HTTP status code
TL;DR
An HTTP status code is a three-digit code the server returns with every response, signalling whether the request succeeded, redirected or errored.
HTTP status codes are the primary communication between server and crawler. 2xx = success, 3xx = redirect, 4xx = client error (like 404 not found), 5xx = server error. For SEO, 200, 301, 302, 404, 410 and 503 matter most — they drive indexing, ranking and crawl budget.
Example
A shop serves 404 for sold-out products. Better: 410 Gone if permanently removed (faster de-indexing), or 301 to a similar product.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between 404 and 410?
404 = 'not found, maybe returns'. 410 = 'permanently gone'. Google removes 410 pages from the index faster.
Related terms
Further reading
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