Pattern redirects are browser-based redirect rules that handle groups of broken links which follow a repeatable URL structure. For example, /products/⑴ where ⑴ represents any product handle on your store.
They're ideal for bulk changes like discontinuing collections and language folders, or store migrations to Shopify, where many links break at once and you can't identify all the affected URLs.
Use them when 404s follow a pattern and are too numerous or unpredictable for manual 301 redirect. Keep in mind that pattern redirects don’t offer SEO benefits like 301s because they run in the browser using JavaScript.
Choose pattern redirects for speed, scale and end-customer experience when SEO isn’t your top priority.
Want SEO benefits too?
If you’ve set up pattern redirects but want better long-term SEO results, Enterprise plan merchants can use Pattern Matches to see which broken links are actually being visited by your customers. From there, you can convert specific matches into 301 redirects so you retain the flexibility of patterns but get the SEO value of permanent redirects where it matters most.
You can also: