Shopify URL Structure: SEO Implications & Best Practices

Shopify does not give you full control over URL structure. Understanding the platform's defaults—and what you can influence—is essential for making smart SEO decisions.

Shopify's Default URL Structure

Products

The canonical URL for every product is `/products/handle`. However, many themes link to products through collections: `/collections/shoes/products/running-shoe`. Both resolve, but only `/products/handle` is canonical. Fix your theme's internal links to use the canonical path.

Collections

All collections live at `/collections/handle`. You cannot create hierarchical URLs like `/shoes/running/trail/`. Instead, create descriptive flat handles: `/collections/trail-running-shoes`.

Blog Posts

Blog posts use `/blogs/blog-handle/post-handle`. You can create multiple blogs (e.g., `/blogs/guides`, `/blogs/news`) to organize content by topic.

Pages

Static pages live at `/pages/handle`. You cannot remove the `/pages/` prefix.

Why This Matters for SEO

The Hierarchy Question

Some SEOs argue that URL hierarchy (e.g., `/category/subcategory/product`) helps Google understand site structure. In practice, Google uses internal links and sitemaps to understand hierarchy—not URL paths alone. A flat URL structure with strong internal linking performs well.

URL Best Practices on Shopify

• Keep handles short and descriptive. Use your main keyword: `leather-office-chairs` instead of `our-amazing-collection-of-leather-office-chairs-for-sale`.
• Avoid repeating words. The URL already contains `/collections/`; do not repeat "collection" in the handle.
• Use hyphens, not underscores or spaces.
• Do not change URLs after pages are indexed unless absolutely necessary. If you must, set up 301 redirects.

Workarounds for Missing Subcategories

Shopify lacks nested collections, but you can simulate hierarchy:

1. Create flat collections with descriptive handles that include the full keyword path: `mens-running-shoes`, `mens-casual-shoes`, `mens-dress-shoes`.
2. Link parent to child using internal links in the collection description and navigation menus.
3. Use breadcrumbs with metafields to show logical hierarchy to both users and search engines.

Migration to Shopify

If you are moving from a platform with a different URL structure:

1. Crawl your old site to capture all indexed URLs.
2. Map old URLs to Shopify equivalents. For example, `/shoes/running?color=blue` might redirect to `/collections/blue-running-shoes`.
3. Bulk import redirects via CSV in Online Store > Navigation > URL Redirects.
4. Submit the updated sitemap in Google Search Console and monitor indexation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I remove /collections/ or /products/ from URLs? No. These prefixes are hardcoded by Shopify. Attempting workarounds with proxies or apps introduces complexity and risk.

Does the /collections/ prefix hurt SEO? Not meaningfully. Google cares about content, internal links, and signals—not whether your URL contains a directory name.

How should I handle international URLs? Use subdomains (`uk.example.com`) or country-code TLDs (`example.co.uk`) with hreflang tags. Subfolder-based (`example.com/en-gb/`) approaches are supported through Shopify's multilingual features.