How to Redirect Unused Domains

Don’t leave your unused domains just floating in space.

Redirect your old domain to your new domain if any of these points are true:

  • The old domain contains content that’s relevant to your current business
  • The old domain has inbound links
  • The old domain has any amount of traffic

Permanently redirect your old domains to you new domain with a “301 Redirect”.

Here’s how to do it assuming your using a standard Apache web server:

  • Find the .htaccess file for your old domain
  • Copy the code snippet below, replacing old-domain.com and new-domain.com with your actual domains
  • Paste the code into the top of your .htaccess file
  • Test to make sure the redirect is working properly
RewriteEngine on
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^old-domain.com [NC,OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^www.old-domain.com [NC]
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ http://new-domain.com/$1 [L,R=301,NC]