# Shopify internal-linking checklist

Use this worksheet on a defined sample of live pages. A checked box means you inspected the published, rendered page; it does not mean rankings or sales improved.

## Inventory

- [ ] List the homepage, priority collections, priority products and evergreen guides.
- [ ] Record the preferred canonical URL and page purpose for each destination.
- [ ] Mark pages with no known incoming link as candidates for rendered review.
- [ ] Assign an owner and priority to each proposed change.

## Placement and wording

- [ ] Give every important page at least one crawlable link from a relevant page.
- [ ] Put each link where its destination answers the reader's next question.
- [ ] Use concise, descriptive anchor text that makes sense out of context.
- [ ] Avoid “click here,” keyword stuffing and rows of context-free links.
- [ ] Link collections for comparison and specific products for product-specific claims.
- [ ] Add a useful return path from products or collections to relevant guidance.

## Published-page verification

- [ ] Confirm each link renders as an `<a>` element with an `href`.
- [ ] Open each destination and confirm it is the intended live page.
- [ ] Remove unnecessary redirect hops and preview or disposable parameters.
- [ ] Check that linked product facts still match the destination page.
- [ ] Verify link visibility, focus state and tap target on a mobile viewport.
- [ ] If a handle changed, test the old URL and its intended redirect.

## Measurement record

- [ ] Save the change date, source URL, destination URL and reason.
- [ ] Define the Search Console and analytics windows before comparing results.
- [ ] Annotate promotions, launches and theme changes that could affect traffic.
- [ ] Report observed changes without claiming that internal links caused them.

Source guidance: Shopify Help Center on site structure and menus; Google Search Central on crawlable links and ecommerce structure. Last reviewed 10 September 2026.