Redirects and launch checks when you move a store to Shopify

Why old addresses need a plan

Every product page on the old store has an address that customers, bookmarks, emails and other sites still use. Shopify builds its addresses differently, so Shopify's own migration guidance says old links to specific pages likely will not load. A redirect tells a visitor who arrives at an old address where the page now lives. Without redirects, every old link becomes a dead end, and the people who use them are your most loyal visitors.

• Redirects cover bookmarks, emails and links from other sites.
• No redirect file can promise a search ranking outcome.

Building the redirect list

A redirect has two fields: the address to redirect from and the address to redirect to. Shopify lets you create them one at a time or import a CSV, and offers a sample file for the exact layout, so use that file rather than guessing headers. A destination inside your domain is entered as a relative address, and a destination elsewhere needs the full address. A store can have up to 100,000 redirects.

The list comes from the old store. Export the product addresses, work out the handle each product has in the new store, and pair them. Each pair should be reviewed by a person who knows the products, because a redirect to the wrong product is worse than none. Collections, pages and blog posts need their own pairs if you want them redirected.

• One old address to one new address.
• Check every target is a handle that exists on the new store.
• Some paths, such as those beginning with cart or orders, cannot be redirected.

The rule that makes a correct redirect do nothing

A Shopify redirect works only from an address that does not load a valid page. If the old address still loads something on the new store, the redirect is ignored. Shopify says that to make an address eligible you can hide or delete the page so that it returns a 404. This can happen when a new product happens to have the same handle as an old one, or when a hidden collection is made visible again, in which case its redirect is removed automatically.

Order of work

Shopify's guidance gives a sequence that avoids the common problems. Import products first, then customers, then historical orders, so that orders connect to the right products and customers; importing orders sends a new-order email to each staff member who receives those notifications, so turn them off temporarily. Set up redirects before moving the domain. You may also need to disconnect the domain from the old platform first to avoid certificate errors. Keep the old store available until the checks pass.

• Products, then customers, then orders.
• Redirects before the domain moves.
• Switch off staff order emails during an order import.

Launch checks that catch real problems

After products are imported, check price, weight, inventory, descriptions and images on a sample that includes every product with options. Then place test orders that cover successful and failed payments, refunds, cancellations, and full and partial fulfilment, and read the customer emails each step produces. After launch, test the most visited old addresses and record where each one lands. If you want search engines to learn the new structure, submit a sitemap; no result is promised.

• Record the destination of each tested old address, not just pass or fail.
• Run the failed-payment and refund cases, not only the happy path.
• Check the emails, not only the screens.

What does not fit, and how it is accepted

Domain transfers, theme design, payment and tax setup, customers and historical orders are separate pieces of work. In the paid catalogue move project, you run the live import and the redirect import; we then compare a product export from your live store with the source and record the redirect results you send us. It is accepted when counts and sampled products match, the redirect results show the intended destination each time, and you accept the launch checklist.