Create a Shopify homepage that sells

Key takeaways

A Shopify homepage should move shoppers to products quickly. Use the theme editor to lead with a clear offer, show bestsellers or main collections, surface delivery and returns information early and keep the sections few. Apps are the main risk: each one can add code that slows the page where shoppers first arrive.

• Lead with what you sell and why buy here.
• Show bestsellers or main collections early.
• Put delivery and returns details near the top.
• Audit apps, because each can add weight.

What should a Shopify homepage do?

A Shopify homepage should help shoppers find a product or category within seconds. It is a sorting page rather than a brand essay. Returning customers want the new range or their usual item, and new ones want to know what you sell and whether to trust you.

• How to create a high-converting homepage for an SME
• An online shop homepage that moves shoppers to products
• Product pages that turn browsers into buyers

Which sections should you use?

Most stores need a clear banner, a row of collections, bestsellers, a short trust strip and reviews. Add a brand story only if it affects why people buy. Shopify's theme editor uses sections you can reorder without code, so test changes on a duplicate theme rather than your live one.

• Hero banner with a clear offer and button.
• Collection tiles for main categories.
• Bestsellers or new arrivals.
• Delivery, returns and payment reassurance.
• Customer reviews with real detail.

• The trust bar under your hero: what goes in it
• Which homepage sections can you leave out?

Which theme should you start with?

Start with one of Shopify's free, maintained themes unless you have a specific reason not to. They are built to perform well and support the theme editor. Paid themes can add useful features, but check the demo's speed and the supplier's update record first.

• How to choose a homepage template that can convert
• Shopify store speed: what you can and cannot fix

How do apps affect your homepage?

Apps can add scripts to every page, including the homepage, and removing an app does not always remove its leftover code. Shopify's own performance guidance points to images, apps and theme code as common influences. Review each app yearly and ask what you would lose if it went.

• Third-party scripts: the hidden reason your site is slow

What do UK shoppers need to see?

UK shoppers need clear delivery costs and times, returns terms and accepted payment methods. Showing those early reduces the risk of surprise at checkout, the main reason for abandoned carts in Baymard's research. Consumers buying online generally have a 14-day right to cancel, so state your returns process plainly.

• Checkout abandonment: fix the last step of the sale
• Checkout trust seals: do payment badges reassure buyers?

When should the homepage matter less?

It matters less if most of your visitors land on product pages from ads or Google Shopping. Check your landing page report before investing. In that case, your product page deserves the attention first, while the homepage acts mostly as a route for returning and direct visitors.

• Entry points: design for visitors who skip your homepage

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see in small online stores: a homepage carrying several promotional banners, review widgets and popups from different apps, each added to solve one problem. The page gets slower, and the shopper's first task, finding a product, becomes harder. Removing widgets is often the quickest improvement available.

• See client work
• Website Design & Development for UK businesses

Shopify homepage checklist

• Show a clear offer in the first screen.
• Link to main collections.
• State delivery cost and time.
• State your returns terms.
• Duplicate the theme before major edits.
• Audit your installed apps.
• Check speed on a phone.

• Create a Squarespace homepage that converts
• Create a Webflow homepage that converts

Next step

Look at Shopify analytics and find out what share of sessions start on the homepage. That number tells you how much effort this page deserves compared with your product pages.