Shopify SEO checklist: 45 checks for more search sales

Why does SEO matter for a Shopify store?

Shoppers who search are often ready to buy. Someone who types a product type, a size or a colour into Google is looking for a place to order it. If your store shows up for that search, you get a visitor who already wants what you sell, without paying for the click.

SEO is the work of making that happen more often. On Shopify, some of it is done for you. The rest is up to you: picking the right searches, writing pages that answer them, and keeping the store tidy as it grows. If you would rather have a team do it, our ecommerce SEO service covers this checklist and reports the orders search brings.

A note on how this guide is built. Many Shopify SEO guides repeat advice that was true years ago: “rel=prev/next” tags, FAQ markup for rich results, a sitelinks search box, a mobile-friendly test. Google has retired all of these. Where an older tip has changed, we say so, and the sources at the end link to the official page for each claim.

The checklist at a glance

Part 1: Set up the basics

Get these right first. Every later check depends on clean data, a secure domain and a way to see what Google sees.

1. Use your own domain, on HTTPS

Shopify issues a free TLS certificate for every domain you add, and sends visitors who type the http:// address to the secure https:// version. You do not need to install anything. Check it once: open the http:// version of your domain in a private window and make sure it lands on https://.

HTTPS is not required for Google to index a page, and Google has called it a very lightweight ranking signal. It matters more for trust, because browsers warn shoppers about pages that are not secure.

2. Pick one primary domain

Your store can be reached at the myshopify.com address, at your domain with www and without it. Set one of them as the primary domain in your domain settings, and let the others redirect to it. That way links, shares and Google all point to one version of each page.

3. Connect Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools

Search Console shows which searches bring people to your store, which pages Google has indexed and which it has left out. Add your store as a property and verify it. Then add Bing Webmaster Tools too: Bing lets you import sites you have already verified in Search Console, so it takes a minute.

4. Submit your sitemap

Shopify says every store automatically makes a sitemap.xml file with links to your products, their main images, pages, collections and blog posts. You will find it at your domain followed by /sitemap.xml. It is an index file that links to separate sitemaps for each content type.

Submit the sitemap in Search Console. Shopify notes that crawling and indexing take time, and that Google does not promise how long. Submitting the sitemap helps Google find new pages sooner. You do not need a sitemap app for most stores.

5. Set up analytics that counts orders

Install the Google and YouTube sales channel to connect Google Analytics 4 and Google Ads. It adds Google’s tags to your store and can send enhanced conversions, which use hashed customer data to count more sales. If you run Meta ads, the Facebook and Instagram channel sends events through Meta’s Conversions API as well as the pixel at its “Enhanced” and “Maximum” data-sharing levels.

Then check the numbers. Pick a week and compare the orders Google Analytics reports with the orders in Shopify. A small gap is normal. A large one means some tracking is broken, and every report you build later will be wrong until you fix it. Bigger stores can also link Google Analytics to BigQuery to keep raw data for longer analysis, but most stores do not need that on day one.

6. Leave robots.txt alone, unless you have a reason

The robots.txt file tells search engine crawlers which pages to visit. Shopify says every store has a default robots.txt that is already set up well for SEO. It blocks pages with no search value, such as the admin, cart, checkout, customer account and order pages, collection URLs filtered by tags and sorted collection URLs.

You can change it by adding a theme template called robots.txt.liquid, but a wrong line can hide good pages from Google, and Shopify support will not help you edit it. Only change it when you know exactly what you want to block and why. After any change, use the URL Inspection tool in Search Console to confirm your important pages are still allowed.

Part 2: Find the searches that bring buyers

7. Match each search to the right kind of page

The words in a search show what the person wants. A shopper ready to buy wants a product page. A shopper still comparing wants a collection or a guide. A shopper with a question wants an answer. Put each search on the page type that matches it.

Shopify describes keywords as the words people type into search engines, and its advice is to find the words your customers use and include them in natural sentences.

