Shopify Store Launch Checklist: 25 Things to Do Before You Go Live

Launching a Shopify store is exciting, and it is easy to miss something small that costs you sales in the first week. Use this checklist before you remove the password page. It is based on the problems we see most often when new stores ask us for help.

Store settings

1. Connect your own domain and set it as the primary domain, so customers never see the myshopify.com address.
2. Set your store currency, time zone and units correctly. Changing them after you have orders is painful.
3. Add a sender email on your own domain and verify it, so order emails don't land in spam.
4. Create staff accounts for your team with only the permissions they need, instead of sharing the owner login.
5. Turn on two-step authentication for every account that can access the admin.

Payments, shipping and taxes

6. Set up your payment providers and confirm payouts reach your bank account.
7. Create shipping zones and rates for every country you sell to, and decide on free shipping thresholds.
8. Configure taxes for your regions. Ask an accountant if you are unsure; this one is not worth guessing.
9. Place real test orders. Use test mode, then place one real order and refund it, so you see the whole customer journey and every email.

Legal and trust

10. Publish refund, privacy, shipping and terms of service policies and link them in your footer.
11. Add a contact page with a real email address, and a phone number if you offer phone support.
12. Write an About page. New customers want to know who is behind the store.
13. Set up cookie consent if you sell to the EU or UK.

Products and SEO

14. Write unique product descriptions. Copying the manufacturer's text hurts your search ranking.
15. Edit each product's search title and description in the search engine listing section.
16. Add alt text to product images so Google and screen readers understand them.
17. Organise products into collections that match how customers search, such as by category, use or season.
18. Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console. Shopify creates it for you at yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml.

Speed and design

19. Compress images before uploading and avoid huge autoplay videos on the homepage.
20. Install only the apps you need on day one. Every app can add scripts that slow your store. See why Shopify stores get slow.
21. Check every page on a real phone. Most of your traffic will be mobile.
22. Add a favicon and a social sharing image so links look good on Facebook, WhatsApp and LinkedIn.

Marketing and follow-up

23. Turn on abandoned checkout emails. Shopify includes them; they recover sales from day one.
24. Install analytics and your ad pixels through Shopify's customer events, and confirm they record a test purchase.
25. Customise your order notification emails with your logo, colours and tone of voice.

After launch

Once orders start coming in, the next problem is usually manual work: copying orders, checking stock and answering the same questions. Our guide to Shopify automation covers what to automate first.

Need help with a custom feature, integration or app for your new store? Book a free 30-minute call with our team.