Shopify product description SEO: the description, the page title and meta description, and supplier copy

A Shopify product description ranks when it is written for the product in your words, not copied from the supplier, opens by saying what the product is with the phrase shoppers search for, and runs to at least 250 words of real detail, which Shopify's SEO help asks of every page. Then fill the product's search engine listing: a page title of up to 70 characters (Shopify recommends 60 or fewer) and a meta description of about 160 characters, the length Shopify's SEO help recommends.

On a marketplace, the marketplace's search decides who sees your listing. On your Shopify store, Google decides, and Google is reading three things you control on every product: the description on the page, and the page title and meta description in the product's search engine listing. Each of the three needs separate work.

This guide covers each of them, a structure that works on a phone, the duplicate supplier copy problem, and a checklist for fixing a catalogue.

What makes a Shopify product description rank?

A Shopify product description ranks when it is unique to your store, says plainly what the product is in its first sentence, and answers the questions a shopper searches with. Shopify's advice on SEO product descriptions is that the first sentence should state what the product is, and that keywords belong in the highest-impact places rather than in every sentence.

Shopify's guide to writing descriptions names those places: the product title, the first paragraph and at least one subheading, without forcing repetition. Its help centre adds a floor: at least 250 words of descriptive text on every page. Shopify's guide to descriptions warns that forced keyword stuffing can hurt rankings rather than help them, and its help on keywords asks you to use keywords in readable, natural phrases and sentences.

Those 250 words should come from facts, never padding:

• What it is and who it is for, in the first sentence.
• What it is made of, down to the fibre, the metal or the wood.
• Sizes and measurements, with the units shoppers use.
• How to use it and care for it.
• What is in the box.
• The questions shoppers ask before buying: fit, compatibility, washing, delivery.

A description built this way picks up the longer searches, such as "merino jumper machine washable", that a short description never matches.

How should a Shopify product description be structured?

Open with a short paragraph that says what the product is and why someone would want it, then give features and specifications as a scannable list. That is the format Shopify's guide recommends: a short opening paragraph, then bullet points for features and specs, with headlines and plenty of white space so the copy scans. Shopify's pre-publish test asks whether a shopper can scan the description in 10 seconds and understand the value, and whether it works on a phone screen.

A structure that does all of that:

1. Opening paragraph (2 to 3 sentences): what the product is, the main phrase, the main reason to buy.
2. Key features: four to six bullets, each a fact and what it means for the shopper.
3. A subheading such as "Size and fit" or "Materials and care", carrying the main phrase or a close variant.
4. Specifications: measurements, weight, materials, contents.
5. Questions: two or three short answers to what shoppers ask.

Shopify's guide also tells sellers to anticipate what makes a shopper hesitate and answer it in the copy. Those answers are the most useful words on the page, for the shopper and for search. Our guide to writing product descriptions covers turning package facts into copy, and product description examples shows finished ones.

Shopify's store search reads descriptions too. Shopify says only the first 10,000 characters of a product description, including the HTML, are searchable, and advises putting the terms customers search for near the start. Start with the important words and both searches benefit.

What is the Shopify SEO title and how long should it be?

The SEO title is the page title in the product's search engine listing, and it is the clickable link shoppers see in search results. Shopify allows up to 70 characters and recommends keeping it to 60 or fewer to avoid shortened titles in search results. Shopify's help also advises putting the most important keywords near the beginning.

To set it, open the product in your Shopify admin, find the Search engine listing section, select the pencil icon and enter the page title.

A good SEO title is not always the product title. The product title on the page can be short and branded; the SEO title should carry the phrase shoppers search for, the defining trait and your store name if there is room:

Merino Wool Crew Neck Jumper, Navy | Store Name (47 characters)

How long should a Shopify meta description be?

A Shopify meta description should run to about 160 characters, the length Shopify's SEO help recommends. Shopify's blog on meta descriptions recommends about 160 characters too, puts the key information first, and notes that mobile results cut off sooner, at around 120.

