302 Found

Meaning & Description

Common Causes

• Authentication middleware intercepting a request.
• Geographic or device-based temporary routing (e.g., redirecting mobile users to a mobile site).
• Short-term marketing campaigns.

How to fix a 302 error

1. Check the `Location` header to see where the server is sending the client.
2. If a `POST` request is unexpectedly turning into a `GET` request, consider using a `307 Temporary Redirect` instead.
3. If search engines are indexing the temporary URL instead of the original one, ensure you haven't accidentally used a 301 instead of a 302.
4. Verify that session cookies are being properly passed along if the 302 is part of an authentication flow.

Browser & SEO Behaviour

Code Examples

HTTP/1.1 302 Found
Date: Mon, 12 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMT
Location: /login?returnTo=/dashboard
Content-Length: 0

app.get('/dashboard', (req, res) => {
  if (!req.user) {
    // Express defaults to 302 for res.redirect()
    return res.redirect('/login');
  }
  res.send('Welcome to the dashboard');
});

from fastapi import FastAPI, Depends
from fastapi.responses import RedirectResponse

app = FastAPI()

@app.get("/dashboard")
def dashboard(user: dict = Depends(get_current_user)):
    if not user:
        # FastAPI RedirectResponse defaults to 307, must specify 302
        return RedirectResponse(url="/login", status_code=302)
    return {"message": "Welcome"}

func dashboardHandler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
    if !isAuthenticated(r) {
        http.Redirect(w, r, "/login", http.StatusFound)
        return
    }
    w.Write([]byte("Dashboard"))
}

[HttpGet("dashboard")]
public IActionResult GetDashboard()
{
    if (!User.Identity.IsAuthenticated)
    {
        // Returns a 302 Found
        return Redirect("/login");
    }
    return View();
}

curl -I http://example.com/protected-route
# Adding -L follows the 302 redirect automatically
curl -I -L http://example.com/protected-route

Raw HTTP Response Example

HTTP/1.1 302 Found
Location: https://app.example.com/login
Content-Length: 0
Connection: close

Real-world Examples

Frequently Asked Questions

Developer Tips

• Use 302 as the default for login routing. It ensures that when a user logs out and tries to access a protected page, they are directed to the login screen without caching the redirect.
• Always use absolute paths or fully qualified URLs in the Location header to avoid unexpected relative routing issues.
• Beware of frameworks that default to 302 for all redirects (like Express.js) when you might actually need a 301 for SEO purposes.

Interview Questions

These are questions you might face in a backend or API design interview that touch on HTTP 302.