The customer account section of a Shopify store has long been a source of fragmentation. Its design, features, and overall experience were entirely dependent on the theme a merchant had installed. A great theme might offer a rich, feature-filled account page, while a less capable one would provide only the bare essentials.
With the introduction of New Customer Accounts, Shopify is fundamentally changing this paradigm.
This new system detaches the customer account experience from the theme, creating a standardized, secure, and extensible hub that is consistent across all Shopify stores. For developers, this represents a significant shift in how we customize and enhance the post-purchase customer journey.
Let’s dive into what these new accounts are, why they’re a step forward, and how you can start extending them.
The Shift from Theme-Based to a Unified Experience
The most important thing to understand about New Customer Accounts is that they do not live in your theme. They are hosted and styled by Shopify, ensuring every merchant gets the same secure, high-performance baseline experience.
While this might initially seem restrictive, it brings several major advantages:
- A Consistent Look and Feel: Merchants no longer have to worry about a clunky or off-brand account page. The new accounts are designed to feel like a natural part of the Shopify ecosystem.
- Enhanced Security and Performance: By standardizing the foundation, Shopify can ensure that all customer accounts are built with modern security measures and are optimized for speed.
- A Level Playing Field: Every merchant, regardless of their theme, now has access to the same powerful account foundation, which can be enhanced through a growing ecosystem of apps.
How to Customize the New Customer Accounts
If the accounts no longer live in the theme, how do we customize them?
The answer is Customer Account UI Extensions.
Instead of modifying Liquid files, you now build small, modular apps that inject new functionality directly into the customer account pages. This is the same extensibility model that Shopify has successfully rolled out for its checkout and POS systems.
What Can You Build with UI Extensions?
With UI extensions, you can add a wide range of custom features to the account pages. For example, you could build extensions to:
- Display Personalized Content: Show customers tailored recommendations, special offers, or content based on their purchase history or customer tags.
- Integrate Loyalty Programs: Allow customers to view their points balance and redeem rewards directly within their account.
- Enhance Order Management: Add features like “Reorder,” “Track Package,” or “Request a Return” to the order history page.
- Streamline Customer Support: Embed an FAQ, a support ticket form, or even a live chat widget.
- Manage Subscriptions: Allow customers to manage their product subscriptions without leaving their account.
Because Shopify provides a library of built-in UI components, development is significantly faster. What might have taken a freelancer four days to build in a custom theme can now often be accomplished in half the time.
Why This is a Win for Developers and Merchants
This new, app-based approach to customization benefits everyone in the Shopify ecosystem.
- For Merchants: They are no longer locked into their theme’s capabilities. They can choose from a variety of apps on the App Store to enhance their customer accounts, just as they would for any other part of their business.
- For Developers: It opens up a huge opportunity to build modular, reusable solutions that work for any merchant, regardless of their theme. The standardized environment means you can build with confidence, knowing your extension will work consistently across all stores.
Final Thoughts: A More Secure and Scalable Future
The new Customer Accounts represent a more mature, secure, and scalable future for the post-purchase experience on Shopify. By embracing this standardized, app-first approach, Shopify is empowering developers to create a richer and more innovative ecosystem of customer account functionality.
It’s a significant shift, but it’s a step forward that will ultimately lead to better experiences for customers and more powerful tools for merchants.
❓ What custom features would you love to add to the new customer accounts?