Skewcheck Guides Webflow redirects not working
Webflow 301 redirect not working? Eight things to check
Updated · By SwynQ Labs Private Limited
The redirect is in Webflow and the old URL still returns 404. These eight checks are the ones Webflow's own help documents. The migration guide covers building the map; this page is only for a rule that already exists and does not fire. Start with the live response, in a private window, because browsers cache a 301.
1. Read the first response, not the page you land on
A browser can show the new page from a redirect it cached earlier, or it can hide a 302. Ask the server:
curl -sI "https://example.com/old-path"curl -sI prints the headers and stops. You want the first status and the Location header. 301 or 308 to the new path is what you set. 404 means this request never matched a rule. Repeat in a private window so a cached 301 is not what you are looking at.
2. Publish the domain you are testing
Webflow's help says to publish the site after you add a redirect, and again after a CSV import, before you test. A rule saved in Site settings → Publishing → 301 redirects does nothing on a domain you have not published to. Test the domain in the address bar, not a different staging host.
3. A live page still owns the old path
Webflow's help has an Important note: a static page that still uses the old slug has to be deleted, saved as a draft, or given a new slug before the redirect can apply. A CMS item has to be archived, deleted, unpublished, saved as a draft, or re-slugged. If the page is still live, the redirect does not get the path.
4. An older wildcard is winning
Webflow's help, under Redirect order, says redirects run in the order they were added. Older rules are tried first. Filter Site settings → Publishing → 301 redirects by Date created. A broad wildcard you added earlier matches before a more specific rule you added later, so the specific rule never runs. Add the specific rule first when you can. If the wildcard is already older, delete the wildcard and add it again, so the specific rule is the older one and runs first, then publish.
5. Wildcards: (.*) and %1, and no exclusions
Webflow's folder redirects use a capture group. Old path /old%-folder/(.*) and redirect target /new-folder/%1 send /old-folder/post to /new-folder/post. %1 is the first group, %2 the second. Webflow's site-level SEO guide says a wildcard cannot exclude a path: there is no way, in the redirects table, to say "everything in this folder except this one page." If one page must go somewhere else, give that page its own rule and make sure rule order (check 4) runs it first, or split the wildcard into groups that do not include the exception.
6. Escaping, including query strings
Webflow's help says special characters in an old path are escaped with % in front of the character, and that you escape the old path only, not the new one. The documented query-string example is old path %?category%=food for ?category=food. The same page lists - among characters to escape in old paths and in wildcard URLs.
The same help page says Webflow removes a trailing slash that sits directly before a query string. /slug/?param=value is matched as /slug?param=value. An old path written /slug/%?param%=value does not fire; /slug%?param%=value does.
7. The plan has to include 301 redirects
Webflow's help says 301 redirects need a paid Site plan, or a site in a Workspace on a paid Workspace plan.
8. A CSV import replaced the old rules
Webflow's import/export help says a new CSV import overwrites all existing redirects. If the old URL worked yesterday and the list looks short today, export what is there now, merge the missing rows back in, import the combined file, and publish. The file is two columns, old path then new path, up to 16 MB. One invalid row fails the whole import; Webflow emails the file back with the errors.
Building that file from scratch is the other guide: Webflow migration redirects.
Check every old URL, not one
One fixed rule does not mean the rest of the old site redirects. Run the header check on every old URL that used to get a visit, then again a week later. A later import or a slug change can undo it.
The free Lost-URL Scan looks up the addresses public web archives saved for a domain and checks what each one returns on the live site today. It shows the top 10 free.
Fixing it yourself? The DIY Fix Kit ($49 once; ₹3,999 in India, no GST) turns your scan's lost-URL list into a ready-to-import redirect file for Webflow, Framer, WordPress, Next.js/Vercel, Netlify, Apache, Nginx or CSV, with a re-check 7 days later. It's offered on your scan results. Run the free scan
Want it done for you? Migration Repair: we map every old URL that gets search traffic, put the redirects in and check them at launch and 7 days later. $500 per site (₹40,000 in India); sites over 60 URLs are quoted first. The redirect map for your top 10 pages is free first: email hello@swynq.com. We don't promise rankings or traffic. There is a worked Webflow import path on Migration Repair.
Questions
Why does my Webflow redirect work in the editor and 404 on the live site?
Webflow applies 301 redirects when you publish. Confirm you published the domain you are testing, and that no live static page or CMS item still uses that slug.
Does a Webflow wildcard skip one page if I add a later rule for it?
Not by itself. Webflow tries older redirects first, and its wildcard rules cannot exclude a path. The specific rule has to run before the wildcard.
Will importing a new redirect CSV keep my old Webflow rules?
No. Webflow says a new import overwrites all existing redirects. Export first, add the new rows to that file, then import the combined file and publish.