Why your Shopify store is not showing up on Google
Shopify's help centre gives five reasons a store is missing from Google: the store is too new, it is still behind its password page, it is on a trial, redirects were missed in a move from another platform, or the pages do not yet say enough. The first three are settings, and the last two are work.
Each sounding opens its section
- 01 Check whether Google has the store at all 49 words
- 02 1. The store is on a trial 28 words
- 03 2. The store is behind its password page 54 words
- 04 3. The store is new 52 words
- 05 4. Redirects were missed in a move 54 words
- 06 5. The pages do not say enough 60 words
- 07 If the store is indexed and gets no traffic 59 words
- 08 Questions people ask 124 words
- 09 Free competitor gap report 105 words
- 10 More in this series 243 words
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Check whether Google has the store at all
Search Google for site: followed by your store’s domain. No results means the store is not indexed, and one of the first three reasons below is the likely cause. Results mean the store is indexed and the problem is its position.
1. The store is on a trial
Shopify states that search engines do not index trial stores. Until a plan is chosen, nothing else on this list matters.
2. The store is behind its password page
A store in private mode shows visitors a password page, and Shopify says all of the store’s pages are then hidden from visitors and from search engines. The setting is in the store’s Online Store preferences. Remove the password when the store is ready to sell.
3. The store is new
Google has to find a new store before it can list it. Add the store to Google Search Console and submit its sitemap, which Shopify generates at /sitemap.xml. Shopify notes that this can speed up indexing, and that nobody can force Google to index a site.
4. Redirects were missed in a move
A store moved to Shopify from another platform has new addresses for its pages. Without a redirect from each old address, the rankings those pages had earned are lost, and old links lead nowhere. Our guide to redesigning a website without losing rankings sets out the method.
5. The pages do not say enough
Shopify calls this the most common reason a store does not rank well: it needs more relevant content. A product page that carries only the manufacturer’s description says the same as every other store selling the product. Write your own descriptions, answer the questions buyers ask, and give each collection page an introduction.
If the store is indexed and gets no traffic
An indexed store with no visitors is being outranked, product by product. Our guide to finding content your competitors have and you do not shows how to see what their pages answer and yours do not, and why your website is not showing up on Google covers the wider causes.
Questions people ask
Why is my Shopify store password protected?
A new Shopify store starts behind a password page so that it can be built in private. While the password is on, visitors and search engines cannot see the store. Remove it when the store is ready to launch.
Does Google index a Shopify trial store?
No. Shopify states that search engines do not index trial stores. Choosing a plan lifts that.
How long does a new Shopify store take to appear on Google?
Shopify says Google usually indexes a store within 48 to 72 hours of information being added or updated, and that submitting the sitemap to Search Console can help a new store along. Appearing for competitive product searches takes much longer.
Free competitor gap report
A store that is indexed and still not found is being outranked by other stores. Name up to three that appear for your products and we measure your store against theirs, then send you what their pages have that yours do not.
- Speed and technical health, side by side
- On-page SEO and site structure
- The content they are found for and you are not
- Who holds the searches that matter in your market
- A prioritised list of what to fix first
Request your free report by email
- Address
- contact@hadalmedusa.com
- Include
- your site; up to three competitors; where you compete
More in this series
- Why your website is not showing up on Google
- Why your Wix site is not showing up on Google
- Crawled, currently not indexed: what it means and how to fix it
- Discovered, currently not indexed: what it means and how to fix it
- Page with redirect: what it means in Search Console
- Why your Squarespace site is not showing up on Google
- Why your Google Business Profile is not showing up
- Why your Shopify store is not getting traffic or sales
- Why your WordPress site is not showing up on Google
- Alternate page with proper canonical tag: what it means
- Duplicate without user-selected canonical: what it means and how to fix it
- Duplicate, Google chose different canonical than user: what to do
- Excluded by noindex tag: what it means and how to fix it
- Blocked by robots.txt: what it means and how to fix it
- Soft 404 and Not found (404): what they mean and how to fix them
- Server error (5xx): what it means and how to fix it
- Redirect error in Search Console: what it means and how to fix it
- Indexed, though blocked by robots.txt: what it means and what to do
- Blocked due to access forbidden (403): what it means and how to fix it
- How to make your website show up on Google
- When a site is not showing on Google: the whole topic
- All guides
- On-site SEO: what the service includes