8. Collect the words shoppers use

You do not need an expensive tool to start. These sources are free and show real wording:

• Google’s search box. Type a product type and note the suggestions that appear.
• Search Console. The Performance report lists the searches that already show your pages. Searches where you appear often but get few clicks are the quickest wins.
• Your own site search. Shopify’s analytics show what shoppers type into your store’s search box. Those are words people expect you to have.
• Reviews, emails and chats. Customers describe products in their own words. Use them.
• Marketplaces and forums. The search suggestions on large marketplaces, and the threads where people ask “what should I buy?”, show the details buyers care about.

9. Build a keyword map

Put every search in a sheet with three more columns: what the shopper wants, the page type and the page that will target it. Sort by page type and make sure each important page has one main search and a few close variations.

10. Give each search one page

Two pages should not chase the same search, or they compete with each other and Google has to guess which one to show. If two pages target the same words, merge them, or change one to target a different search and link between them.

11. Turn high-demand filters into real collections

Shopify’s filters, set up in the Search and Discovery app, let shoppers narrow a collection by colour, size or price. Each filter makes a new URL with parameters, and Shopify does not write unique text for those pages. They are fine for shoppers but weak for search.

When a filtered view matches a search with real demand, such as “black tote bag”, make it a collection of its own, with its own title, description and text. Leave the rest as filters. Note that Shopify’s default robots.txt already blocks the older tag-filtered collection URLs and sorted URLs.

Part 3: Store structure and internal links

12. Keep products a few clicks from the home page

Shoppers and crawlers both find pages by following links. The fewer clicks a product is from the home page, the easier it is to find. Shopify collection URLs are flat (/collections/name), so structure lives in your menus, breadcrumbs and links, not in the URL.

Most stores do best with a mix: a short path to every product, with groups of related collections linked to each other.

13. Write short, clean URL handles

Shopify builds every URL from the handle you set in the search engine listing section. Keep handles short and readable: /collections/tote-bags, not /collections/tote-bags-collection. Use hyphens between words. Google recommends hyphens and does not recommend underscores.

Avoid changing handles once a page has been live for a while. If you must, set up a redirect from the old URL (check 31).

14. Show breadcrumbs

Breadcrumbs show shoppers where they are (Home, Totes, Black leather tote) and give them a one-click way back. Many themes include them. Adding breadcrumb structured data helps Google understand where a page sits in your store. Google now shows breadcrumbs in desktop results only, not on mobile, so treat them as a help for shoppers first.

15. Link related products, collections and posts

Internal links help shoppers find more to buy and help Google find and understand your pages. Use the product recommendations in your theme (you can set related and complementary products in Search and Discovery) and link each blog post to at least one relevant collection or product.

16. Make paginated collections crawlable

Large collections split into pages (?page=2 and so on), or load more products as the shopper scrolls. Google’s current advice for ecommerce sites:

• Google no longer uses rel=prev and rel=next tags, so you do not need them.
• Give each page in the series its own canonical URL. Do not point page 2 and later at page 1 as the canonical.
• Link the pages with normal links. Googlebot does not click “load more” buttons or scroll, so products that only appear after a click or a scroll may never be found.

Part 4: Product and collection pages

These are the pages that sell. Most search traffic in a store should land here.

17. Write a page title for each page

The page title is the blue link people see in search results. Shopify lets you enter up to 70 characters and suggests keeping titles to 60 or fewer. Google has no fixed limit: it shortens titles to fit the width of the screen.

Write titles by hand for your top collections and products. For the long tail, a pattern in your theme is fine, as long as each page still gets a distinct title.

18. Write a meta description

The meta description is the short text that may appear under the title in search results. Shopify recommends about 160 characters. Google says it does not use the meta description for ranking and sometimes writes its own snippet from the page. It still changes whether people click. Say what the page offers and why it is worth a visit, in plain words.

19. Use one clear H1 and helpful subheadings

Most themes use the product or collection name as the main heading (H1). Keep one H1 per page. Use smaller headings to break up long pages so shoppers can find what they need.

