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A Shopify migration checklist, from the first export to a year after launch

The short answer

Moving a store to Shopify runs in five stages: decide what moves and export it, map every old web address to its new one, import and test the new store, switch the domain over, then watch for missed redirects. This checklist has all 28 steps, drawn from Shopify’s and Google’s own guidance, to print or download.

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Key facts

As of October 2026

Shopify says to import products first, then customers, then past orders, so the orders link up properly.
Customer passwords can’t be imported into Shopify from another platform, so customers set new ones.
A Shopify store can have up to 100,000 URL redirects, or 20,000,000 on Shopify Plus, and a redirect only works from an address that no longer loads a page.
A new Shopify store starts in private mode, which hides every page from visitors and search engines.
Connecting a domain to Shopify usually takes effect within two hours, and at most two days.
Google advises keeping redirects for at least a year, and says a medium-sized site can take a few weeks or more to settle after a move.

What’s on the Shopify migration checklist?

Print or save as PDF Download as a spreadsheet (CSV)

Before you start

1.Decide what moves: products, customers, past orders, gift cards, blog posts and pages. Shopify says a move is a good time to drop old content that doesn’t sell.
2.Check your products fit Shopify: up to 3 options and 2,048 variants per product. Products with more need restructuring, or an app.
3.Export your products, customers and orders from your current platform. Some platforms need an extension or app for customers and orders.
4.List the features plugins or apps give you now, such as subscriptions, bookings, reviews and product add-ons, and decide how each will work on Shopify.
5.Note what can’t move as it is. Customer passwords can’t be imported, so customers set new ones. Past orders, gift cards and blog posts come across only through a migration app or Shopify’s API.
6.Put the domain, the Shopify account and any paid theme in your own name from the start.

The redirect map

7.List every old address that matters. Google suggests starting with your sitemap, your most-visited pages and the pages other sites link to. Include images and PDFs that get visits.
8.Match each old address to its new one, one to one: a product to the same product, a category to its collection. On Shopify they sit under /products/, /collections/, /pages/ and /blogs/.
9.Don’t send many old pages to the home page. Google says that can confuse visitors and may be treated as a soft 404 error.
10.Point each old address straight at its final page, not through another redirect.
11.Plan for what Shopify won’t redirect: an address that still loads a page, and addresses beginning /apps, /application, /cart, /carts, /orders, /services or /shop.

Before the switch-over

12.Import products first, then customers, then past orders, so each order links to its products and customer.
13.Turn off new-order notifications before importing past orders. Otherwise every staff member set to receive them gets an email for each imported order.
14.Check the imported products: prices, weights, stock and variants. A product missing a variant option doesn’t import.
15.Set up shipping, tax and payments, then place test orders.
16.Update the links inside the new store, so they point straight at the new addresses.
17.Load the redirect map into Shopify: Content > Menus > URL redirects > Import, as a CSV with the columns Redirect from and Redirect to. A store can have up to 100,000 URL redirects, or 20,000,000 on Shopify Plus.
18.Plan what you’ll do if the new store isn’t right on the day, and switch over at a quiet time for your traffic, as Google suggests.

Switch-over day

19.Take the store out of private mode. A new Shopify store starts in it, and it hides every page from visitors and search engines.
20.Connect your domain. Shopify says this usually takes effect within two hours, but can take up to two days.
21.Type in your most-visited old addresses, and check each one lands on its matching new page.
22.Don’t cancel the old platform yet: keep it until the new store has settled.

After launch

23.Submit the new sitemap in Google Search Console. Every Shopify store makes one at /sitemap.xml, and Google can’t read it while the store is in private mode.
24.If the domain changed too, use Search Console’s Change of Address tool. It’s only for a move to a new domain or subdomain.
25.Watch Search Console for a rise in “Not found” errors, and add a redirect for each old address you missed. Shopify’s redirects work as soon as they’re saved.
26.Expect rankings to move for a while. Google says a medium-sized site can take a few weeks or more to settle.
27.Update the links you control: your social profiles, email signature and ads.
28.Keep the redirects for at least a year, as Google advises, and for visitors with old bookmarks, for good.

Can I move my store to Shopify myself?

Yes. Shopify’s own tools import products and customers from CSV files, and its Store Migration app imports from several other platforms. Past orders, gift cards and blog posts are harder: Shopify lists migration apps and its API as the ways to bring them across.

The step most often skipped is the redirect map. Without it, old links, bookmarks and search results land on “Page not found”. The redirect map template is the sheet to fill in.

What does a move cost if you do it for me?

We move stores to Shopify for US$1,250, fixed, in US dollars, for businesses in the US, the UK and Canada: up to 300 products, 3 to 4 weeks, with your customers, your order history and the full redirect map. Every step on this list is part of it.

Where do these platform facts come from?

From Shopify’s Help Center and Google Search Central, checked on 27 October 2026 and re-checked every quarter. Both change their tools, so check the linked page before you rely on a step. The checklist is ours: Shopify and Google don’t make or endorse it.

What else do people ask?

How long does a Shopify migration take?

With us, 3 to 4 weeks, for up to 300 products. After the switch-over, Google says a medium-sized site can take a few weeks or more before its results show the new addresses.

Will I lose my Google rankings?

Nobody can promise where you’ll rank, and be wary of anyone who does. Google says to expect rankings to move for a while during a site move, and that permanent (301) redirects don’t lose PageRank. A complete redirect map is what protects them.

Can my customers keep their passwords?

No. Shopify can’t import passwords from another platform, because they’re stored encrypted outside Shopify. Customers set a new one after the move.

Do I need to tell Google I’ve moved to Shopify?

Submit the new sitemap in Google Search Console. Google’s Change of Address tool is only for a move to a new domain or subdomain, not a change of platform on the same domain.

Is this a website migration checklist or an SEO migration checklist?

Both. The redirect map and the after-launch steps are the SEO part, from Google’s guidance on moving a site, and most steps apply to any website move. The steps that only apply to Shopify name it.

Can I use this checklist for my own clients?

Yes, you have our permission: print it, download it as a spreadsheet, change it to suit the job and use it with your clients. A link back to this page is appreciated, not required.

Would you rather we did all 28 steps?

Book a 20-minute call and bring your store’s address. We’ll tell you whether the fixed-price move fits, what it costs, and what we’d move first. If a move isn’t what you need, we’ll say so.

Book a 20-minute call Email us

contact@centangleglobal.com · Phone and WhatsApp +1 (307) 269-6427 · A reply within one working day