How to merge two websites after an acquisition

Step 1: audit what the acquired site is worth

Before deciding anything, find out what the acquired site actually does for you:

• Traffic: which pages get the most visits, from Search Console and analytics.

• Rankings: which queries bring people in.

• Links: which pages other sites link to.

• Customers: login pages, help docs, pricing and contact pages people use.

You’re looking for the 20% of pages that carry most of the value. Those need the most care.

Step 2: decide what each page becomes

Put every important URL from the acquired site in a spreadsheet, with one of four outcomes:

• Move: the content is moved to the main site, under a new URL.

• Merge: it’s combined with an existing page on the main site.

• Replace: the main site already has an equivalent page.

• Retire: it has no future, and nothing close replaces it.

Moved, merged and replaced pages get a redirect to their new home. Retired pages can return 404, or redirect to the closest relevant section if they still get visits.

Step 3: map URLs to their best match

Resist the urge to send the whole acquired domain to the new homepage. Visitors looking for a specific product, help article or price should land on that page.

acquired.com/products/widget → company.com/products/widget

acquired.com/support/* → company.com/help

acquired.com/about → company.com/about/acquired-brand

acquired.com → company.com as a catch-all for everything else

Google’s site move guidance warns against redirecting many old URLs to an unrelated page like the homepage.

Step 4: keep a home for the old brand

People will keep searching for the acquired brand name for a long time. Consider a page on the main site that explains the change:

company.com/acquired-brand

It gives brand searches somewhere to land, reassures existing customers, and is a natural destination for the old homepage. Our post on whether to redirect an old brand name forever goes deeper.

Step 5: keep the acquired domain

The domain is part of what you bought. Keep it registered, and keep its DNS under your control, so the redirects keep working long after the old website is gone.

Moving the domain into your own account early also avoids surprises when the previous owner’s billing or access ends.

Step 6: set up the redirects outside the old site

The acquired site’s hosting usually goes away, so the redirects shouldn’t depend on it. Connect the acquired domain to a redirect service, import your mapping, and switch the old hosting off once everything tests correctly.

With Redirect Supply, you can import the whole mapping from a CSV file and manage both domains from one dashboard. See our merging companies use case.

Step 7: tell Google about the move

If you’re moving a whole domain to another, use Search Console’s Change of Address tool. Google recommends moving one site at a time rather than combining several in one go. Our guide to using Search Console after changing domains walks through it.

Don’t forget email and subdomains

Websites are only part of a domain. Before you change anything, list everything else the acquired domain does:

• Email: keep the MX records until every mailbox has moved.

• Subdomains: app., help., status. or shop. may run separate services with their own users.

• Verification records: TXT records for tools like Google Workspace or Microsoft 365.

Only the web records need to change for the redirects. Leave the rest in place until each service has a new home.

Step 8: monitor and adjust

In the first weeks:

• watch for 404s on the acquired domain and add rules for any URL still in use

• check that brand searches find the new pages

• update links you control: emails, partner listings, documentation and profiles

Keep the redirects in place for at least a year. For a well-known brand, keep them much longer.