Shopify suggests including relevant keywords and your store's name. The meta description is the sentence that persuades someone to click your result rather than the one below it. Write it like an answer:

Lightweight crew neck jumper in navy, 100% merino wool. Machine washable, sizes XS to XXL. Free returns at Store Name. (118 characters)

That fits inside the mobile cut-off, says what the product is, gives two facts a shopper checks, and names the store. Write a different meta description for every product: Shopify's blog points to Google's advice that each page should have a unique description, and that similar descriptions on many pages are not helpful.

One more thing Shopify states plainly: search engines such as Google can rewrite page titles and meta descriptions based on the page content, so what shows in results may not match what you entered. Since the rewrite draws on the page, write the title and meta description to match what the description says.

Why is copied supplier text bad for Shopify SEO?

Copied supplier text puts your product page in a crowd of identical pages, and Shopify's help is direct about it: avoid copying text a manufacturer gives you, because that description might already be used by other websites. Shopify's help on writing product descriptions tells resellers not to copy the manufacturer's exact description, because a description in your words keeps the page unique to search engines.

Shopify's Enterprise blog adds the commercial reason: the same copy appears on other retail sites, and it misses details about your audience, your brand and the use case. When every stockist runs the same paragraph, Google has no reason to show yours, and a shopper has no reason to buy from you.

Use the supplier's text as a source of facts, not as copy:

1. Pull out the facts: dimensions, materials, specifications, care, contents.
2. Check them against the product and its packaging. Supplier sheets carry errors, and the claim on your page is yours.
3. Write the description fresh in the structure above, for your shoppers.
4. Add what the supplier cannot: your photos, your sizing advice, the questions your customers ask.

The same applies to your variants and similar products. Shopify's SEO checklist says to write unique SEO copy for each product page, including variants. Shopify adds canonical tags to pages automatically to keep duplicate content out of search results, but canonical tags do nothing for two different products with the same paragraph.

A Shopify product SEO checklist

1. First sentence says what the product is, with the main phrase.
2. Main phrase in the product title, first paragraph and one subheading.
3. At least 250 words of facts, never filler.
4. Short opening, then scannable bullets; passes a 10-second scan on a phone.
5. No copied supplier text.
6. Page title within 60 characters, keywords first.
7. Meta description about 160 characters, unique to the product.
8. URL handle set once and left alone.
9. Alt text on every product image. The guide to Shopify product image size covers writing it.

Work through your catalogue best sellers first, and start with any product still carrying supplier copy.

How Commicorn helps

Commicorn makes listing images and copy for your Shopify store from your product photos, to Shopify's rules: a description written from your product's facts, with a page title and meta description inside the lengths Shopify gives. Start free.

Questions sellers ask

How long should a Shopify product description be for SEO?

At least 250 words of descriptive text, the floor Shopify's SEO help sets for every page. Reach it with facts shoppers need, such as materials, sizes, care and answers to common questions, never by repeating keywords.

What is the character limit for a Shopify SEO title?

Shopify allows up to 70 characters in a page title and recommends 60 or fewer, so search results do not shorten it. Put the most important keywords near the beginning.

How long should a Shopify meta description be?

About 160 characters, the length Shopify's SEO help recommends, and Shopify's blog notes mobile results cut off sooner, at around 120.

Can I use the supplier's product description on Shopify?

Not word for word. Shopify's help tells resellers not to copy a manufacturer's exact description, because that text might already be used by other websites and a description in your words keeps the page unique to search engines. Use the supplier's facts and write the description yourself.

Why does Google show a different title from my Shopify SEO title?

Shopify explains that search engines such as Google can rewrite page titles and meta descriptions based on the page content and other signals. Keep the SEO title, meta description and on-page description saying the same thing, so whatever Google draws from the page still says what you meant.

The last word

Your Shopify product page competes with every other page selling the same thing, and the one thing that sets it apart in search is words no one else has. Write the description from the product's facts in your voice, open with what it is, and give the page title and meta description the same care in their 60 and 160 characters. Supplier copy saves time on every product and gives away the one thing that could set the page apart.