Shopify Collection Features: Full Overview

Shopify collections offer more than most merchants realize — from automated condition-based grouping to SEO-optimized URLs and structured filtering. Here's every feature available, both native and through apps.

Collection Types

Manual Collections

Hand-curated product groupings:

• Add products individually
• Full control over membership
• Best for curated selections
• Requires manual updates

Automated Collections

Rule-based product groupings:

• Products added based on conditions
• Automatic updates as inventory changes
• Best for large or changing inventories
• Reduces manual maintenance

Condition Options

Available conditions for automated collections:

• Product title: Contains, equals, starts with, ends with
• Product type: Exact match or contains
• Product vendor: Brand or supplier matching
• Product tag: Exact tag match
• Compare at price: Greater than, less than, equal to
• Weight: Weight-based conditions
• Inventory stock: Greater than, less than, equal to
• Variant's title: Variant-level conditions

Sorting Features

Product ordering options within collections:

• Best selling: By sales performance
• Alphabetically (A-Z, Z-A): By product title
• Price (low-high, high-low): By product price
• Date (new-old, old-new): By creation date
• Manually: Custom drag-and-drop order

Filtering and Navigation

Enable Storefront Filtering at Online Store > Navigation > Collection and search filters:

• Built-in filters: Shopify supports availability, price, product type, vendor, and tag-based filters natively — add them in the Collection and search filters settings
• Custom filters: Add metafield-based filters (e.g., material, color, size) by creating metafield definitions at Settings > Custom data > Products, then enabling them as filter sources
• Sort dropdown: Customers see sort options (Featured, Best selling, Alphabetical, Price, Date) on the collection page — the default sort is whatever you set in the collection editor
• Search & Discovery app: Shopify's free app adds synonym handling, product boosting/burying in search results, and custom filter ordering

SEO Features

Edit SEO fields at Products > Collections > [collection], scroll to Search engine listing preview, click Edit website SEO:

• Page title: Put the primary keyword near the start, keep under 60 characters — if left blank, Shopify uses the collection name as the title tag
• Meta description: Write 120-155 characters that describe what's in the collection and why someone should browse it — this appears in Google search results
• URL handle: Set once when creating the collection (e.g., /collections/mens-running-shoes). Changing it later breaks inbound links unless you add a 301 redirect at Online Store > Navigation > URL Redirects
• Collection description: Write 150-300 words in the rich text editor above the product grid — Google indexes this content for category keyword rankings
• Image alt text: Add descriptive alt text to the collection featured image — keep it under 125 characters and describe what's shown

Display Options

Collection Images

• Featured collection image
• Image alt text for accessibility and SEO
• Image size and format options

Theme Customization

• Products per page settings
• Grid layout options
• Collection page sections

Bulk Operations

Manage products efficiently:

• Bulk add products to collections
• CSV import/export
• Bulk editing tools
• Tag management

Analytics and Reporting

Track performance with analytics:

• Collection traffic: Go to Analytics > Reports > Sessions by landing page and filter for URLs containing /collections/ to see which collections get the most visits
• Conversion data: Cross-reference collection traffic with Analytics > Reports > Sales by product to identify high-traffic collections with low conversion — these need better product curation or descriptions
• Search terms: Check Analytics > Reports > Top online store searches — if customers search for products that exist in your collections, your navigation isn't surfacing them properly
• Google Analytics: For deeper funnel analysis, connect GA4 via Online Store > Preferences > Google Analytics and track collection-to-checkout paths

App Extensions

Install apps at Apps > Shopify App Store to extend collection features:

• Collection automation: AWSM Collections handles rule-based automation and product grouping — search "collection sort" or "collection manager" in the App Store
• Search & Discovery: Shopify's free app adds product boosting/burying, synonym handling, and custom filter ordering for collection pages
• Advanced filtering: Apps like Boost Product Filter add faceted search with color swatches, price sliders, and multi-select filters beyond what Shopify offers natively
• Personalization: Apps like Rebuy Engine or Nosto reorder products per visitor using machine learning — note these inject JavaScript that can affect page speed

Best Practices

• Use automated collections for categories like "Under $50" or "New Arrivals" — they update themselves as products change
• Adopt a tag prefix system (e.g., color_red, material_cotton) so automated collection rules match reliably
• Fill in the SEO title, meta description, and URL handle for every collection — empty fields mean Shopify auto-generates generic text
• Add 2-3 sentences of descriptive content above the product grid to help the collection rank for category keywords
• Check your lowest-performing collections monthly in Shopify Analytics — consolidate or remove collections with near-zero traffic

Conclusion

Shopify provides a wide set of features for collection management. Understanding these options helps you choose the right approach for your store's needs. Combine built-in features with apps to create an efficient collection management system.

Related Resources

• Shopify Help: Collections
• What is a Shopify Collection?
• Using Tags Effectively