- Use an App Store app when your need is common and a well-reviewed app already handles it.
- Build a custom app when the job is specific to your business: links to your own systems, rules no public app supports, or data you want to keep in house.
- New custom apps are built and managed in Shopify's Dev Dashboard; apps created in the Shopify admin can no longer be made.
- A custom app must plan for access scopes, API rate limits, missed webhooks and quarterly API versions.
- Compare the app subscription over the years you expect to use it with the build cost plus hosting and upkeep.
Should your store use an App Store app or a custom Shopify app?
Start with the Shopify App Store when your need is common, such as reviews, subscriptions, bundles or email capture, and a well-reviewed app already does it. Build a custom app when the job is specific to your business: syncing with your own ERP, POS or warehouse system, rules no public app supports, or data you do not want a third party to hold. A custom app costs more at the start and needs an owner after launch, but it does exactly what you need and nothing else.
Most stores end up with both: public apps for standard features and one custom app for the work that makes the business different. Our Shopify development team usually starts by listing what the store's current apps do and where they fall short.
When is an App Store app enough?
- The need is common. Thousands of stores need reviews or subscriptions, so the app is tested widely and keeps improving.
- The app fits without workarounds. If you need three apps and a spreadsheet to make one process work, that is a sign the job is specific to you.
- You can live with its roadmap. You do not control which features come next or when prices change.
Public apps come with some protection. Every app on the Shopify App Store must use a Shopify billing solution (Shopify app billing). App Store apps must also handle customer data requests and deletion requests through compliance webhooks and complete them within 30 days (Shopify privacy law compliance). Before installing, still read the permissions it asks for, its privacy policy and recent reviews about support.
When does a store need a custom app?
- Connections to your own systems. Sending orders to an ERP or third-party warehouse, or keeping stock in step with a till, as in our guide to syncing POS stock with Shopify.
- Business rules no app supports. Special pricing, approval steps or account rules beyond what Shopify offers natively; our guide to Shopify B2B and wholesale options shows where native features stop.
- Several apps doing one job badly. Combining their work into one tool can cut subscriptions and conflicts.
- Data you want to keep. A custom app can store what it needs on infrastructure you control, under your own policies.
How do custom apps work on Shopify now?
Shopify has three ways to distribute an app. Public apps go through the App Store, need approval and can be installed on many stores. Custom distribution is for one merchant: the app installs on a single store, or on several stores in the same Plus organization. Apps created directly in the Shopify admin are no longer available for new apps, though existing ones keep working. The distribution method cannot be changed once chosen, and custom apps cannot charge merchants through Shopify's billing system (Shopify app distribution).
For merchants, Shopify's help center says custom apps are now created and managed in the Dev Dashboard, where you can test on development stores before installing on the live store. Legacy custom apps created before January 1, 2026 can still be managed from the admin (Shopify custom apps). Create the app under the store owner's own account, not a developer's, so the business keeps control when people change.
Which store data can a custom app see?
An app only sees what its access scopes allow. Shopify's advice is to request only the data the app needs, and to request write access only where the app really writes. By default, order scopes cover the last 60 days of orders; reading older orders needs the separate read_all_orders scope. Customer personal data is treated as protected customer data, with its own access requests on top of the scopes (Shopify access scopes).
Decide the scopes during planning. They shape what the app can do, and widening them later means asking the store owner to approve the change.
What limits does a custom app have to plan for?
The GraphQL Admin API uses cost-based rate limits. Each query has a cost, and the allowance refills at a rate that depends on the store's plan: 100 points per second on standard plans, 200 on Advanced, 1,000 on Plus and 2,000 on Shopify for enterprise. No single query may cost more than 1,000 points (GraphQL Admin API rate limits). A sync that works on a test store with fifty products can stall on a live catalog, so design it in batches from the start.
Webhooks tell the app when something changes, so it does not have to keep asking. Shopify states that delivery is not always guaranteed, recommends a reconciliation job that fetches data on a schedule, and gives each delivery an ID so duplicates can be ignored. Each delivery is also signed, and the app should verify that signature before acting (Shopify webhooks).
Who maintains a custom app after launch?
Someone has to. Shopify releases a new API version every three months and supports each stable version for at least 12 months; an app that calls a retired version gets the oldest supported one instead, which can change its behavior without warning (Shopify API versioning). Plan an update at least once a year.
The app also needs hosting, error alerts, logs you can search when an order goes missing, and safe storage for its credentials. Agree up front who owns the code repository and the hosting account. Our custom software team hands both to the store owner and offers upkeep as a separate, optional plan.
How do you compare the cost?
Add up the monthly price of the public apps you would use, over the years you expect to keep them, including the plan you will need as the store grows. Set that against the cost of building the custom app, plus hosting, monitoring and yearly API updates. Then weigh what money does not show: how much time staff lose to workarounds today, and how much it matters that the process works exactly your way.
Frequently asked questions
Can a custom app become a public App Store app later?
Not the same app record. Shopify does not let you change an app's distribution method once it is chosen. Much of the code can often be reused in a new public app, but a public app must pass review and meet App Store rules on billing and data requests, so treat it as a separate project.
Will a custom app slow down our storefront?
Most custom apps work in the background: syncing orders, stock or customers through the Admin API, with no code on the storefront at all. Only apps that add features to theme pages or checkout affect what shoppers load. Ask for those parts to be measured on a real product page before and after launch.
Do we need Shopify Plus for a custom app?
Not for a custom app on one store. Shopify only limits installing one custom app on several stores, which needs the stores to belong to the same Plus organization. Some individual features have their own plan rules, so check each feature you need in Shopify's documentation before planning around it.
Can one custom app replace several App Store apps?
Sometimes, and it can be worth it when you pay for several apps that each do a small part of one job, or when they conflict. Compare the total subscriptions with the build and upkeep cost, and remember that public apps keep adding features you would otherwise have to build yourself.
What happens to our data when we uninstall an App Store app?
Uninstalling stops the app's access to your store, but data it already copied may stay on its servers under its own privacy policy, and code it added to your theme may remain. Read the policy before you install, export anything you need before you uninstall, and check the theme afterwards.
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