Shopify guides
Guides that use these terms in context.
OpenPlain definitions
Shopify Glossary: 70 Terms Explained in Plain English
Briefing a developer is easier when you know the words. These definitions cover themes, products, checkout, SEO, speed, apps and payments, and say what each term means for your store.
- 70 terms in six groups
- One or two sentences each
- Written for store owners, not developers
- Linked to services where relevant
Terms70
Groups6
Since2015
How to use it
Learn the Words Once and Every Brief Gets Easier
Most miscommunication on a Shopify job is vocabulary.
When you ask for a change to a page, the words you use decide what you get. A section, a block, a template and a page are different things in Shopify, and mixing them up leads to a fix in the wrong place. The glossary below defines the terms you will hear most often.
Definitions are general and aimed at store owners. Shopify changes screens and names over time, so where a detail may change, the entry says so. For anything exact, Shopify's own documentation is the authority.
Terms are grouped by theme: store structure, products and catalogue, checkout and payments, search and speed, apps and tracking, and working with us.
Group 1
Store structure
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Theme | The set of templates and code that controls how a storefront looks and behaves. |
| Online Store 2.0 | Shopify's modern theme architecture, where most pages are built from sections you can add and move in the theme editor. |
| Section | A reusable block of a page, such as a hero banner or a featured collection, that can be added, removed and reordered. |
| Block | A smaller element inside a section, such as one slide or one testimonial. |
| Template | The layout used for a type of page, such as product, collection or blog post. |
| Snippet | A small piece of reusable theme code included inside other files. |
| Liquid | The template language Shopify themes use to display store data. |
| Theme editor | The visual tool in the admin for changing sections, blocks and settings without writing code. |
| Duplicate theme | A copy of a theme, used to test changes safely before publishing. |
| Storefront | The part of the store customers see. |
| Admin | The back office where you manage products, orders, settings and apps. |
| Page | A standalone content page such as About or Contact, separate from products and collections. |
Group 2
Products and catalogue
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Product | An item for sale, with a title, description, media, price and options. |
| Variant | One specific version of a product, such as a size and color combination, with its own price, SKU and stock. |
| Option | An attribute that creates variants, such as size or color. |
| SKU | A stock keeping unit: a code that identifies a variant for stock and fulfilment systems. |
| Barcode | A scannable code on a variant, used by retail and marketplace systems. |
| Collection | A group of products shown together on a page. |
| Manual collection | A collection where you add products one by one. |
| Automated collection | A collection that fills itself with products that meet rules, such as a tag or price. |
| Tag | A label on a product used for rules, filters and organization. |
| Product type | A category label on a product, used for organizing and filtering. |
| Vendor | A field naming the brand or supplier of a product. |
| Compare-at price | The original price shown struck through beside the current price to display a saving. |
| Handle | The part of a web address that identifies a product, collection or page. |
| Metafield | A custom field that stores extra data on a product, collection or other object. |
| Inventory tracking | A setting that counts stock for a variant and can stop sales at zero. |
Group 3
Checkout and payments
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Checkout | The hosted sequence where a customer enters shipping details and pays. Shopify controls it. |
| Cart | The list of items a customer intends to buy before checkout. |
| Cart drawer | A cart that slides in over the page instead of loading a new one. |
| Payment gateway | The service that processes a card or other payment. |
| Shopify Payments | Shopify's own payment processing, available in some countries. |
| Discount code | A code a customer enters to receive a discount. |
| Automatic discount | A discount applied without a code when conditions are met. |
| Draft order | An order created manually in the admin, often for quotes or phone orders. |
| Abandoned checkout | A checkout that was started but not completed. |
| Shipping profile | A set of shipping rates and rules applied to chosen products. |
| Gift card | A stored value a customer can buy or receive and spend in the store. |
| Pre-order | Selling an item before stock arrives, with a stated dispatch time. |
Group 4
Search and speed
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| SEO | Search engine optimization: improving how pages can be found and understood by search engines. |
| Meta title and description | The page title and summary that search engines may show in results. |
| Alt text | A short text description of an image for screen readers and when an image fails to load. |
| Redirect | An instruction that sends visitors from one address to another, used when pages move. |
| 301 redirect | A permanent redirect, used when a page has moved for good. |
| Canonical URL | The preferred address of a page when similar versions exist. |
| Sitemap | A file listing a site's pages for search engines to read. |
| robots.txt | A file that tells search engines which areas of a site they may crawl. |