20. Write your own product descriptions

If you sell products other stores also sell, the maker’s description appears on many sites. Your page gives Google and shoppers nothing new. Write your own: what it is made of, who it is for, what problem it solves, sizes, care and what is in the box.

For a large catalogue, work in batches. Collect the facts for each product in a sheet, write or draft the copy, have a person check every fact, then bring it back in with Shopify’s product CSV import. Writing tools can speed up the draft, but a wrong size or material costs you returns and trust.

21. Give collection pages real text

Collection pages often bring the most search traffic in a store, because one page can match many searches. Yet many stores leave them with a title and a grid of products. Add a short paragraph at the top that says what is in the collection and who it is for, and use the main search once, in a natural sentence. A few lines of buying advice or answers to common questions further down help too.

22. Handle variants and duplicate URLs on purpose

Shopify lets you add sizes and colours as variants of one product. That keeps one strong page instead of many thin ones.

Two duplicate URL patterns are common on Shopify: products reached through a collection (/collections/totes/products/black-tote) and variant links (?variant=123). Shopify says it adds canonical tags automatically, and warns that the collection path creates a duplicate of the product page. Check your theme: view the page source on both URL types and make sure the canonical tag points to the plain /products/ URL.

Part 5: Images, video and 3D

23. Add alt text and descriptive file names

Shopify points out that search engines can read your text but not your images. Alt text is a short description of an image that search engines can read. Google’s own starter guide says alt text helps it understand what an image shows and how it relates to the page. It also helps shoppers who use screen readers. Describe the product as you would to someone on the phone: “Black leather tote with brass zip”, not “tote tote bag leather tote”.

Name the file before you upload it, too. Google says a file name can give it clues about the image, so black-leather-tote-side.jpg says more than IMG_2489.jpg.

24. Let Shopify handle image formats and sizes

Shopify’s image service picks a modern format such as WebP or AVIF when the shopper’s browser supports it, and resizes images on request. You do not need a conversion app. What you should do:

• Upload clean, compressed images at a sensible size, not straight from a camera.
• If you or your developer edit the theme, use the image_url and image_tag Liquid filters. The older img_url filter has been replaced. The image_tag filter adds the width, height and srcset attributes for you.
• Do not lazy-load the main product image or the first image on a page (check 35).

25. Use product video well

Shopify product media supports video in MP4, MOV or WebM up to 10 minutes and 1 GB, or a link to YouTube or Vimeo. A short demo shows size, texture and use better than photos. Add captions, because many people watch with the sound off, and write a title and description that name the product.

If you want Google to show the video in results, add video structured data. Google requires a name, a thumbnail URL and an upload date.

26. Keep 3D models light

Shopify supports 3D models as product media, in GLB or USDZ format, so shoppers can turn the product around or view it in their room. Keep the files small so the page stays fast, and give each model a short text description like any other media.

Part 6: Content and blog

27. Plan topics for each stage of buying

A store blog works best when each post leads somewhere. Plan topics for each stage of the buying journey and link them together.

The guide links to the comparison, and both link to the collection. That gives shoppers a path to buy and shows Google how the pages relate.

28. Make products easy to buy from a post

A reader who wants the item you just described should not have to hunt for it. Link to it by name, and use your theme’s product blocks to show the product, price and an add-to-cart button in the post. Shopify’s Buy Button sales channel can do the same on pages outside your theme.

29. Show who wrote it and why to trust it

Google’s guidance on helpful content asks: who made this, how was it made, and why? For a store, that means a named author with real experience, honest product detail, real photos and clear shipping and returns policies. Add a short bio to each post. Show genuine customer reviews and any certificates or test results that back your claims. Google folded its helpful content system into its core ranking systems in 2024, so this is part of how every page is judged.

Part 7: Crawling, indexing and errors

30. Crawl your store

A crawler such as Screaming Frog or Sitebulb follows the links on your store the way Google does and lists what it finds. Run one when you start and after big changes, such as a new theme or a large product import.

