Shopify Subdomains vs. Subdirectories: What’s Best for SEO?

Shopify makes it easier than ever to launch an online store, but when it comes to domain setup, you face an important decision: should your shop live on a subdomain (e.g., shop.domain.com) or a subdirectory (e.g., domain.com/shop)?

The choice isn’t just technical — it has a real impact on your site’s SEO performance and your long-term ability to compete in search.

How Shopify Handles Domains by Default

When you create a Shopify store, the platform provides two common options:

• Root domain: If Shopify hosts your entire website, your store typically lives at domain.com.

• Subdomain: If your main site is hosted elsewhere (e.g., WordPress or Webflow), Shopify defaults to a subdomain like shop.domain.com.

What Shopify does not natively support is putting your store into a subdirectory like domain.com/shop.

Why Subdirectories Are Better for SEO

From an SEO perspective, consolidating your content under a single domain almost always provides better results than splitting it across subdomains.

Here’s why:

1. Google often treats subdomains as separate sites
   Backlinks and authority pointing to your main site don’t fully transfer to the subdomain, and vice versa.

2. Split content can dilute keyword relevance
   Blog content on the main domain may not help your product pages rank as strongly if the shop lives on a subdomain.

3. Subdirectories unify signals
   With domain.com/shop, all backlinks, authority, and topical relevance build into one cohesive site.

I’ve written before about this concept in the context of www vs. non-www versions. The principle is the same: splitting content dilutes SEO strength.

Is a Subdirectory Setup Possible With Shopify?

The short answer: yes, but not directly.

• Native Shopify setup: You can’t mount your store under /shop through Shopify’s admin panel.

• Reverse proxy workaround: If your main site runs on another host (e.g., WordPress), you can configure a reverse proxy to forward requests for /shop to Shopify.

How a Reverse Proxy Works

• A visitor goes to domain.com/shop.

• Your main host’s server (Apache, Nginx, or Cloudflare Workers) intercepts that request.

• The server forwards it to Shopify.

• Shopify returns the store content, which is displayed as if it lives under domain.com/shop.

This requires server-level access and cooperation from your hosting provider — something not all shared hosts allow. But modern providers like WP Engine, Kinsta, and SiteGround often do.

Pros and Cons of the Reverse Proxy Approach

Pros

• Consolidates SEO signals under one domain.

• Avoids the “two websites” problem.

• Creates a seamless experience for users who expect the shop to be part of your main brand site.

Cons

• Technical setup is more complex.

• May require developer assistance.

• Analytics and tracking setups can be trickier and need thorough testing.

Which WordPress Hosts Support Reverse Proxy Setups?

To make domain.com/shop possible, you need server-level control—so your choice of WordPress host matters. Here’s how 20 popular hosts stack up:

Supports Reverse Proxy

These hosts either explicitly support reverse proxy setups or provide official pathways to implement them.

• Convesio — Supported (no extra cost) (convesio.com)

• DreamHost — Supported (VPS/Dedicated only, via Apache mod_proxy) (help.dreamhost.com)

• Kinsta — Supported via add-on service (kinsta.com)

• Pagely — Supported on premium enterprise plans (pagely.com)

• Pressidium — Supported, especially for enterprise cases (pressidium.com)

• WordPress VIP — Supported by exception, only in enterprise contexts (docs.wpvip.com)

Limited / Conditional Support

These hosts may allow reverse proxy setups depending on the plan (VPS/Dedicated vs. shared) or with caveats.

• A2 Hosting — Possible on VPS/Dedicated; not documented for shared.

• Cloudways — Depends on the underlying VPS (DigitalOcean, AWS, GCP, etc.).

• InMotion Hosting — Possible on VPS/Dedicated; not documented for shared.

• Liquid Web — Advanced clients may configure; no official docs.

• WP Engine — Technically possible, but not officially supported (wpengine.com).

Not Supported / No Documentation

These hosts don’t support reverse proxy natively or provide no official documentation on how to implement it.

• Bluehost — No official support or documentation.

• DreamPress (DreamHost) — Managed WP, not geared for proxies.

• Flywheel — Not supported.

• GoDaddy — Not natively supported.

• GoDaddy WordPress Hosting — Same limitations as standard GoDaddy.

• HostGator — No known support.

• HostPapa — Likely not supported (cPanel shared hosting).

• SiteGround — No official documentation.

• WPX Hosting — Not documented.

When to Accept a Subdomain

There are cases where sticking with shop.domain.com makes sense:

• If simplicity and speed to launch are the top priority.

• If your host does not allow reverse proxy configuration.

• If SEO is not a major growth channel for your store.

In those cases, your best path is to fully optimize the subdomain shop, ensuring it earns its own authority.

Key Takeaways

• Subdirectories (/shop) are generally better for SEO than subdomains.

• Shopify doesn’t support subdirectories natively.

• A reverse proxy on your host (e.g., WordPress) can make /shop possible, but requires technical setup.

• Not all WordPress hosts support reverse proxy — and choosing the right host can determine if this option is available.

• If reverse proxy isn’t feasible, subdomains can still rank — they just require more effort to build authority.

Final Thoughts

If you’re serious about SEO and want your store to benefit from the full authority of your main domain, it’s worth exploring a reverse proxy setup to achieve domain.com/shop.

If you’re unsure whether your host supports this configuration, start by asking. And if you’d like help evaluating the trade-offs or setting up the right SEO foundation for your Shopify store, feel free to get in touch with O2SEO.