Shopify and SEO: What You Need to Know
Shopify powers millions of online stores, but many store owners struggle with SEO. While Shopify is generally SEO-friendly out of the box, there are specific optimizations that can dramatically improve your rankings and organic traffic.
Shopify SEO Fundamentals
Site Structure
Shopify’s URL structure is fixed in certain ways (collections, products, pages), but you can optimize within these constraints. Keep your collection hierarchy logical and shallow. Use clear, keyword-rich URLs for products and collections.
Title Tags and Meta Descriptions
Every product and collection page needs a unique, keyword-optimized title tag and compelling meta description. Don’t rely on Shopify’s auto-generated titles. Write custom ones that include your target keyword and entice clicks.
Product Page Optimization
Write unique product descriptions for every item. Never use manufacturer copy that appears on dozens of other sites. Include target keywords naturally, focus on benefits over features, and address common customer questions within the description.
Optimize product images with descriptive file names and alt text. Use compressed images in WebP format for faster loading. Add multiple high-quality photos from different angles.
Collection Page SEO
Collection pages often have the most ranking potential for commercial keywords. Add introductory content (150-300 words) above or below your product grid that targets your primary keyword for that collection. Include internal links to related collections and blog posts.
Shopify Blog for SEO
Shopify’s built-in blog is a powerful SEO tool. Create content targeting informational keywords your customers search: buying guides, how-to articles, product comparisons, and industry insights. This content drives top-of-funnel traffic that converts over time.
Technical SEO for Shopify
- Speed optimization — Choose a lightweight theme, limit apps, compress images
- Mobile optimization — Ensure your theme is fully responsive
- Structured data — Implement Product schema for rich snippets
- Canonical tags — Shopify handles these automatically, but verify they’re correct
- Sitemap — Shopify auto-generates sitemaps; submit to Google Search Console
Common Shopify SEO Mistakes
Duplicate content from product variants, thin collection pages with no descriptive content, ignoring blog content entirely, too many apps slowing down the site, and not setting up proper redirects when changing URLs.
Grow Your Shopify Store with SEO
Brandastic helps Shopify store owners build sustainable organic traffic that drives sales. Get a free Shopify SEO audit.