31. Redirect old and deleted URLs

Products sell out, get renamed or get deleted. When a URL changes, Shopify lets you set up a URL redirect (in the Content area, under Menus), so people who follow an old link reach a similar live page. Shopify gives the example of redirecting a deleted product to a similar product. A redirect only works when the old URL no longer exists.

Point each old URL straight to its final page. If A redirects to B and B to C, change A to point to C, and update any menu or theme links that still use the old URLs.

32. Read the Page indexing report

In Search Console, the Page indexing report shows which pages Google has indexed and why others are left out. Some exclusions are normal, such as cart pages or duplicates Google has grouped. Look for important products or collections in the list, find the reason given and fix it. Then use “Validate fix”.

33. Check for duplicate pages

Stores can end up with several URLs for the same or very similar pages: products inside different collections, variants, and links with tracking codes added. Google explains that you can tell it which URL you prefer with a canonical tag or a redirect, and that a redirect is a strong signal. In Search Console, check the duplicates in the Page indexing report and make sure the version you want is the one Google shows.

Part 8: Speed, mobile and accessibility

34. Know the Core Web Vitals

Core Web Vitals are Google’s measures of how a page feels to real visitors. Google judges them at the 75th percentile of visits, separately for mobile and desktop.

INP replaced the older First Input Delay (FID) in March 2024, so ignore any guide that still uses FID. Check your scores in the Core Web Vitals report in Search Console or in PageSpeed Insights. Google says good scores help, but a relevant, helpful page matters more.

35. Load the main image first

The largest element at the top of a page, usually the hero image or the first product photo, decides your LCP. Do not lazy-load it. Lazy-load the images further down the page instead. Shopify’s image_tag filter only adds lazy loading to images in sections lower on the page. Use images sized for the screen, so a phone does not download a desktop-sized file.

36. Remove apps you do not use

Every app can add scripts that slow your store, and some leave code in your theme after you remove them. Review your apps every few months. Remove the ones you no longer use, then check your theme files for leftover code, or ask the app maker or your developer to remove it. Ask for script loading to be deferred where it does not need to run at once.

37. Check the store on a phone, for every shopper

Google indexes the mobile version of your pages. Its separate Mobile-Friendly Test was retired in 2023, so test on a real phone and with Lighthouse in Chrome. Check that text is readable without zooming, buttons are easy to tap and nothing is wider than the screen.

Check accessibility at the same time. The WCAG 2.2 guidelines ask for alt text on images, a contrast of at least 4.5 to 1 for body text, a visible focus outline for keyboard users and labels on every form field. Google does not count accessibility as a ranking factor, but shoppers who cannot use your store cannot buy, and alt text helps your images appear in Google Images.

Part 9: Structured data

38. Check your product data

Structured data is code that tells Google what a page is about. With product data, Google can show the price, stock and ratings in results. It describes two kinds: product snippets, for pages where people cannot buy, and merchant listings, for pages where they can. For a merchant listing, Google requires the name, an image and an offer with the price and currency. Availability is recommended.

Many Shopify themes add this data for you, and review apps often add ratings. Test a product page with Google’s Rich Results Test and fix any errors. Make sure only one source adds product data: when the theme and an app both add it, Google sees two conflicting versions. Google recommends the JSON-LD format.

39. Add organization and breadcrumb data

Organization data tells Google your store’s name, logo and official profiles, which it can use for your logo and knowledge panel. Add it once, site-wide. WebSite data helps Google show your site name correctly. Breadcrumb data (check 14) shows where each page sits.

40. Stop adding markup Google no longer uses

Some markup older guides still recommend no longer shows anything in Google:

• How-to rich results stopped showing in September 2023.
• The sitelinks search box was removed in November 2024. Leftover markup does no harm, but adding it does nothing.
• FAQ rich results stopped showing in May 2026.

Questions and answers on your pages are still useful to shoppers. Keep them for people, not for markup.

