Import redirects from Redirection and other plugins
Import redirects into RankFlect SEO from Redirection, Rank Math, Yoast SEO Premium, Squirrly SEO or another RankFlect SEO site, with backup and undo.
On this page
- Where redirects can come from
- Import from Redirection
- Import from Rank Math, Yoast SEO Premium or Squirrly SEO
- What happens during an import
- Move redirects between RankFlect SEO sites
- Redirects in a spreadsheet or CSV
- FAQ
- Do I need to keep Redirection installed after the import?
- Why were fewer redirects imported than Redirection shows?
- Can I undo the import?
If you already have redirects in another plugin, you don't need to re-create them. RankFlect SEO reads them straight from that plugin's data and adds them to its own redirect manager. The other plugin's data is never changed, and the whole import can be undone in one click.
This article covers the redirect plugins and SEO plugins RankFlect SEO imports from, moving redirects between two RankFlect SEO sites, and what to do with a list of redirects in a spreadsheet.
Where redirects can come from
| Source | What is imported |
|---|---|
| Redirection | Enabled redirects that send to a URL. |
| Rank Math | Active redirections, imported together with Rank Math's SEO data. |
| Yoast SEO Premium | Its redirects, imported together with Yoast SEO's data. |
| Squirrly SEO | Its redirects, imported together with Squirrly's data. |
| Another RankFlect SEO site | Redirects from a RankFlect SEO export file. |
Only rules your edition supports come across. The free plugin imports exact-match redirects with the 301, 302 and 307 types. Prefix and regex matching and the 308, 410 and 451 types need RankFlect SEO Pro; without it, those rules are skipped.
Import from Redirection
- Don't delete Redirection yet: deleting it can remove its data. It can stay active, because RankFlect SEO reads its database table directly.
- Go to RankFlect SEO → Tools and find Import from another SEO plugin. Redirection is listed with its number of redirects.
- If Redirection is active and you're ready to switch, turn on Deactivate the old plugin after the import. Two redirect plugins handling the same URLs make problems hard to trace.
- Click Import next to Redirection.
When it finishes you see "Import complete" with the number of redirects imported. Open RankFlect SEO → Redirects to check them.
What comes across: the source path, the target URL, the status code and whether the rule is a regular expression. Redirection rules that do something other than redirect to a URL (for example "error" or "pass-through" actions) and disabled rules are not imported.
Import from Rank Math, Yoast SEO Premium or Squirrly SEO
Their redirects come across as part of the SEO data import, on the same Import from another SEO plugin card. Click Import next to the plugin, and the titles, descriptions and other SEO fields are imported first, then the redirects. See Switch from Yoast SEO, Rank Math or another SEO plugin for the full list of fields.
What happens during an import
- A backup first. RankFlect SEO takes a backup before every import. See Backups, export and import.
- No duplicates. A rule is skipped if an existing RankFlect SEO redirect already handles the same path, or if the same rule appears twice in the source.
- Invalid rules are skipped, such as a redirect that points at itself.
- One batch in the Change Log. "The whole import is one batch in the Change Log, so you can revert it in one click."
Move redirects between RankFlect SEO sites
Useful for staging-to-live moves or when you rebuild a site.
- On the old site, go to RankFlect SEO → Tools → Export & import.
- Keep Redirects switched on (turn off Settings and role permissions and SEO fields of every post and term if you only want redirects) and click Export. You get a JSON file.
- On the new site, open the same card and click Import a file….
- Check the Import preview: it shows "%d new redirects" and how many "already exist" or are "not supported here" (Pro-only rules on a free site).
- Click Import.
Redirects in a spreadsheet or CSV
RankFlect SEO has no CSV import in the admin. If your redirects are in a spreadsheet, you have two options:
- With an AI agent: connect Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or another MCP client (Connect an AI agent), paste the list and ask it to create the redirects. The
bulk_create_redirectstool adds up to 50 rules per call as one Change Log batch and reports any it skipped. Ask for a dry run first. The rules wait in the Change Log until an administrator approves them, even with approval mode off. - By hand: for a short list, add each rule with Add redirect on RankFlect SEO → Redirects.
FAQ
Do I need to keep Redirection installed after the import?
No. Once you have checked the imported redirects, deactivate and delete Redirection. Its rules now live in RankFlect SEO.
Why were fewer redirects imported than Redirection shows?
Rules that already exist in RankFlect SEO, duplicates, disabled rules, non-URL actions and rule types that need Pro (regex, 308 and 410 on the free plugin) are skipped.
Can I undo the import?
Yes. Open the Change Log and revert the import batch. All redirects from that import are removed together.
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Related guides
Create and manage redirects
Send old URLs to new ones with 301, 302 and 307 redirects in RankFlect SEO, with hit counts, search, automatic slug-change redirects and one-click undo.
Switch from Yoast SEO, Rank Math or another SEO plugin
Import titles, descriptions, keywords, robots, canonicals, social fields and redirects from Yoast SEO, Rank Math, AIOSEO and others into RankFlect SEO.
Backups, export and import settings
Back up and restore RankFlect SEO's settings, SEO fields, alt text and redirects, and export them to a JSON file to move RankFlect SEO to another site.
Regex, prefix, 410 and 451 redirectsPRO
Redirect whole folders with Starts with matching, rewrite URLs with regular expressions, and return 308, 410 or 451 status codes with RankFlect SEO Pro.
Still need help?
Email us with your WordPress and RankFlect SEO versions and what you tried. Pro customers get priority replies.