PrestaShop duplicate H1 on a page: how to find the second heading and fix it
A duplicate H1 in PrestaShop usually comes from one of four places: the logo in the home page header, a slide title in the slider, a product description pasted from a supplier, or the theme template. Google copes with several H1s, so it isn't an emergency. Still, the main heading should say what the page is about: the product name, category name or page title.
Author: The TellMyShop team. A guide for PrestaShop store owners: the cause, the manual fix and the same work in a chat conversation.
Last updated: · 6 min read
Where does the second H1 on a page come from?
Each page type has its own template, so a second H1 usually appears on one type of page, not across the whole store.
| Where | Typical cause | Where to fix it |
|---|---|---|
| Home page | the logo in an H1 plus a slide or text block title in an H1 | the slider or text block module template in the theme |
| Home page and the rest of the store | the theme puts the store name in an H1 in the header of every page | the theme's header template |
| Category | the category name in an H1 above the description and again above the product list | the category template in the theme |
| Product | a description pasted with an H1 from the supplier's site or from the editor | the product description |
| Information page | the page title in an H1 and a second H1 typed into the content | the page content |
Some of these causes depend on the theme version. The Classic theme puts the logo in an H1 on the home page, and other themes do it their own way. So you always check your own store, not a description from the internet.
Does it matter to Google at all?
Less than the SEO tools that flag a duplicate H1 in red suggest. Google's John Mueller has said that multiple H1s won't get in the way of your SEO, and that headings help Google understand what parts of a page are about. Search Engine Journal has a broader write-up of his comments.
It's worth fixing for two reasons. First, when the H1 is the logo or a slogan like “New collection”, the page loses its most important heading with the product or category name. Second, people using screen readers move around a page by its headings. In W3C's material on page structure, headings from H1 to H6 describe the layout of the content, and one clear H1 makes it easier to find your way.
On an SEO fix list, a duplicate H1 isn't first. Products missing from Google, 404 errors with traffic and empty descriptions come before it. We describe the order in our guide to PrestaShop SEO.
What should the headings on store pages look like?
A simple rule: one H1 with what the page is about, and below it H2s for the larger sections of the page. The logo, menu and footer don't need H1 headings.
- Home page: an H1 with what you sell, for example “Lamps and lanterns for home and garden”. The slider, featured products and new arrivals as H2s.
- Category: an H1 with the category name. Subheadings in the category description as H2 or H3, not another H1.
- Product: an H1 with the product name. The Description and Product Details tabs and the subheadings in the description as H2 or H3.
- Information page: an H1 with the page title, for example Delivery and payment. The following sections as H2s.
If the home page has no H1 at all once you remove the one from the logo, add a short heading in a text block at the top of the page. That's better than leaving the logo in an H1, because a heading describing the store tells Google and the customer more than an image does.
How to find and fix the second H1
Check one page of each type, and fix it where the cause lies.
- Open the home page, one category, one product and one information page.
- On each, view the page source and search for
<h1. Note what's in each heading. - If the second H1 is in a product description or page content, change it in the editor to plain text or an H2 heading.
- If the second H1 comes from a module, such as a slider, copy the module template into the theme and change the H1 to an H2 or a plain paragraph in the copy.
- If the H1 is in the theme template, change it in a child theme, so a theme update doesn't reverse the fix. We explain why this matters in our post on a theme update that wiped the changes.
- Clear the store cache and check the page again. If you don't see the change, read our post on why changes aren't showing.
How the chat fixes the headings in your store
Your chat (Claude or ChatGPT) opens your store pages the way Google sees them and shows the list of headings. Then it looks for where the second H1 comes from: a description, a module or the theme.
You: An SEO tool shows two H1s on the home page and in categories. Find out where they come from.
Your chat: On the home page the first H1 is the logo, the second is the title of the first slide, “Autumn collection”. In categories the second H1 is in the Lamps category description, pasted in along with the text. I suggest two fixes. The first is in the category description:
Your chat: The second is in a copy of the slider template in the theme: the slide title as a paragraph instead of an H1. That needs the Theme switch. Before saving I'll make a copy of the file.
You: Save the category description. I'll turn on Theme tomorrow.
Your chat: Saved. The Lamps category now has one H1. I'll prepare the slider template change in a preview once you turn on Theme.
Card status: waiting for your “yes”old version: <h1>Lamps for the living room and bedroom</h1>
new version: <h2>Lamps for the living room and bedroom</h2>
The names in this example are illustrative.
In the free TellMyShop Free version the chat checks the headings on your store pages and points to the cause, but doesn't change anything. In TellMyShop Pro, fixes to product, category and page descriptions are saved straight after the licence is activated, with a preview and your approval. Changes to theme templates and to copies of module templates need the Theme switch, which lasts 24 hours and requires a database backup from today. Before every file save the module makes a copy, so you can restore the previous version from the conversation, as in the use case restoring a previous version of the design. There are examples of these requests in the use cases headings in the home page slider and a module design change that survives updates. The plans are in the pricing.
Questions and answers
Does Google penalise two H1 headings?
No. Google says its systems cope with several H1s on a page. The problem is different: when the first H1 is the logo or a slider slogan, the page's main heading doesn't say what the page is about. The fix tidies the page for Google and for screen readers.
How do I check how many H1s a page in my store has?
Open the page, view its source and search for the text <h1. Each match is one H1 heading. Check the home page, a category, a product and an information page, because each one uses a different template.
Will the fix disappear after a theme update?
It may, if you changed the theme files directly. A theme update won't overwrite a fix in a child theme or in a copy of a module template inside the theme. That's why it's worth starting with a child theme.
Will TellMyShop Free find a duplicate H1?
Yes. The free TellMyShop Free version opens your store pages the way Google sees them and shows the page headings. TellMyShop Pro saves a fix in a description straight away, and a fix in the theme once the Theme switch is on.
PrestaShop is a registered trademark of PrestaShop SA. Claude is a trademark of Anthropic PBC. ChatGPT and OpenAI are trademarks of OpenAI. TellMyShop is not affiliated with these companies.