Is it better to delete web pages that I don't want anymore or should I 301 redirect all of the pages I delete to the homepage or another live page?
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Is it better for SEO to delete web pages that I don't want anymore or should I 301 redirect all of the pages I delete to the homepage or another live page?
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The general answer is to do a 301 redirect.
I have a lot of temporary pages. I delete the files and do a 301 redirects to a closely related page - or if none available to the homepage.
Since I have lots of temporary pages I place the redirect in the .htaccess file of the folder that contains the page instead of in my root .htaccess. That keeps the main .htaccess uncluttered with temp pages. I also plan my creation of temporary pages so that entire folders eventually go extinct. I believe that saves processing time for lots of visitors.
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