How-to's · Shopify · 3 min read
How to Change Themes on Shopify Safely
Short answer
Go to Online Store > Themes, add a new theme from the Theme Store or upload a zip, customize it as an unpublished draft, preview it on desktop and mobile, then click Publish. Your products, collections and customers aren't affected, but theme settings, sections and some app blocks need to be rebuilt in the new theme.
Switching themes is one of the biggest visual changes you can make to a Shopify store, and it's less risky than it sounds because Shopify keeps your content separate from your design. Still, a careless switch can break app widgets, hide your reviews or drop tracking codes. Here's how to do it cleanly.
What changes and what doesn't
Stays the same: products, variants, collections, blog posts, pages, navigation menus, customers, orders, discounts, apps installed, domain and payment settings.
Changes: layout, sections on your homepage and templates, colors, fonts, theme settings, any custom code inside the old theme and app blocks that were added through the theme editor.
Step 1: Pick a theme
Go to Online Store > Themes and scroll to the theme library. You can:
- Browse the Shopify Theme Store for free and paid themes. Paid themes can be tried before purchase.
- Upload a zip file if you bought a theme from a third-party developer.
- Connect a GitHub repo if a developer manages your theme in version control.
When choosing, look at how the demo handles your type of catalog. A theme built for one hero product looks very different with 400 SKUs. Our list of free Shopify themes is a good starting point.
Step 2: Back up the current theme
Click the three-dot menu on your live theme and choose Duplicate. Also choose Download theme file so you have an offline copy. If anything goes wrong, you can republish the old version in seconds.
Step 3: Customize the new theme as a draft
The new theme lands in your library unpublished. Click Customize and rebuild:
- Homepage sections: hero, featured collections, testimonials, newsletter signup
- Product page template: variant pickers, trust badges, size charts
- Collection pages: filters, sort options, grid size
- Header and footer, including your logo, favicon and menu
- Colors and typography in Theme settings
Take screenshots of the old theme's key pages first so you don't forget anything.
Step 4: Move apps and code
This is where most problems happen.
- App blocks: Modern apps (reviews, upsells, wishlists) add blocks through the theme editor. Re-add them in the new theme's templates.
- App embeds: Turn them on under Theme settings > App embeds.
- Old-style apps that injected code into the theme may need the app's support team to reinstall.
- Custom code: Anything a developer added to the old theme (scripts, custom sections, Liquid tweaks) doesn't transfer.
- Tracking: If you use the Google & YouTube channel and Meta channel for pixels, tracking lives outside the theme. If someone pasted tracking code into theme.liquid, move it or replace it with the official integration. See adding Google Analytics to Shopify.
Step 5: Preview thoroughly
Use the Preview option and the share preview link to check on a real phone. Walk through:
- Homepage to collection to product to cart to checkout
- Search, filters and variant selection
- Page speed (run the preview through PageSpeed Insights)
- Every menu link
- Pop-ups and email signups
Step 6: Publish
Click Publish on the new theme. The change is instant. Pick a low-traffic time and avoid launching during a sale or ad campaign.
After publishing, place a test order and watch your conversion rate over the next two weeks. A dip after a theme change usually points to a missing element like reviews, trust badges or a cart drawer behaving differently.
Should you change themes at all?
A new theme won't fix weak products or unclear copy. If the goal is more sales, sometimes better product pages on the current theme deliver more than a redesign. Change themes when your current one is slow, unsupported, missing features you need or impossible to keep consistent with your brand.
Frequently asked questions
Will I lose my products if I change themes?
No. Products, collections, pages, orders and customers are stored in your admin, not the theme.
Can I try a paid theme before buying?
Yes. Shopify lets you try paid themes from the Theme Store as unpublished drafts. You pay only when you publish.
How many themes can I keep in my library?
Shopify allows a limited number of themes in your theme library (the limit is shown in the admin). Delete old drafts you no longer need.
Sources and further reading
Platform features, prices and policies change. Check the official help pages linked above before you act on a detail that matters to your store.