

{
  "redirects": [
    { "source": "/old-page", "destination": "/new-page", "permanent": true }
  ]
}

Azure Static Web Apps

Uses staticwebapp.config.json:

{
  "routes": [
    { "route": "/old-page", "redirect": "/new-page", "statusCode": 301 }
  ]
}

AWS Amplify

Configure in the Amplify console or customHttp.yml:

[
  { "source": "/old-page", "target": "/new-page", "status": "301" }
]

Render

Redirects are configured through the dashboard UI only. No file-based configuration is available.

GitHub Pages

No server-side redirects. The only workaround is an HTML file at the old path:

<meta http-equiv="refresh" content="0; url=/new-page">
<link rel="canonical" href="/new-page">
<script>window.location.replace("/new-page")</script>

Search engines may treat this as temporary, not permanent. Not ideal for SEO-critical pages.

Deno Deploy, Fly.io, Railway

These are runtimes, not static hosts. Handle redirects in application code:

if (url.pathname === "/old-page") {
  return Response.redirect(new URL("/new-page", url), 301);
}

Not sure which approach fits your site? We can run a free check and show you what to fix.

Free Tier Pricing Comparison

*Vercel free tier is non-commercial use only. **Legacy accounts get limited free allowance.

• 301 redirects preserve your SEO rankings when URLs change
• Only Cloudflare Pages and Netlify support the _redirects file
• GitHub Pages has no server-side redirect capability at all
• AWS Amplify's free tier expires after 12 months
• Cloudflare Pages offers the most generous permanent free tier

A hosting platform that makes redirects easy can save your rankings during every site update. If your current host requires workarounds for something as basic as a 301 redirect, it may be time to reconsider.