Learn about the infrastructure that Shopify provides to make the online store, and your theme, faster.
Shopify CDN
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Shopify provides merchants a world class content delivery network (CDN) backed by Cloudflare. Using a CDN means that your online store will load quickly around the globe.
Files delivered over the Shopify CDN are minified and compressed automatically using Brotli and gzip, reducing the size of the files the browser must download. Requests use HTTP/3 and TLS 1.3 to further enhance request performance and security.
Most asset URLs are rendered using the domain cdn.shopify.com. In certain cases, such as images or stylesheets loaded on a storefront, assets are loaded using the storefront domain, in the format {shop}.myshopify.com/cdn. This is done to improve performance by maximizing connection reuse in the browser.
Short delays for images in your store
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Using a CDN means that all of your online store images are cached at thousands of servers around the world. When you make changes to your images, Shopify informs the CDN that the images have changed. To do this, Shopify uses the asset_url filter, which automatically appends version numbers to all of the URLs that it generates. For example, a version number appended to the end of a url might look like this: ?v=1384022871.
If you link to an image without using the asset_url filter and upload a new version of the same image, then the image on your online store might not change to the new version for a day or more.
CSS syntax to ensure automatic updates
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If you reference an image directly in your CSS, then the url will be static and will not carry the asset version that Shopify updates automatically.
To make sure that your images are automatically updated, change your CSS syntax to include the asset_url filter.
For example, if your CSS looks like this:
then change it to look like this:
Server-side rendering
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Storefront Renderer (SFR) is a server-side renderer that handles storefront requests. SFR is dedicated to serving storefront requests as fast as possible.
Our storefront renderer significantly improves performance for cache misses - instances where a page or other requested data isn’t found in the cache memory and has to be retrieved from other cache levels or the main memory.
Minification
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Shopify automatically minifies CSS files, as well as JavaScript files that uses valid syntax to ES5, when they're requested by the storefront. Minified JavaScript and CSS files are cached until the next time the file is updated.
Minification allows the browser to download less data, resulting in shorter load times.
Shopify delivers the original version of a JavaScript or CSS file if it meets one of the following criteria:
- The minified file would be larger than the original file. This might happen if a file is already minified with better compression.
- It has the extension
.min.js or .min.css.
FAQs
Shopify is a user-friendly e-commerce platform that helps small businesses build an online store and sell online through one streamlined dashboard. Shopify merchants can build a modern online store and sell on social media sites, seller marketplaces, other blogs and websites and via email, text and chat.
How much does Shopify cost per month? ›
Pricing
| Plan | Monthly fee | Online transaction fee |
|---|
| Shopify Starter | $15 per month. | 5% plus 30 cents. |
| Basic | $29 per month (when paid annually). | 2.9% plus 30 cents. |
| Shopify | $79 per month (when paid annually). | 2.6% plus 30 cents. |
| Advanced | $299 per month (when paid annually). | 2.4% plus 30 cents. |
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Shopify is built to support beginners and is easy to use. It's flexible enough to meet the needs of growing small businesses as well as established enterprise businesses. Create your own online store with drag-and-drop templates with no need to code. Accept payments with Shopify's own payment processor.
What are the disadvantages of Shopify? ›
Let's look at some of the cons of using Shopify and what they might mean for your online business.
- Pricing. ...
- Limited Design Customization Options. ...
- Shopify Processing Fees. ...
- No Email Hosting. ...
- Difficult Exit.
Shopify vs Amazon: The Fundamental Differences
Although Amazon is an online marketplace, Shopify is a specialised ecommerce platform. While Amazon allows you to sell through its marketplace alongside other online sellers across the world, Shopify gives you the resources to create your very own online business.
Can I make money with Shopify? ›
Successful, smart-looking Shopify stores generating a healthy revenue can sell for upwards of $1 million. So, once you've got to grips with how to build a successful ecommerce business on the platform, building more and flipping them can be a great way to make money on Shopify.
Is Shopify like Etsy? ›
Shopify and Etsy each provide an e-commerce platform for shop owners to sell goods and services. The major difference between the two is Shopify allows users to create their own branded space, whereas Etsy is a marketplace.
How much money do you need for Shopify? ›
Basic
| Pricing |
|---|
| Pay monthly | $39 USD/mo |
| Pay yearly (Save up to 25%)* | $29 USD/mo* |
| Features |
| Online store Easily build an online store with the world's best-converting checkout that lets customers check out with just one click. | Full featured |
72 more rowsIndustry insights reveal that on average, a Shopify store can make between $1,000 to $2,000 per month, with a profit margin ranging around 20-30%. However, this figure is just a starting point. Several Shopify store owners report earnings in the six-figure range annually, showcasing the platform's scalability.
What is best selling on Shopify? ›
What to sell on Shopify: Top products and categories for your online store
- Home office equipment and consumer electronics. ...
- Phone accessories. ...
- Digital products. ...
- Vegan products. ...
- Kids clothing. ...
- Car and bike accessories. ...
- Books and records. ...
- Wedding dresses.
Can beginners use Shopify? Yes, starting a Shopify store possible and is easy even for a beginner. The main question is how do you build a successful Shopify store? In this answer, I'll walk you through how to build a successful Shopify store.
Who uses Shopify the most? ›
These are some of the biggest companies that use Shopify.
- Heinz.
- Gymshark.
- Redbull.
- Staples(Canada)
- Kylie Cosmetics.
- Skims.
- Beardbrand.
- Allbirds.
ERP Integration
- Having lots of suppliers to manage.
- Low employee productivity as a result of doing tasks manually.
- Late shipping of products.
- Wrong shipping of products due to high volume.
- Having to manage more than one B2B customer relationship.
However, despite its many advantages, some Shopify stores fail to attract customers and generate revenue. There are multiple reasons why these stores fail: low traffic footprint, unclear objectives, poor production quality, increased competition, or insufficient conversions.
How risky is Shopify? ›
They've also taken steps to prevent data leaks, like limiting login attempts and controlling what data app developers can access. So, you can trust that customer data is very secure on Shopify thanks to its system.
Is Shopify same as eBay? ›
But although both platforms let you get your products online easily, they are very different beasts. Shopify is a tool that lets you build your own online store. But eBay IS an online store — and a huge one at that, with billions of products on sale to over 150 million customers worldwide.
How does Shopify pay you? ›
The primary option is direct deposit to your bank account, initiated 2-3 days after the transaction is processed through Shopify Payments. For instant access, daily payouts first go to your Shopify Balance, where funds are available immediately. Shopify Balance can also be used to spend or transfer funds.
Why do I have to use Shopify? ›
With Shopify, you can sell everywhere your customers are. That includes through an online store, on the Shop App, in person at a retail store or tradeshow event, on marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay, on social media channels like TikTok and Instagram, and through wholesale.
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