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How to Create a URL Redirect

The Redirects tool in cPanel will allow you to redirect your website's visitors from a source URL to a target URL. Remember that redirects only update the .htaccess file. The domain name will be available on the list once it is added to the cPanel.

Warning: Never create a redirect for domain.com to www.domain.com or from domain.com to domain.com/index.something. Doing either will cause an infinite loop. If you need to control the www and index page, you must use mod_rewrite by adding .htaccess code. 

How to Set Up a Redirect

You may find some links below that will redirect you to your cPanel and its features provided that the following conditions are met:
  • You are logged into your Customer Portal. You can also log in after clicking the link.
  • The hosting package you are attempting to access is either Shared or Cloud.
  1. Log in to cPanel.
  2. Under the Domains section, click the Redirects icon.

    cPanel's Redirects

  3. From the Type dropdown menu, select your preferred type of redirect.

     cPanel - Redirects - Type of Redirects

    • Permanent 301 is a redirect that will update the visitor's bookmarks and direct search engines to the new site. 
    • Temporary 302 is a redirect that will redirect the visitor or search engine but will not update the bookmark, and search engines will continue to index to the original page.
  4. From the https?://(www.)? Dropdown menu, choose the domain name you would like to redirect.

     cPanel - Redirects - Choose Domain

    • If you would like to redirect a single page or directory, you can use the text field that begins with the forward-slash (/) to enter the folder or file name.
       
  5. In the Redirects To field, enter the full URL of the page you will be redirecting.

     cPanels - Redirects To

    Note: You must enter the protocol (e.g., https://, http:// or ftp://) as well for the domain URL to be accepted.
  6. Select one of the following www. redirection options to dictate whether or not the domain will be redirecting:

     cPanel - Redirects - Wildcard Redirect

    • Only redirect with www. will only redirect visitors that type www. as part of the URL.
    • Redirect with or without www. will redirect all visitors regardless if they use www. or not.
    • Do Not Redirect www. will not redirect visitors that use www. as part of the URL.
  7. Clicking the Wild Card Redirect option allows users to set up a redirect to the same file on a new destination.
    • With Wild Card Redirect, www.example.com/about.html will redirect to www.example-destination.com/about.html.
    • Without Wild Card Redirect, www.example.com/about.html will redirect to www.example-destination.com.
  8. Click Add to create the redirect as specified.

When visitors type the exact URL you specified, they will be redirected to the target site you assigned.

Note: If you are looking to force your visitors to view your site securely with an SSL, you need to read the article and follow the video tutorial here: How Do I Use My SSL Certificate?