Keeping up with ecommerce platform updates is key to giving your customers a smooth shopping experience (and boosting those conversions!). Shopify is shaking things up again, this time by moving away from the old ‘checkout.liquid’ setup and introducing something new: Checkout Extensibility. This shift began back in August 2024 and represents a significant evolution in how online merchants can customise and manage their checkout processes.
In this blog, we’ll dive into the details of this transition, explore the reasons behind it, discuss the challenges it introduces, and provide guidance on how you can successfully navigate this new function.
The Shift from ‘checkout.liquid’ to Checkout Extensibility
As part of their Winter 2024 Editions, Shopify announced a phased approach to deprecating the ‘checkout.liquid’ file, a cornerstone of checkout customisation for many Shopify Plus merchants. As of the 13th of August 2024, Shopify stopped support for ‘checkout.liquid’ on the Information, Shipping, and Payment pages. By the 28th of August 2025, this phase-out will extend to the Thank You and Order Status pages, marking the complete removal of ‘checkout.liquid’ from the platform. Additionally, Shopify Scripts and the Script Editor app will also be retired, necessitating a shift to new methods for customising the checkout experience.
Why is Shopify making these changes?
Shopify’s decision to retire ‘checkout.liquid’ is driven by a desire to streamline the checkout process while enhancing customisation through more modern and scalable solutions. The recent acquisition of Checkout Blocks, a no-code tool for customising checkout, underscores Shopify’s commitment to empowering merchants with tools that simplify complex processes, making their platform even more user-friendly and accessible. Checkout Blocks allows Shopify Plus merchants to effortlessly add new fields, customise delivery and payment options, and create fully branded checkouts without delving into code.
This move aligns with Shopify’s broader goal of improving overall conversion rates, with studies showing that Shopify’s checkout process already outpaces the competition by up to 36%. By standardising the checkout experience while still offering customisation options, Shopify aims to provide merchants with the best of both worlds: a checkout that is both highly effective and easily adaptable to meet any specific business needs.
The challenges of Checkout Extensibility
While the benefits of Checkout Extensibility are clearly vast, this transition comes with its own set of new challenges, particularly for merchants who have heavily customised their checkout processes using ‘checkout.liquid’ and Shopify Scripts:
Loss of flexibility
The removal of ‘checkout.liquid’ means merchants will no longer have direct control over the checkout page’s code. This could complicate custom tracking implementations and other bespoke customisations that were previously straightforward.
Debugging complexity
The new checkout framework does not support a preview mode, making it more difficult to test and debug customisations before they go live. Without the ability to preview changes in a safe environment, merchants face a higher risk of errors that could disrupt the customer journey, potentially leading to abandoned carts or drops in conversion rates
Scripts deprecation
Shopify Scripts have been a powerful tool for creating custom checkout experiences. Their removal requires merchants to find alternative solutions, such as leveraging the new Checkout Blocks or other third-party apps, to maintain similar levels of customisation. While these new tools offer flexibility, replicating the same level of deep customisation with them may not be as seamless, requiring additional time and effort to achieve similar results.
The Solution: Hybrid Approach
To effectively manage the transition, we recommend adopting a hybrid approach that balances the use of Shopify’s built-in tools with custom implementations to retain control and flexibility.
- Leverage the Meta App for Basic Tracking: Shopify’s Meta/Facebook analytics app remains a robust option for basic tracking needs, offering Customer Activity Pixel Implementation (CAPI) and Enhanced Conversions with minimal setup.
- Implement a Custom Data Layer: For more advanced tracking, consider implementing a custom data layer within your theme template. This allows you to maintain the ability to debug using preview mode and ensures that your tracking setup remains robust even as Shopify’s checkout framework continues to evolve.
- Use GTM for Checkout Events: Utilise a Google Tag Manager (GTM) custom pixel to subscribe to checkout events, limiting this to your checkout pages. This allows for precise event tracking and data collection, ensuring that you capture key customer interactions during that critical checkout phase.
- View the Data Layer in iFrames: To troubleshoot and verify your tracking implementations, use tools or custom plugins that enable you to inspect the data layer within iFrames. This is particularly important as Shopify moves away from direct customisation options, making it harder to access and debug embedded elements.
Considerations for Shopify’s future
As you adjust to Shopify’s new checkout environment, it’s important to stay informed about the capabilities and limitations of available tools. The Shopify “Google & YouTube” app may suffice for merchants with basic tracking needs, but it’s crucial to verify whether it supports Advanced Consent Mode or Enhanced Conversions. Additionally, if you’re using your own consent management system, remember to disable Shopify’s customer privacy settings to avoid conflicts between the front-end and checkout tracking processes.
This shift to Checkout Extensibility represents a significant change for Shopify merchants, particularly those on Shopify Plus who have relied on ‘checkout.liquid’ and scripts for customisation. While these changes introduce new challenges, they also offer opportunities to streamline and modernise your checkout experience. By adopting a hybrid approach to tagging and tracking, you can maintain control over your data collection while leveraging Shopify’s latest tools to enhance your checkout process.
As always, staying proactive and informed is key to navigating these changes successfully. By doing so, you can continue to deliver a seamless and optimised checkout experience that drives conversions and supports your business growth.
If you have further questions about these new updates or need support with your Shopify website and tracking, our Media Solutions team at Impression Digital is here to help!
