Multicounty domain configuration

Shopify Discussion

Topic summary

A user is seeking SEO advice for managing multiple country-specific domains for their Shopify store. They currently operate domain.co.uk (UK) and recently launched domain.com (US) with localized American English content.

Key Questions:

  • Whether to create a separate Google Search Console property for the .com domain without triggering duplicate content issues
  • How to structure European expansion (considering domain.eu) using subfolders like /fr for France

Recommended Solution:
A respondent advises:

  • Set up separate Search Console properties for each domain and submit sitemaps
  • Implement hreflang tags to signal language/regional targeting (en-GB, en-US)
  • Avoid using domain.co.uk/fr structure, as the .co.uk TLD conflicts with targeting French users
  • Best approach: Consolidate everything under the .com domain using country-specific subfolders (/uk, /us, /fr, /de), similar to how international brands like Zara structure their sites

This centralizes SEO authority, simplifies management, and provides clearer regional targeting. The original poster confirmed they will implement these changes.

Summarized with AI on October 30. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
1

Hello All,

Looking for Some SEO Advice

I currently have www.domain.co.uk as my primary domain, targeting the United Kingdom, and it has been running for just over a year. Recently, I set up www.domain.com, targeting the United States, and localised the content into American English.

  1. Should I set up a domain property in Google Search Console and submit a sitemap for the .com domain, or would this lead to duplicate content issues?

  2. I’m planning to expand my business into Europe and considering purchasing www.domain.eu. Ideally, I’d like to use subfolders for different countries (e.g., /fr for France). However, I believe this can only be done under the primary domain. This would mean structuring the URLs like www.domain.co.uk/fr, which doesn’t seem ideal.

    Aside from making www.domain.com the primary domain and using subfolders for different countries, are there any better options for international targeting?

Any help would be appreciated.

2 
Great question—international SEO can definitely get tricky, but you're already on the right track by thinking it through early.

To answer your first question: yes, you should set up a separate domain property in Google Search Console for your .com site and submit a sitemap. This won't automatically cause duplicate content issues, as long as you've properly localized the content. Since you've already adjusted it to American English, Google should treat it as unique enough, especially if you tailor other elements like spelling, examples, pricing, or even imagery to suit a U.S. audience.

To help further, make sure you:

Set the correct target country in each Search Console property.
Use hreflang tags to signal the language and regional targeting of each version (e.g., en-GB for UK and en-US for the U.S.).
Avoid exact content duplication across the domains.
As for expansion into Europe, your concern is valid. Using subfolders like /fr is a solid approach for country targeting, but yes—this method requires everything to be under a single domain. Structuring URLs like www.domain.co.uk/fr isn't ideal because:

The .co.uk TLD signals UK targeting, which can conflict with your intent to reach French users.
It may cause confusion or impact rankings for other European regions.
If international growth is a big part of your plan, you might consider:

Best Option: Move everything to the .com domain
Use subfolders for each country/language (/uk, /us, /fr, /de, etc.)
Consolidates authority and backlinks on one domain
Easier to manage long-term from an SEO standpoint
Use hreflang tags to help Google serve the correct version
This is the SEO structure that international brands such as Zara use to promote products internationally.
3

Thank you for your reply, this is a great help and very much appreciated. I will start implementing these changes. :slightly_smiling_face: