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Shopify URLS

Tell search engines and users what a Shopify page is about through a clean, readable URL that combines a fixed prefix with an editable slug called the handle.

If you have ever changed a product handle without setting up a 301 redirect, you already know the resulting broken links and lost ranking equity are not the whole problem.

Key points

  • Edit the handle in the SEO listing section of each product, collection, page, or blog post — the prefix stays fixed.
  • Always create a URL redirect from the old handle to the new one so link equity is preserved.
  • Keep slugs short, readable, keyword-relevant, lowercase, and hyphen-separated — avoid underscores and stop words.
  • Set a custom primary domain instead of relying on the default .myshopify.com address for branding and SEO authority.
  • Avoid unnecessary URL parameters — they can create duplicate content and dilute indexing signals.

Changing a product URL without a redirect

A Shopify store sells canvas backpacks. Its product page sits at /products/canvas-backpack. The merchant, familiar with WordPress vs Shopify differences, decides to shorten the slug to /products/backpack for shopify seo, editing the handle in the admin. No URL redirect is created. Existing backlinks and search rankings point to the old /canvas-backpack address. Within two weeks, traffic to that page drops by 40 percent, and Google Search Console shows 404 errors on the old URL. A month later, the page has disappeared from the first three search results for 'canvas backpack'.

Three things you cannot change in Shopify URLs

  • Page-type prefix Products always start with /products/, collections with /collections/, pages with /pages/, and blog posts with /blogs/. This prefix is fixed by the platform and cannot be edited.
  • Parameter handling Shopify does not let you remove or rewrite query strings added by filtering or tracking. You must manage them via redirects or canonical URLs.
  • Protocol and domain The https:// protocol and root domain are set at the store level. Subdomain structures like blog.example.com require separate DNS configuration.

Four common mistakes with Shopify URLs

  • No redirect on handle change Changing a product or collection slug without creating a URL redirect breaks existing links and loses accumulated ranking signals.
  • Underscores in slugs Search engines treat underscores as word joiners, not separators. Use hyphens to keep the URL readable for both users and crawlers.
  • Default domain as primary Relying on the .myshopify.com domain for branding or SEO dilutes authority. Set a custom domain as the primary one in Settings > Domains.
  • Long or keyword-stuffed slugs URLs with stop words, numbers, or repeated keywords confuse both users and search engines. Keep the slug focused on the page's core topic.

Three ways parameters affect SEO

  • Duplicate content risk Parameters like ?variant=123 or ?sort=price can serve the same product page under multiple URLs. Without a canonical tag, search engines may see these as duplicates.
  • Crawl budget waste Googlebot may waste crawl slots on parameterised variants instead of unique pages. Use the URL parameter tool in Google Search Console if available.
  • Tracking dilution UTM parameters for campaigns can create additional URL variants. A single canonical URL helps consolidate ranking signals across these versions.

Common questions

How can you change the URL structure of a Shopify store?

You cannot change the fixed page-type prefix, but you can edit the slug or handle for each product, collection, page, and blog post in the SEO listing section.

How do you change a collection URL in Shopify?

In the admin, go to Products > Collections, select the collection, and find the URL handle field under Search engine listing preview. Always create a redirect after the change.

Sources

  1. Shopify Blog — Parts of a URL Explains URL components and how they apply to Shopify stores.
  2. Shopify Blog — URL Slug Best Practices Covers handle editing, redirects, and SEO-friendly formatting.
  3. Shopify Help / Admin — Domains and URL settings Official guidance on domain setup and URL management in the admin.
  4. Google Search Central — URL structure / SEO basics Google's best practices for clean, crawlable URLs.
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