Why does WP Engine redirect numbered URLs?

Definition: WP Engine's Redirect Bots setting redirects bot requests for URLs that end in a number or a query like 1 to the corresponding parent URL. WP Engine documents the setting as a way to limit repeated requests for changing numeric URLs that are treated as separate page views.

Key facts

• WP Engine's Redirect Bots documentation says a bot can see a URL ending in a number, including a year such as 2019, and increment it to 2020, 2021, and beyond.
• The same article says each different URL is seen as new and is not cached, which can cause server lag and high load.
• When the setting is enabled, WP Engine says its server redirects bot visits for these URL types to the parent, shown as site.com/page/.
• Redirect Bots is disabled by default and is managed from the WP Engine User Portal.
• WP Engine says a scanner that has trouble or receives a 301 redirect may be affected by this setting.

What does WP Engine classify as a numbered URL?

WP Engine describes two URL endings in the same sentence: a number at the end of the URL and “a query like 1.” The page gives a path example, but it does not define the exact syntax of the query form or name a query parameter. The entry therefore treats the query wording as the documented scope without assigning it a form such as page=1.

The URI standard explains the two parts involved. RFC 3986 defines the path as data usually organized hierarchically, and defines the query as non-hierarchical data that can also identify a resource. A numeric final path segment therefore makes a distinct URI even when the earlier path identifies the parent page.

site.com/page/2019
site.com/page/2020
site.com/page/2021

Why does the setting redirect the bot?

The reason given by WP Engine is request multiplication. A bot can increment a numeric ending continually, while each changed URL is treated as a new page view and is not cached. The resulting requests can produce lag and high load. Redirecting those bot requests to site.com/page/ collapses the documented numeric variants onto the parent URL before the server keeps handling them as separate pages.

The response can be a 301. RFC 9110 defines 301 Moved Permanently as a response in which the target resource has a new permanent URI, and says the server should send that URI in a Location header. A crawler or scanning service can therefore report the redirect and follow the parent target according to its own HTTP behavior.

How can the setting be checked?

WP Engine's documented control path is the User Portal, then the environment name, then Utilities, where Redirect Bots can be toggled between Enable and Disable. The support page says that a service scanning a numbered page can encounter an error when it uses a user agent redirected by default. It gives Facebook's URL debugger as an example and says disabling the setting allows that tool to scrape and analyze the supplied data.

For a site investigation, record the requested numeric path or query form, the response status, and the Location value. A 301 response with the parent target is consistent with the behavior described in the WP Engine article and the HTTP semantics for a permanent redirect.

Related terms

• HTTP redirects
• How do I keep campaign parameters through redirects?
• Can automatic language redirects prevent Google from seeing translations?

FAQ

Does the setting redirect every visitor?

WP Engine describes the rule for bot visits. If you are checking a human-facing page, compare the response from a normal browser with the response sent to the scanning user agent.

Is the redirect permanent?

WP Engine mentions a 301 as a possible symptom when a scanning service has trouble. If you receive a 301, RFC 9110 defines that status as a permanent move and identifies the Location header as the preferred new URI.

How do you turn Redirect Bots off?

In the User Portal, open the environment, select Utilities, find Redirect Bots, and toggle it to Disable. WP Engine says this setting is disabled by default.

Sources

1. WP Engine, "Configure Redirect Bots Setting", 23 January 2026
2. IETF, "Uniform Resource Identifier (URI): Generic Syntax", January 2005
3. IETF, "HTTP Semantics", June 2022

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