What happens to SEO when you migrate to Shopify?

A URL redirect sends traffic from one web page to another. When you change a URL, Shopify says you can create a redirect so customers can still find what they're looking for. In a migration, every old URL with no matching page on the new store should get a redirect, and the redirect map is what tells visitors and search engines where each page went.

Shopify's redirect rules shape that map:

• Fixed paths: you can't redirect URLs that use fixed Shopify paths, which are /products, /collections and /collections/all.
• Reserved prefixes: you can't redirect URLs that begin with /apps, /application, /cart, /carts, /orders, /services or /shop.
• Broken URLs only: you can redirect only from broken URLs. If the old URL still loads a valid page, the redirect won't work.
• Limits: up to 100,000 URL redirects, or 20,000,000 on the Plus plan.
• Query strings: URLs that contain query strings might not work as expected with redirects.

Shopify notes that 301 redirects are cached by browsers and search engines. A redirect you remove can keep working in a customer's browser until the cache expires, so get the map right before launch. For a large number of redirects, Shopify suggests considering a third-party app.

Shopify's own migration guide makes redirects part of the job. First, work through these steps in order:

1. Build the redirect map. In your Shopify admin, go to Content, then Menus, click View URL Redirects, then Create URL redirect, and enter the old and new URLs. To load many at once, use Import in URL redirects and upload a CSV file. 2. Carry over metadata. Meta descriptions can be set for webpages, product pages, collection pages and blog posts. Shopify says each page should have a unique meta description in plain, direct language, and suggests keeping titles to 60 characters or fewer. 3. Submit the sitemap. Every Shopify store generates a sitemap.xml automatically. Submitting it to Google Search Console helps Google find and index your pages, although search engines can't access it while the store is in private mode. 4. Check after launch. Shopify says the pages that were most visited in your old store should be checked to make sure they redirect to your Shopify store. 5. Set up your domain. If you own a custom domain with a third-party provider, you can transfer it to Shopify.

Expect a lag. Google doesn't guarantee how long indexing takes, and Shopify notes that edited titles can take a couple of weeks to show in search results.

Redirect mapping is part of every cutover we run. We map old URLs to new, preserve metadata and structured data, and carry over the content that earns your rankings, so organic traffic holds through the switch. Our Shopify migrations typically take 10 to 16 weeks from another platform, with a median cutover around 14 weeks, and if you want the plan before you commit, Uncap Blueprint includes an SEO preservation roadmap.

Supcase is one example. After a full Magento to Shopify migration of its data and content, redirects were implemented to protect its SEO, and the project delivered 450% faster load speed and triple year-over-year sales (Supcase case study). Coming from Magento specifically? The Magento to Shopify SEO and 301 redirects guide goes deeper. For the data side, see is a Shopify migration app enough for B2B, and for budgets, the cost to migrate to Shopify. If you want the redirect map built and checked before your launch date, Talk to Our Experts and bring a crawl export of your current URLs.