Part 10: Links and mentions

Links from other sites still help Google find and trust your store. Earn them; do not buy them. Google’s spam policies count paying for links, or giving free products in return for a followed link, as link spam. Links from sponsored posts and creator deals should be marked as sponsored.

41. Find sites that link to your competitors

Use a backlink tool to list the sites that link to two or three competitors but not to you. Look for patterns: gift guides, local news, suppliers, industry lists. Then pitch with something worth linking to, such as useful data, a product to review under clear sponsorship rules, or an expert quote. Our link building service does this outreach for you.

42. Reclaim broken links and unlinked mentions

Check which of your old URLs other sites still link to. If any now return an error, redirect them to the closest live page (check 31), so those links count again. Set an alert for your brand name, and when a site mentions your store without a link, send a friendly note asking them to add one. Do the same when a site uses your product photos without credit.

If you have a physical shop, keep your Google Business Profile up to date with your hours, address and photos. Shoppers searching nearby see it before your website.

Part 11: Selling in other countries

43. Use Shopify Markets and let it handle hreflang

Shopify Markets lets each country or region use a subfolder (example.com/fr/), a subdomain (fr.example.com) or its own domain (example.fr). Shopify recommends subfolders, because they keep all the authority on one domain and are the simplest to manage.

Shopify adds hreflang tags automatically, which tell Google which language or country version to show. It also adds each market’s URLs to the sitemap and gives each version its own canonical. Translate the pages properly, including titles and descriptions, rather than relying on a widget. Note that URL redirects are not copied to market subfolders automatically, so add them for each market when you move a page.

Part 12: Measure sales from search

44. Report orders, not just traffic

Traffic that does not buy pays no bills. Each month, look at three numbers from organic search: visits, orders and revenue. Google Analytics shows these under the Organic Search channel, and Shopify’s own reports show sales by where the visitor came from. A free Looker Studio dashboard can put them on one page next to your paid channels.

Then look at the pages. Which collections and products bring orders from search? Which get visits but no orders? The first are pages to strengthen. The second may need better copy, better photos or a better match to the search.

45. Test changes in groups, and set alerts

To test a new style of page title, change it on one group of similar pages and leave a matching group as it was. After a few weeks, compare clicks and orders in Search Console and Google Analytics. Change titles in the store itself, not with scripts that rewrite the page in the browser, because Google may not see those changes. Google Optimize, which many older guides recommend, closed in September 2023.

Set alerts so problems find you. Search Console emails you when it finds new indexing issues. A scheduled monthly crawl catches broken links. A sudden drop in organic orders usually means something technical broke, such as a theme change, a lost redirect or a tracking fault.

What about AI search and cookies?

Google says there are no extra requirements for appearing in its AI Overviews and AI Mode: the same SEO that works for normal results applies. Clear answers near the top of a page, accurate product details and useful comparisons help in both. If you want a team to track how your store shows in AI answers, see our AI search optimization service.

Chrome did not remove third-party cookies after all: in April 2025 Google said it would keep the current choice in Chrome’s settings. Building your own email and SMS list is still wise, because it is the one audience no platform change can take away.

A 12-week plan

You do not have to do everything at once. Here is the order we follow on a new store.

How often should you run this checklist?

Run the full list once when you start. After that, check items 17 to 21 whenever you add a collection or a best-selling product, and items 31 to 33 every month. Run a full technical review every quarter, and straight after a theme change or a big app change. Search takes time. Expect months, not days, before changes show in your orders. What you can measure from the start is whether Google finds your pages and whether shoppers click.

Should you do it yourself or hire help?

Most owners can run parts 1, 4 and 5 themselves with this list. The parts that take the most time and skill are the keyword map, the technical fixes in the theme, content and earning links. That is where outside help pays off, if it is measured in orders.

When should you plan SEO for a redesign or migration?

Before any code is written. List every live URL, keep URL handles where you can, map a redirect for every URL that changes and crawl the new store before launch. Most traffic losses after a redesign come from missing redirects.

Shopify SEO terms