Google Can Forward Ranking Signals Without A 301 Redirect

Google’s John Mueller says, in some cases, it’s possible to forward ranking signals from an old URL to a new URL without a 301 redirect. This is mentioned during Mueller’s weekly Google SEO hangout recorded on June 4.

It turns out that site owners are not completely out of luck if they don’t set up redirects immediately, as Google is capable of forwarding signals on its own.

NOTE: I wouldn’t leave it up to chance for something like this, it’s great Google can pick it up in cases where it might be missing but don’t depend on it getting it right all the time.