Audit tool / Guides

Shopify Product Descriptions for SEO: Fixing Empty and Thin Descriptions

By Evan Walter · Updated 2026-11-11

Your product description is usually the largest block of unique text on a product page. When it's empty or only a sentence long, Google has little to go on besides the title, and shoppers have little reason to buy. The audit flags descriptions that are empty or under 50 words.

Why 50 words?

There's no official minimum, and Google does not rank by word count. 50 words is simply a practical floor: below it, a description almost never covers what the product is, who it's for, and the details a buyer needs. Many strong product pages run 150 to 300 words, but the goal is useful, not long.

The copied-from-the-manufacturer problem

If your descriptions come from a supplier feed, hundreds of other stores may have the exact same text. Google tends to show one version of duplicated content, often from a larger site. Rewriting your top sellers in your own words is one of the higher-leverage SEO tasks for a reseller.

A fast template

1. One-line summary: what it is and who it's for.
2. Why it's good: 2-3 benefits in plain language.
3. Details: materials, dimensions, fit, care, what's in the box. A bulleted list is fine.
4. Answer the common question: the thing customers email you about (sizing, compatibility, shipping time).

Doing it across a big catalog

• Start with your top 20 products by revenue or traffic, not alphabetically.
• Use the product CSV export to see every description in one sheet. The column is Body (HTML). Edit there and re-import with Overwrite products with matching handles, after keeping a backup copy.
• AI writing tools can help draft, but check every fact (materials, sizes, claims). A wrong spec costs more in returns than a thin description costs in rankings.

Don't forget the meta description

The product description is not the same as the meta description Google may show in results. See title tags and meta descriptions on Shopify.