When changing app handle - add a 301 redirect

Shopify App Store
1

I understand that if we change our app handle in shopify.app.toml, there is no redirect from the old handle to the new one.

That’s fine for newer apps, but for apps that have been on the app store for years, it’s essentially impossible to change handles without losing SEO value, breaking inbound links, and invalidating existing content.

Would it be possible to add a 301 redirect from the old handle to the new one when an app handle is changed on the app store? This should be fairly straightforward to implement.

2

@elilip I think 301 redirection is just only change the current link with the SEO best practice link so it does not related with the third-party apps that installed on the page. Since the apps are installed on the page the current link and new 301 link will use the same page and this means it use the same third party app before. So the app SEO will not be changed.

3

Ah, I got confused what the handle part does in the toml file.

We need our app listing page to redirect from https://apps.shopify.com/smart-image-optimizer to https://apps.shopify.com/tinyseo with a 301 redirect.

4

@elilip When you reach out to Support and request a handle change to your app store listing page, you can also request a redirect from your old handle to your new handle :slight_smile: We process both changes at the same time.

5

I’ll try that, thank you! A bit scared to move forward as I heard people loose rankings, being delisted for a few days. but I’ll talk to support. Thank you!