Magento 2 SEO Checklist: Essential Steps for 2025

Running a Magento 2 store without a solid SEO strategy is like setting up a shop in the middle of nowhere. If you want customers to find your store easily, rank higher in search results, and drive organic traffic, you need a well-optimized site.

With 2025 right around the corner, SEO trends and best practices continue to evolve. Google updates its algorithm constantly, user behavior shifts, and competition gets tougher. That’s why having a Magento 2 SEO checklist ensures your store stays optimized, fast, and ready to rank.

In this guide, we’ll walk through all the essential SEO steps to boost your Magento 2 website’s visibility, improve user experience, and increase conversions.

1. Optimize Your Magento 2 URL Structure

Your URLs are more important than you think! Clean, readable URLs help both search engines and users understand your content. Magento 2 allows you to customize your URLs, so make sure to:

✅ Remove default store codes from URLs (Go to Stores → Configuration → General → Web → Set "Add Store Code to URLs" to No)

✅ Use SEO-friendly URLs (Avoid long, complicated URLs with unnecessary parameters)

✅ Include keywords naturally (E.g., yourstore.com/best-running-shoes instead of yourstore.com/index.php?id=12345)

✅ Enable canonical URLs to prevent duplicate content issues (Stores → Configuration → Catalog → Search Engine Optimization)

A well-structured URL can make a big difference in your rankings!

2. Improve Site Speed and Performance

Speed is a critical ranking factor. A slow website leads to higher bounce rates and lower search rankings. Magento 2 has built-in performance optimization features, and enabling full-page caching can significantly improve loading times.

Using a Content Delivery Network (CDN) ensures faster image and file delivery, while optimizing images by converting them to WebP format reduces their size without compromising quality.

Minifying JavaScript, CSS, and HTML further enhances speed, and enabling lazy loading ensures images load only when they are visible on the screen. Regularly testing your store’s speed using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights can help identify areas for improvement.

3. Optimize Meta Titles and Descriptions

Your meta titles and descriptions are like an advertisement for your store in search results. They influence whether a user clicks on your page or not.

Best Practices for Magento 2 Meta Tags:

✔ Keep meta titles under 60 characters and include primary keywords

✔ Write compelling meta descriptions (under 160 characters) with a call to action

✔ Avoid duplicate metadata across pages

For example, instead of a boring title like:❌ “Product Page - YourStore”

Use something more engaging: ✔ “Best Running Shoes – Lightweight & Durable | Free Shipping”

Go to Stores → Configuration → General → Design → HTML Head to update your metadata.

4. Implement Structured Data (Rich Snippets)

Want your products to stand out in Google search results? Structured data (Schema Markup) helps display extra details like ratings, prices, and stock status right on the search page.

Magento 2 doesn’t add structured data by default, so you’ll need to:

Use JSON-LD markup for products, reviews, and breadcrumbs
Add schema.org markup for business information and FAQ pages
Use an extension like BSS SEO extension for Magento 2 to automate schema markup

This makes your store more attractive in search results, leading to higher click-through rates (CTR).

5. Generate and Submit an XML Sitemap

A sitemap is a roadmap of your website that helps search engines index your pages properly. Magento 2 lets you generate and submit XML sitemaps easily.

To enable sitemaps:

🔹 Go to Stores → Configuration → Catalog → XML Sitemap

🔹 Set up automatic sitemap generation

🔹 Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console

Pro Tip: Keep your sitemap updated whenever you add new products or categories.

6. Optimize Product and Category Pages

Your product and category pages are where customers decide to buy, so they need to be SEO-friendly and user-friendly.

How to Optimize Product Pages:

✔ Use high-quality images with proper alt text (e.g., alt="Best Running Shoes for Men")

✔ Write unique and keyword-rich product descriptions (Avoid copy-pasting manufacturer descriptions!)

✔ Add customer reviews (Google values user-generated content)

✔ Use breadcrumb navigation to help users navigate your site easily

Example of a great product description:

❌ “This is a comfortable running shoe.”

✔ “Discover the ultimate comfort with our lightweight running shoes, designed for long-distance runners. Enjoy enhanced cushioning, superior grip, and breathable mesh for all-day wear.”

7. Fix Duplicate Content with Canonical Tags

Duplicate content confuses search engines and can lower your rankings. Magento 2 sometimes creates multiple URLs for the same product, which can cause SEO problems.

How to Fix This:

Enable canonical tags (Stores → Configuration → Catalog → Search Engine Optimization)
Use 301 redirects for outdated or duplicate pages
Avoid creating too many similar pages with slight variations (e.g., don’t create separate pages for every shoe color—use swatches instead!)

Canonical tags tell Google which version of the page is the main one, helping to consolidate ranking power.

8. Implement Hreflang for Multi-Store SEO

If your store has multiple language versions or country-specific stores, you need hreflang tags to prevent Google from showing the wrong version to users.

Magento 2 doesn’t automatically add hreflang, so you’ll need to:

Manually add hreflang tags in your store’s <head> section
Use an SEO extension like BSS Commerce Magento 2 SEO Extension to automate it

A proper hreflang setup ensures users see the right language and currency, improving both SEO and user experience.

9. Improve Internal Linking

Internal links help Google understand your website structure and keep visitors engaged longer.

Best Practices for Internal Linking:

✔ Link to related products or categories on product pages

✔ Add internal links in blog posts to guide users to relevant pages

✔ Use descriptive anchor text (E.g., "Shop our best running shoes" instead of "Click here")

A well-structured internal linking strategy improves SEO and helps customers navigate your site easily.

10. Monitor SEO Performance and Fix Issues

SEO is not a one-time task—you need to track your performance and make adjustments regularly.

🔎 Use Google Search Console to monitor indexing, errors, and search rankings

📊 Track organic traffic and conversions with Google Analytics

🛠 Check for broken links and 404 errors (Use tools like Screaming Frog SEO Spider)

Keeping an eye on your SEO health ensures your Magento 2 store remains optimized for long-term success.

Final Thoughts: Stay Ahead in 2025!

Magento 2 SEO is always evolving, and staying ahead means keeping up with best practices and Google updates. By following this Magento 2 SEO checklist, you’ll ensure your store ranks higher, loads faster, and attracts more organic traffic in 2025.

If you want to simplify SEO, consider using a Magento 2 SEO Extension for automated optimizations, rich snippets, and hreflang setup.

Got any SEO questions? Drop a comment below—we’d love to help! 🚀