302 redirect
A 302 redirect sends people and bots to another address for now, and tells search engines to keep the original page.
A 302 redirect sends anyone who asks for a page to a different address, while telling search engines the change is only temporary. The original page keeps its place. You'd use one when a page is away for a short time and will come back, such as a product that's out of stock or a page under repair.
The difference from a 301 redirect is all in what search engines keep. Pick the wrong one and the wrong address ends up in results.
301 or 302?
Ask yourself whether the old address will ever be used again. If it won't, use a 301. If it will, use a 302.
Google's guide to redirects spells out the effect. With a temporary redirect, Google keeps showing the source page in results and doesn't treat the target as the new main version. With a permanent one, the target takes over. The codes 303 and 307 count as temporary too.
For example, Kestrel Roasters runs a winter promotion and points /gift-box to /winter-sale for six weeks. That's a 302: in February the gift box page comes back, and it should still hold its place in search. If Kestrel had used a 301, it would be asking Google to swap the gift box page out for a sale page that's about to vanish.
The common mistake
Many website tools and plugins create a 302 by default. So a site move or a renamed page often ends up with temporary redirects that were meant to be permanent. Search engines may work it out over time, but you're sending a mixed message in the meantime. When you move something for good, check the redirect actually returns 301.
302s and AI answers
AI platforms find pages through search results and links, so the address a search engine keeps is often the one they fetch and cite. A redirect that points the wrong way can leave answers citing an address you meant to retire, or skipping the page you meant to promote.