Webflow 301 Redirects: Setup, Bulk CMS Redirects, and Troubleshooting

Redirects in Webflow are managed at the site level, not in the Designer. Access them via: top-left Webflow logo menu > Site Settings > Hosting tab > scroll to the '301 Redirects' section. The panel shows two columns: 'Old Path' (the URL being retired) and 'New Path' (the destination). You can also reach this via the Designer by clicking the Webflow logo > go to Dashboard > click your site > Settings > Hosting > 301 Redirects. Note: the Redirects section only appears on sites connected to a custom domain on a paid hosting plan.

In the 301 Redirects panel, click the '+' button to add a new row. In the 'Old Path' field, enter the old URL path — start with a forward slash (e.g., /old-page). Do not include the domain. In the 'New Path' field, enter the destination path (e.g., /new-page), or for an external URL, enter the full URL including protocol (https://example.com/destination). Click 'Save' when done, then publish the site. The redirect is only active on the live published site after publishing — it does not apply to the Webflow staging URL.

For migrations with many URL changes, use Webflow's CSV import feature. Prepare a CSV file with two columns — the first column is the old path, the second is the new path. No header row is needed (though Webflow ignores a header row if present). Format: /old-path-1,/new-path-1 /old-path-2,/new-path-2 /old-blog/post-title,/blog/post-title In Site Settings > Hosting > 301 Redirects: click 'Import CSV'. Select your file. Webflow validates the CSV and previews the entries. Review for errors, then click 'Import'. Click 'Save' after import, then publish. Maximum redirects per import batch: 1,000. For larger sets, split into multiple CSV files.

When you rename a CMS item's slug (the 'Slug' field in the CMS Editor), the old URL becomes a 404. Webflow does not automatically create a redirect when a slug changes. You must manually add it. To find the old slug: check Google Search Console for 404 errors, review your browser history, or look at your external links. To add the redirect: Site Settings > Hosting > 301 Redirects > add entry: Old Path = /blog/old-post-slug, New Path = /blog/new-post-slug. If you change the Collection's folder URL (e.g., from /articles to /blog), ALL items in that collection get new URLs — you would need a redirect for every single item slug. Best practice: never change a Collection's folder URL after launch.

When migrating FROM another platform (WordPress, Squarespace, Wix) TO Webflow, two types of redirects are needed: (1) URL-path redirects for pages that changed URL structure — handled in Webflow's 301 Redirects panel. (2) Domain/subdomain redirects — handled at the DNS level, not in Webflow. For example, redirecting www.example.com to example.com (or vice versa): this is set in your domain registrar or DNS provider's settings, not in Webflow. For redirecting a subdomain (blog.example.com → example.com/blog): requires DNS changes plus Webflow cannot natively host subdomains — you would need a reverse proxy or Cloudflare routing rules. Webflow handles only path-level redirects, not domain-level routing.

Common reasons a redirect does not work and how to fix each: 1. Site not published after saving redirects — redirects only activate after a publish. Click the Publish button after any redirect change. 2. Testing on webflow.io staging URL — Webflow redirects only work on custom domains, not on the .webflow.io staging URL. 3. Path case mismatch — Webflow paths are case-sensitive. /About ≠ /about. Check the exact case in the Old Path field. 4. Redirect loop — Old Path and New Path form a cycle (A→B, B→A). Check the redirect list for circular entries and remove one. 5. Browser cache serving old redirect — clear browser cache or test in a private/incognito window, or use an HTTP status checking tool that bypasses cache. 6. Redirect chain — the new path itself has another redirect (A→B→C creates a chain). Consolidate chains to single-hop: A→C directly. 7. SSL not yet provisioned — newly connected domains with pending SSL may redirect to an error before SSL is active. Wait for SSL provisioning (up to 24h) before testing.