This post was updated December 2024 to reflect the latest program updates.
Since launching Built for Shopify, it has been a game-changer for apps. In fact, apps with Built for Shopify status see accelerated growth, with an average increase of 49% new installs in just 14 days of achieving status.
Built for Shopify (BFS) is a program that champions apps built to Shopify’s highest standards for ease of use, design, and performance. We are constantly making improvements to ensure merchants get the best from the Shopify App Store.
Obtaining Built for Shopify status has been pivotal in enhancing our app's visibility, credibility, and overall success within the Shopify ecosystem.
New perks: tools for promotion, ads targeting + more discovery potential
As we raise the bar, we’re committed to providing you with new benefits that make your investment in the Built for Shopify program even more worthwhile. These include:
1. Built for Shopify media kit
Earning the Built for Shopify badge is a milestone worth celebrating. To help share your success and attract more merchants, we’ve created a Built for Shopify media kit. Inside you’ll have access to official badge assets, ready-to-use messaging, and creative ideas to highlight your app’s value across your own marketing channels, and potential opportunities across Shopify.
This is just the start––we’re working on more ways to celebrate and help you promote your achievement. Download the media kit via the “Distribution” page or your Partner Dashboard when you achieve status and let merchants know what sets your app apart.
2. Merchant plan-based ads targeting
BFS apps have the exclusive ability to target Shopify App Store search ads to specific merchant plans. Want to target Plus merchants only? Now you can. Or maybe you want to target Shopify Retail merchants. You can do that too. This targeting allows you to hone in on the exact segment of merchants you want to get installs from. Check out our dev docs for more details.
3. Standalone search filter
We’ve made it easier for merchants to find BFS apps. Merchants can easily filter their queries to see only the highest quality apps for a given search—this means more visibility and greater potential for installs for your apps.
New criteria: overall and category-specific updates
Merchants choose Built for Shopify apps for their superior quality and seamless integration into Shopify’s admin and across buyer surfaces.
To keep up with ongoing admin and platform improvements, we will continue to evolve the requirements for Built for Shopify at a regular cadence while making sure you get rewarded for your investment. Keeping up with the latest standards will help your app maintain its competitive edge in a given category.
We’ve updated our criteria to ensure all apps meet the highest standards of integration and performance across Shopify. Some of these criteria are general and apply to all apps, while others are specific to a category.
General criteria (applies to all BFS apps)
Effective: July 2025
- Use the latest version of Shopify App Bridge: Merchants want apps that won’t slow them down. To make sure your app is performing at its best, make sure you are using the latest version of Shopify App Bridge.
- New design requirements:
- Follow UX best practices: Great design allows merchants to seamlessly navigate and use your app, boosting their satisfaction and ability to get more done, quickly. That’s why we suggest leveraging common UX best practices for a polished app design.
- Use tabs for secondary navigation: When it comes to navigation, we suggest using tabs sparingly for secondary purposes, especially when the main menu doesn’t quite cut it. Clicking a tab should only change the content below, and tabs should stay on a single line without shifting positions as you navigate, creating a smoother and more enjoyable user experience. Learn more.
Effective: January 2025
- Seamless sign up. As a part of our well integrated definition (formerly “embedded properly”) we are requiring that merchants should be able to get started quickly with any app that’s installed without needing to login or sign up. Learn more about seamless signup and what it means for your apps to be well integrated.
- Admin performance updates: We are modernizing our admin performance benchmarks to ensure apps meet the right standards.
- First Input Delay (FID) is being replaced with Iteration to Next Paint (INP). Using the latest version of App Bridge will help ensure you have the most accurate results
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) is returning as a core web vital to measure an app’s performance when loading in the Shopify admin
- Performance dashboards for your app are available in the partners dashboard under Apps > Insights > Admin Performance
- App Design Guidelines (ADG) updates: We’ve made several small but important updates to the App Design Guidelines. We’ve also added a new section to the App Design Guidelines to address the unique user experience needs of subscription apps. See here for more details.
Category-specific criteria
To maintain quality and performance standards, we’re expanding BFS criteria across more categories of apps. This ensures Built for Shopify apps integrate correctly and deeply with Shopify, providing merchants with solutions that feel like seamless extensions of the admin.
App developers are responsible for determining which category (or categories) your apps belong to and must adhere to the specific requirements for that category. Shopify will validate that the relevant criteria are met.
The following categories have specific criteria to follow:
Effective: July 2025
- Ads: Apps that run paid search ads, social media ads, native ads, etc.
- Affiliate programs: Apps that help sell products through a network of people and companies
- Analytics: Apps that analyze and generate insights or recommendations for a store
- Email marketing: Apps that automate, manage, or send email marketing to customers
- Forms: Any apps that let merchants add forms to their store for capturing customer info
- SMS marketing: Apps that automate, manage, or send SMS marketing to customers
- Subscriptions (updated criteria): Any app that enables customers to purchase products on a recurring basis
Effective: January 2025
- Product reviews: Any app that enables merchants to collect product reviews
- Bundles: Any app that groups products together to be sold as a single unit
- Subscriptions: Any app that enables customers to purchase products on a recurring basis
- Discounts: Apps that enable merchants to define and configure price reductions
- Fulfillment: Any app that uses its own location to prepare and ship orders on behalf of merchants
- Invoices and receipts: Any app that generates invoices or packing slips for orders
- Returns and exchanges: Any app that facilitates the process of managing and processing product returns, exchanges, and refunds for customers
- Carrier services: Any app that connects to a carrier service (also known as a carrier calculated service or shipping service) to provide real-time shipping rates
For more specifics, check out our dev docs.
Important note: Built for Shopify apps are required to meet all criteria by their effective dates or will risk losing their status.
Program update: annual reviews
Starting in January 2025, Built for Shopify apps will be reviewed at least once annually to ensure they’re still meeting all current BFS criteria. Please refer to our documentation to understand how failing certain criteria can impact your app’s status and badge.
Important note for Shopify’s Plus Certified App Program (PCAP) partners: To maintain a single set of high-quality standards across all certified apps, we’re extending Built for Shopify criteria for apps to qualify for PCAP. Learn how we’re rolling out these requirements to the Plus Certified App Program.
Conclusion
We will continue to evolve the Built for Shopify program to help apps build truly exceptional experiences for merchants and in return, stand out more across Shopify. We look forward to your app updates!
