How to Manage Duplicate Content Issues on Shopify

At Lillian Purge, we specialise in Ecommerce SEO Services and have developed comprehensive guidance on How to manage duplicate content issues on Shopify.

Duplicate content is a common SEO challenge for Shopify users. It occurs when the same or very similar content appears on multiple pages of your website or across different URLs. Search engines struggle to decide which version to rank, which can dilute visibility and reduce your site’s authority. While Shopify is a powerful ecommerce platform, its default structure can unintentionally create duplicate content. Managing these issues effectively helps protect your rankings and ensures your site performs well in search results.

Understanding Duplicate Content on Shopify

Duplicate content can exist within your own website (internal duplication) or across multiple websites (external duplication). On Shopify, the most frequent causes of internal duplicate content include:

• Multiple URLs pointing to the same product or collection page

• Default URL parameters used by filters or sorting options

• Paginated category pages showing similar content

• Product descriptions copied directly from suppliers

• Tag pages or search result pages being indexed by Google

Each of these scenarios can confuse search engines, making it harder for them to determine which page is the “primary” one to display in search results.

Why Duplicate Content Matters for SEO

Search engines aim to provide users with unique and relevant results. When they encounter multiple pages with the same or similar content, they may:

• Struggle to decide which version to index or rank

• Split ranking signals between duplicate pages

• Reduce the visibility of your main product or category pages

In short, duplicate content can weaken your SEO performance and waste valuable crawl budget. By cleaning up duplicate pages and setting clear signals for search engines, you can help your most important URLs rank higher.

Identify Duplicate Content on Your Shopify Store

Before fixing duplicate content, you need to know where it exists. Tools such as Google Search Console, Screaming Frog, or Sitebulb can help identify duplicate titles, meta descriptions, and content across your site.

You can also check for Shopify-specific issues by reviewing your site’s URL structure. Common duplicate URLs might look like this:

• yourstore.com/products/product-name

• yourstore.com/collections/all/products/product-name

Although both URLs show the same product, Shopify treats them as separate pages. This duplication can confuse search engines if not properly managed.

Use Canonical Tags Correctly

Canonical tags tell search engines which version of a page should be treated as the main one. Shopify automatically adds canonical tags to product and collection pages, pointing to the primary URL.

For example, if your product appears under multiple collections, the canonical tag will point to the main product URL (/products/product-name) rather than the collection-based one (/collections/all/products/product-name).

It’s important to verify that your canonical tags are correctly implemented. You can check this using your browser’s developer tools or an SEO auditing tool. If you use custom templates or third-party apps, ensure they don’t override or duplicate canonical settings.

Avoid Copying Supplier Descriptions

If your products come from suppliers, you may be tempted to use their pre-written descriptions. However, many other retailers may do the same, creating external duplicate content across multiple websites.

To avoid this, rewrite your product descriptions in your own brand voice. Include unique details, specifications, and selling points that make your listings original. This not only improves SEO but also enhances customer experience and conversion rates.

Manage Duplicate URLs in Collections

Shopify can generate multiple URL versions for the same product based on how customers navigate through collections. For example:

• /collections/summer-sale/products/product-name

• /products/product-name

Search engines might view both as separate pages, even though they display identical content. To manage this, always link to the canonical product URL (/products/product-name) from your menus, internal links, and sitemaps.

This ensures that link equity is consolidated to the correct page and avoids confusing search engines with unnecessary duplicates.

Handle Pagination and Filtering Carefully

Shopify collection pages that use pagination or filters can also create duplicate or near-duplicate content. For example, ?page=2 or ?sort_by=price-ascending parameters generate different URLs that largely contain the same products.

To reduce duplication:

• Keep filtered pages from being indexed by adding noindex tags through theme customisation or using an SEO app.

• Allow search engines to crawl but not index these URLs by managing them in your robots.txt file.

• Focus indexing only on your main category and product pages.

Use 301 Redirects Where Necessary

If you remove products, merge collections, or restructure URLs, use 301 redirects to guide visitors and search engines to the correct page. Redirects prevent broken links and consolidate SEO value from old URLs.

You can create redirects directly in your Shopify admin by going to Online Store → Navigation → View URL Redirects. Always redirect outdated pages to the most relevant active ones.

Optimise Your Sitemap

Shopify automatically generates a sitemap for your store, which helps search engines find and crawl important pages. However, if your sitemap includes duplicate URLs, it can confuse search crawlers.

Make sure your sitemap only includes canonical versions of URLs. You can access your sitemap by visiting yourstore.com/sitemap.xml. Review it periodically, especially if you make changes to your product or collection structure.

Check App and Theme Compatibility

Some third-party apps or themes can unintentionally introduce duplicate content issues. This can happen if apps create new landing pages, product variants, or filtering options without proper canonicalisation.

When installing a new app, always test your site structure and check whether it adds duplicate URLs or affects meta data. Working with an experienced Shopify SEO specialist can help you identify and fix these problems early.

Monitor Your Site Regularly

Duplicate content isn’t always a one-time issue. As your store grows and new products are added, new duplication risks can arise. Use regular SEO audits to identify and resolve problems before they impact performance.

Google Search Console’s Index Coverage Report is particularly useful for monitoring which URLs Google is indexing. If you notice an increase in duplicate pages, review your site’s canonical tags and internal linking strategy.

Final Thoughts

Managing duplicate content on Shopify is essential for maintaining strong search visibility and ensuring that your most important pages rank well. While Shopify’s built-in SEO structure handles many issues automatically, additional steps—like using canonical tags correctly, managing filters, and writing unique content—can make a significant difference.

By staying proactive and regularly auditing your site, you can keep your content clean, consistent, and optimised for both users and search engines. The result is a smoother user experience, stronger rankings, and a healthier ecommerce website overall.

We have also written in depth articles on How to add schema markup to Shopify stores and Image optimisation tips for Shopify SEO as well as our Shopify Hub to give you further guidance.