Glossary
What is a trailing slash redirect?
A trailing slash redirect sends a URL without a final slash to the version with one (or the reverse), so each page has a single address. It's normal, but if your internal links, sitemap or canonical use the other form, every link passes through a redirect and Search Console reports "Page with redirect".
Why it matters
To a search engine, /pricing and /pricing/ are two URLs. Sites pick one and redirect the other. Problems start when signals disagree: the sitemap lists /pricing, internal links use /pricing, but the server redirects to /pricing/. Google then reports the listed URLs as "Page with redirect" in the Pages report, and crawls an extra hop for every link.
How to fix
- Choose one form per section of the site.
- 301-redirect the other form.
- Update internal links, canonicals and sitemaps to the chosen form.
- Validate the fix in Search Console.
Is it a ranking problem?
One redirect hop isn't harmful by itself, and "Page with redirect" just means that URL isn't indexed (its target is). The real costs are wasted crawling, slower discovery and confusing reports. Consistency also helps canonicalisation.
Example
We moved all internal links to the trailing-slash form after Search Console flagged dozens of "Page with redirect" URLs. The count dropped as Google recrawled.
FAQ
Is a trailing slash better for SEO?
Neither form is better. Consistency is what matters.
What does "Page with redirect" mean?
The URL redirects elsewhere, so it isn't indexed itself. It's fine if intended.
Should I use 301 or 308?
Both are permanent. Search engines treat them the same way.