How do I redirect a directory in Webflow?

Definition: As of 17 October 2026, a Webflow wildcard redirect matches a directory's contents using (.*), a capture group that stores the matching part of the URL. A destination containing %1 reuses that captured text under a new directory.

Key facts

• Webflow's site-level SEO guide specifies source paths without the domain; destinations can be relative paths or absolute URLs.
• Webflow's redirect setup documentation supports multiple capture groups and numbered destination substitutions.
• Webflow's special-character redirect announcement documents % before literal question marks and equals signs in source URLs.

How does a directory keep its page slugs?

A slug is the URL segment identifying a page. Webflow's site-level SEO guide gives this mapping for moving a directory while retaining its subpage slugs:

Old path: /oldfolder/(.*)
Redirect to path: /newfolder/%1

The capture stores the matching text after /oldfolder/. The destination places that text after /newfolder/. Webflow describes reusing the captured text as optional: the destination can also be a fixed URL.

For multiple variable parts, Webflow's redirect setup article supplies this example:

Old path: /blogs/(.*)/(.*)
Redirect to path: /articles/%1/%2

Here, %1 inserts the first capture and %2 inserts the second.

How is the rule added and published?

Webflow's setup instructions place these fields in Site settings > Publishing > 301 redirects. A 301 redirect permanently routes an old URL to a new location. After entering the source pattern and destination, the workflow continues with Add redirect path and site publication. The documented test is opening an old URL in a new browser tab.

The same article gives a fixed destination example:

Old path: /collections/(.*)
Redirect to path: /collections

This sends the matching collection pages to /collections.

How are special characters handled?

Escaping means prefixing a special character so it is interpreted literally. Webflow's special-character announcement explains that % performs this function in redirect source URLs. Its migration example moves a URL containing blog.php?category=photography to a directory path ending in blog/photography. The literal question mark and equals sign require these forms:

%?
%=

The capture expression (.*) remains the wildcard syntax shown in the directory examples.

Related terms

• How do I add a redirect in Webflow?
• How do I import URL redirects into Webflow?
• HTTP redirects

FAQ

Can I redirect a page that still exists?

Webflow's site-level SEO guide says you must first remove an existing static page, save it as a draft, or change its slug before configuring its redirect.

Which rule runs when patterns overlap?

Webflow's redirect setup article says older rules run first. You should add specific redirects before broad wildcard rules; Date created shows their order.

Sources

1. Webflow Help Center, "How do I set up redirects in Webflow?", accessed 17 October 2026
2. Webflow, "Site-level SEO", accessed 17 October 2026
3. Webflow, "Special character redirects support", 29 September 2016

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