, 1 min read
When a Shopify app should be custom code instead
Apps are quick to install and easy to forget. Here's how we decide when a store is better off with a few lines of its own code.
- Shopify
- Performance
- Custom tools
Most stores we audit are paying for apps they half-use. Each one adds monthly cost and page weight. Sometimes that’s worth it. Often it isn’t.
Keep the app when
- It does something genuinely hard, like reviews, subscriptions or search.
- It’s maintained, well reviewed, and you use most of what it does.
Replace it when
- You’re using one small feature of a big app.
- It loads scripts on every page for something that happens on one.
- You’ve stacked three apps to get one workflow working.
A custom section or a small Shopify Function is usually faster, cheaper over a year, and does exactly what you need.
This is a sample post. Edit or delete it in the CMS.