| Noindex | A tag asking search engines not to show a page in results. |
| Core Web Vitals | Google's measures of loading, layout stability and responsiveness. |
| LCP | Largest Contentful Paint: how long the main content takes to appear. |
| CLS | Cumulative Layout Shift: how much the page jumps while loading. |
| INP | Interaction to Next Paint: how quickly the page responds when you interact. |
| Lazy loading | Loading images or content only when they are about to be seen. |
Group 5
Apps and tracking
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| App | Software added to a store to provide extra features, usually with its own plan. |
| App embed | A way for an app to add features to a theme that can be switched on in the theme editor. |
| Sales channel | A place besides your online store where products are sold, such as a social shop or marketplace. |
| Pixel | A small piece of tracking code that reports store events to an advertising or analytics platform. |
| Custom pixel | A pixel added through Shopify's customer events settings. |
| Event | A recorded action, such as viewing a product, adding to cart or purchasing. |
| Google Tag Manager | A container for managing tracking tags without editing the theme each time. |
| Google Analytics 4 | Google's analytics product that records events and reports on store behavior. |
| Search Console | A free Google service showing how your site appears in search. |
| Webhook | An automatic message one system sends to another when something happens. |
Group 6
Working with us
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Collaborator access | Permission that lets us work in your store without your owner password. |
| Staff account | A login you create for a person who needs access to your admin. |
| Scope | The written description of what a job includes and excludes. |
| Revision round | One batch of feedback applied to bring work toward the agreed scope. |
| Handover | The delivery of finished work with notes and a walkthrough. |
| Fixed price | A price set for a stated scope, not an hourly rate. |
| Safe copy | A duplicate of your theme in which changes are built and tested before going live. |
| Development store | A free-standing Shopify store used for building and testing before launch. |
Group 7
Speed and Images
Terms that explain why pages feel fast or slow.
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| WebP | A modern image format that is usually smaller than older formats at similar quality, which helps pages load faster. |
| Image compression | Reducing an image's file size, ideally without a visible loss of quality. |
| Lazy loading | Loading images and other content only when the visitor scrolls near them, so the first screen appears sooner. |
| Render-blocking | Code or styles that must load before the page can show, which delays what the visitor sees. |
| Above the fold | The part of a page visible without scrolling, which should load first. |
| Page weight | The total size of everything a page loads, including images, scripts and fonts. |
| CDN | A network of servers that delivers files from a location close to the visitor, which Shopify provides for store assets. |
| Caching | Saving a copy of a file so it does not need to be downloaded again on the next visit. |
Group 8
Marketing, Email and Conversion
Terms you will meet when you work on sales and customer communication.
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Conversion rate | The share of visitors who complete a goal, usually a purchase. |
| Average order value | The average amount spent per order, often called AOV. |
| Cart abandonment | When a visitor adds items to the cart but does not finish buying. |
| Abandoned cart email | An automatic message sent to people who left items in their cart. |
| Flow | An automatic series of emails or messages triggered by a customer action. |
| Segment | A group of customers who share something, such as buying a certain product. |
| UTM parameters | Tags added to a link so analytics can tell where a visit came from. |
| A/B test | Showing two versions of something to different visitors to see which performs better. |
| Upsell and cross-sell | Offering a better or additional product before or after a customer buys. |
| Trust signals | Elements that reassure shoppers, such as clear returns, reviews and secure payment notes. |
Group 9
Policies, Privacy and International Selling
Terms that matter when you sell to people in different places.
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Privacy policy | A page that explains what information a store collects and how it is used. |
| Terms of service | The agreement between a store and its customers about buying and using the store. |
| Refund policy | A page that explains when and how customers can return items or get money back. |
| Shipping policy | A page that explains delivery options, timing, costs and destinations. |
| Cookie banner | A message that tells visitors about cookies and, where required, asks for consent. |
| Market | A group of countries that you sell to with shared settings such as currency and language. |
| Multi-currency | Showing prices in local currencies so customers see familiar amounts. |
| Hreflang | A signal that tells search engines which language or region version of a page to show. |
| Duties and taxes | Charges that may apply when goods cross borders or are sold in certain places. |
| Localization | Adapting content, formats and offers to fit a particular region or language. |
Using the words
How to Brief a Developer Using the Right Terms
A clear brief uses the right words for the thing you want changed.
