Whether you’re doing competitor research, gathering design inspo, or just curious about what platform your favourite brand is using, sometimes you just want to know ‘Is this website built on Shopify?‘
With millions of online stores powered by Shopify (and Shopify Plus), it’s become one of the most popular ecommerce platforms in the world. But unlike Wix or Squarespace, Shopify sites are highly versatile and fully customisable, making them a little harder to spot at first glance. Thankfully, there are a few telltale signs you can look out for. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the easiest ways to find out whether a website is running on Shopify, even if you’re not super technical! Without further ado, let’s dive in!
1. Use a Shopify Detector Tool
First things first, the easiest method is to utilise a platform detector tool. There are various tools to do this and a quick Google search will bring up tons of options. All you have to do is paste in a site’s URL and these tools will very quickly tell you what platform the site is built on, including Shopify. You can use ecommerce platform finder tools such as BuiltWith or Wappalyzer to very quickly and easily identity the platform a site is built on, and you might be surpised!
2. Check the Page Source Code
If you don’t mind getting a little bit technical, (don’t worry, it’s not too difficult), the best way to identify the platform a website is built on is by viewing the page Source Code. Simply right-click on the website and click ‘View Page Source.’ Then, search (or use CTRL+F or CMD+F) to search for terms such as:
- cdn.shopify,com
- shopify
- .liquid
- ShopifyAnalytics
If you see any code such as the above, you’ll instantly know it’s built on Shopify! And if you can’t find anything, it may be worth using one of the other methods listed in this article to ensure you find out what platform the site uses. After all, you may have been looking for a Shopify website but actually prefer the style and functionality of the Magento ecommerce platform or the Hyvä frontend solution, you never know!
3. Look for Shopify-Specific Apps & Features
Another giveaway is spotting Shopify-exclusive apps, tools and features on a website. As the Shopify checkout page is pretty standardised and very much copy-and-paste across most Shopify websites, heading to the checkout page can give you a good idea of whether or not the site is built on Shopify or Shopify Plus. Additionally, if a site uses features such as Shopify Inbox or Shopify Forms, this is another telltale sign the site has been built using Shopify.
4. Check the Website URL Structure
Shopify websites often have the characteristic URL structure that includes /collections/ and /products/. By looking for these characteristic phrases within a website’s URLs, you can quickly identify whether or not the site is likely to be built using the Shopify platform as this is the default structure is common.
5. Use our Shopify Theme Detector
If you want to take things a step further and identity the exact Shopify Theme a website is built on, then your best bet is to use a Shopify Theme Detector Tool such as ours! You simply enter the URL of a website and our nifty tool will quickly display which Shopify Theme the website uses. This can be extremely handy during the research phase of a new website design as it can help you understand what is achievable on Shopify and provide tons of inspiration for your new site!
And there we have it, 5 simple ways to find out whether a website is built on Shopify! If you need a helping hand designing and developing a highly-functional Shopify or Shopify Plus website, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us and we’ll be happy to help!
