Mastering Internal Linking for Shopify: A Strategy for Long-Term SEO Growth

I have spent over 15 years focusing exclusively on SEO, working alongside industry pioneers. One underused yet high-impact technique I often recommend for Shopify is internal linking. This approach involves linking pages within your own site so you can pass authority, guide visitors toward high-value pages, and ultimately boost both rankings and conversions. Let’s examine how you can leverage internal links to achieve sustainable SEO growth on Shopify.

The Impact of Internal Linking on Rankings and Conversions

Internal links let you share “link equity” (or authority) from one page to another. When your homepage or a well-performing blog post references a product or collection page, it signals that the destination page is important. Search engines respond by potentially ranking that page higher. Beyond rankings, internal links also keep shoppers engaged by guiding them to the content or products they seek. A user-friendly internal link structure can reduce bounce rates and increase the chance of conversion, because visitors find what they want more quickly.

Why Shopify’s Default Structure Isn’t Enough

Shopify is known for its simplicity, but relying on default navigation and breadcrumbs alone is limiting. Many Shopify themes link product pages to “/collections/…” URLs instead of their canonical “/products/…” version. That can create duplicates and cause search engines to ignore valuable internal links. Breadcrumbs often show just one path back to a primary collection, leaving secondary or related collections unlinked. When you only rely on Shopify’s out-of-the-box linking, some of your best pages remain harder to find for both users and search engines.

How Strategic Linking Amplifies Authority Sitewide

A deliberate internal linking plan spreads authority across your store. Think of your site as a pyramid with the homepage at the top, collections in the middle, and product pages at the bottom. When you add links from high-authority pages (like a popular blog post) to underlinked collections, you share SEO strength across more pages. This broader signal helps search engines see the value of your products or categories. You can also link product pages to related collections, ensuring these collections are more visible. Over time, this approach improves indexing, grows page authority, and boosts overall rankings and traffic.

Takeaways: Internal linking is a powerful strategy for Shopify. By moving beyond basic breadcrumbs and placing purposeful, relevant links throughout your site, you increase discoverability, emphasize important content, and guide both users and search engines. When done correctly, this approach yields substantial, long-term gains in visibility, engagement, and revenue.