Here is the difference a few words make. Compare these two requests:
- Make the thing at the top bigger. Which thing? The announcement bar, the header, the logo or the hero banner?
- On the homepage, make the hero section's heading larger on mobile and move the button below the text. Specific, testable and quick to scope.
Use these habits when you write a brief:
- Name the page, such as homepage, collection page or product page.
- Name the part, such as header, section, block or button.
- Say which device, such as phone, tablet or desktop.
- Describe what you see and what you want instead.
- Add a screenshot with the area circled.
If you are not sure of a term, describe what you see. We turn it into the correct term in the written scope.
Related searches
Shopify Terms Explained
Short answers to questions people often search for on this topic.
What are Shopify terms and terminology?
Shopify terminology covers the words used for themes, products, checkout, search, speed and apps. Learning a few, such as theme, section, template, variant and redirect, makes briefs much clearer.
Is there an ecommerce glossary?
An ecommerce glossary defines terms such as conversion rate, average order value and cart abandonment. Ours includes those alongside Shopify-specific terms.
What does Shopify terms of use or terms of service mean?
Shopify terms of use and Shopify terms of service are the agreements Shopify makes with account holders. They are set by Shopify. A Shopify terms and conditions template for your own store is a different thing: it describes how you sell.
What are terms and conditions for an online store on Shopify?
Terms and conditions for an online store on Shopify explain how customers buy from you: payment, delivery, returns and limits. Shopify provides a template you can edit, and a Shopify terms and conditions template should be matched to your practice.
What is Shopify, how does it work and what is its price?
Shopify is a hosted platform for online stores. Searches such as what is a Shopify, what is Shopify and how it works or what is the price of Shopify are answered by Shopify's own pages. Best payment terms and Shopify payments terms of service are also set by Shopify.
Related searches
Searches That Lead to This Page
Owners reach this page from different searches. These are the common ones.
People looking into Shopify Glossary also type “terms and conditions for online store shopify”, “terms of service for shopify store” or “shopify best payment terms”.
FAQ
Glossary Questions Answered
How to use the definitions. Open any question for the full answer.
What is a Shopify glossary for?
To explain the terms you will meet when working on a store, so you can brief a developer and read a scope with confidence.
What is the difference between a section and a template?
A template is the layout for a type of page. A section is a reusable block inside that layout.
What is a variant?
One specific version of a product, such as a size and color combination, with its own price, SKU and stock.
What does a safe copy mean?
A duplicate of your theme in which we build and test changes before publishing.
Is the glossary exact?
Definitions are general. Shopify changes names and screens, so use Shopify's own documentation for exact details.
Do I need to know these terms to order?
No. Describe the problem in your own words and we will translate it into a scope.
Where can I learn more about SEO terms?
The checklists and guides cover the basics, and our SEO category covers the services.
Can you add a term?
Yes. Tell us on the quote page which word was missing.
What is the difference between a theme and a template?
A theme is the whole design package for your store. A template is the layout used for one kind of page, such as the product page, inside the theme.
What does a metafield do?
A metafield stores extra information about a product, collection or other item, such as materials or care instructions, and a theme can show it on the page.
What is a 301 redirect used for?
It permanently sends visitors and search engines from an old address to a new one, which protects traffic when pages move.
Is Liquid a programming language?
Liquid is Shopify's template language. It lets themes show store data and control what appears on a page.
What is Core Web Vitals?
A set of measurements of how fast a page loads, how stable it is and how quickly it responds, which search engines use as one signal.
Which terms should I learn first?
Theme, section, template, collection, variant, redirect and scope cover most conversations with a developer.
Ready when you are
Know the Words, Then Brief the Job
Use the definitions to describe what you need, then choose a service and see its price.
- Fixed prices shown before you pay
- Two revision rounds in every package
- A written handover with every job