@williamhuynh said in Shopify SEO - Double Filter Pages:

Hi Experts,
Single filter page: /collections/dining-chairs/black
-- currently, canonical the same: /collections/dining-chairs/black
-- currently, index, follow
Double filter page: /collections/dining-chairs/black+fabric
-- currently, canonical the same: /collections/dining-chairs/black+fabric
-- currently, noindex, follow
My question is about double filter page above:
if noindexing is the better option OR should I change the canonical to /collections/dining-chairs/black
Thank you

Hello,

Your question about canonicalisation and noindexing for double-filtered pages is quite pertinent, especially in the context of Shopify Web Design, where SEO considerations are often front and center.

The primary objective of canonical tags and 'noindex, follow' tags is to help search engines understand which version of a page to index and display in the search results. In the context of your double-filtered page (/collections/dining-chairs/black+fabric), both options you mentioned serve different purposes and have different impacts on SEO:

Using Canonical Tags: Changing the canonical URL to /collections/dining-chairs/black implies that this page is the "master" version, and you're suggesting that Google treat the content on /collections/dining-chairs/black+fabric as duplicate content. All the link equity and SEO benefits will be transferred to the canonical URL.

Using 'noindex, follow': When you specify 'noindex, follow', you're instructing search engines not to index the double-filtered page but still to follow all the links on that page. The benefit here is that it allows Google to crawl other relevant pages linked from it, but the page itself won't appear in search results.

Deciding between the two largely depends on your Shopify SEO strategy. If you believe that the double-filtered page doesn't add much value or is too specific to deserve a separate entry in search indexes, then setting a canonical URL to /collections/dining-chairs/black is a sensible choice. This way, you centralise SEO benefits to a more generic page that likely has a wider appeal.

On the other hand, if the double-filtered page has unique content and you believe it should be crawled but not indexed to avoid duplicate content issues, then keeping it as 'noindex, follow' would be more appropriate.

In Shopify Web Design, best practices often lean towards the use of canonical tags for similar or duplicate pages as it is more straightforward to manage and implement via Shopify's admin interface. However, you should base your decision on a careful analysis of how these pages contribute to your site's overall SEO and user experience.

When dealing with a double filter page like "/collections/dining-chairs/black+fabric," there are a couple of considerations to keep in mind regarding indexing and canonicalization.

Indexing: If you choose to use "noindex" for the double filter page, it means that search engines won't include that page in their index. This can be beneficial if the double filter page doesn't provide unique or valuable content compared to other pages on your website. By preventing indexing, you can avoid potential issues with duplicate content and ensure that search engines focus on more relevant pages.

Canonicalization: The canonical tag is used to indicate the preferred version of a page when there are multiple versions with similar content. In this case, if you set the canonical tag to "/collections/dining-chairs/black," you're essentially telling search engines that the single filter page is the preferred and primary version of the content. This can help consolidate the SEO value and avoid dilution of ranking signals.

Considering these factors, the decision between using "noindex" or changing the canonical tag to "/collections/dining-chairs/black" depends on the specific situation and your goals. Here are two scenarios:

a. If the double filter page ("/collections/dining-chairs/black+fabric") does provide unique and valuable content compared to the single filter page ("/collections/dining-chairs/black"), it may be more appropriate to change the canonical tag to "/collections/dining-chairs/black." This indicates that the double filter page is a preferred version of the content and can help search engines understand the different variations you offer.

b. If the double filter page ("/collections/dining-chairs/black+fabric") doesn't provide any substantial unique content compared to the single filter page ("/collections/dining-chairs/black"), using "noindex" can be a reasonable option. This prevents search engines from indexing a potentially redundant page and focuses their attention on the single filter page.