Shopify 2.0 – What to Expect from the New and Improved Version of Shopify for Your Online Store
Shopify 2.0 at a Glance The new features in Shopify 2.0 begin with an updated editing panel. This…
Shopify 2.0 at a Glance
The new features in Shopify 2.0 begin with an updated editing panel. This new editor simplifies the process of creating and editing online stores for Shopify users, covering both content management and front-end changes. The goal behind this updated editing panel is to centralize all functions related to managing an online store in one place.
The Dawn Reference Theme
Dawn is the first available source theme for Shopify with the flexibility of version 2.0 and a focus on speed. Built with semantic HTML and CSS, it ensures excellent user experiences across all browsers. Designed to maximize flexibility while minimizing complexity, it not only enhances productivity but also improves website performance in browsers.
Additionally, Shopify 2.0 introduces a completely new way for developers to create apps and themes for Shopify merchants. To support this transition, Shopify’s development team has introduced a set of new tools that integrate seamlessly with the platform, aiding in the design, testing, and deployment of themes.
Shopify 2.0 provides a versatile solution where anyone can create, customize, scale, and monetize their Shopify store.
New Theme Architecture
In earlier Shopify versions, users were limited in the number of blocks available within the store. Previously, different templates were mapped to different products. With Shopify 2.0, users can now add sections to every new page, whereas before, sections were only available on the homepage.
Moreover, users can now activate templates on any page using a JSON template file, which defines page settings. This change enables the display of sections on product pages, collection pages, custom pages, blog posts, and more. JSON template files specify which sections appear by default and their order in the installed theme.
Theme Extensions with App Blocks
The updated theme architecture also brought changes in how apps integrate with storefronts. Shopify 2.0 introduced theme app extensions for developers, enabling the integration of apps into merchants’ themes using app blocks.
App blocks are a significant improvement in how apps are placed in themes. Developers can create user interface components that can be added, removed, and configured directly in the theme editor without touching the theme’s code.
Theme app extensions can be easily created, published, and updated (with versioning support) through the Shopify CLI interface, similar to other app extensions. This modularity means developers no longer need to build full integration logic for each existing theme.

Changes to Store Metafields
The updated theme editor allows users to add metafields and properties.
Metafields now support multimedia, such as images or PDFs. Instead of hardcoding resources in themes, the metafield file picker simplifies the process of uploading and selecting multimedia for product pages. For example, merchants can easily upload product warranties or size charts for download on product pages using this feature.
Key updates to Shopify 2.0 metafields include:
- Greater Flexibility: A more adaptable type system for metafields that will continue to evolve, aligning with commerce-specific data needs.
- Standardized Metafields: These simplify working with custom themes across various industries.
- Presentation Hints: Developers can now add presentation hints to metafields, enabling Storefront API and Liquid users to render merchant data as intended, with reduced custom coding.
Enhanced Theme Editor in Shopify 2.0
Shopify 2.0 also includes significant improvements to its theme editor, making updates and navigation easier for users and developers. Instead of navigating through various sections, the editor now displays a tree view of the entire page’s content in the sidebar. From the sidebar, users can hide most blocks except for headers and footers, which can include movable and hideable blocks but cannot be hidden themselves. These changes simplify hierarchy updates for merchants.
Another improvement in the theme editor is the new Liquid input setting, allowing merchants to add custom Liquid code directly to pages from the editor. This setting reduces the need for manual theme code changes, especially when adding app-specific Liquid code.
New Tools for Shopify Developers
Shopify 2.0 offers a completely new approach to developing apps and themes for merchants. To facilitate this transition, Shopify introduced a suite of new development tools, including:
- Shopify GitHub Integration
- An Updated Shopify CLI Tool
- Theme Check
- Improved Theme Testing
Theme Check is a language server for Liquid and JSON that scans themes for errors and highlights Shopify and Liquid best practices. Integrated into Shopify CLI, it identifies issues like Liquid syntax errors, missing templates, performance concerns, and more. Error messages include links to documentation, streamlining debugging.
Dawn: The First Reference Theme
Dawn prioritizes flexibility and speed. Built with semantic HTML and CSS instead of relying on external libraries, it offers an optimized experience across browsers. It’s also designed for efficiency, making it 35% faster than its predecessor, Debut, which is currently used by over half of Shopify merchants.

Conclusion: What Shopify 2.0 Brings to Your Store
The updated Shopify template language now features an internal editor similar to WordPress (introduced in 2018), aligning it with platforms like Squarespace and Wix. This new editor can replace several Shopify apps, including popular page builders.
With its built-in sections and blocks, the editor allows small and medium-sized businesses to create new templates and add data without writing any code. The revamped content management system further enhances customization options, offering users advanced and tailored content creation tools.