shopify-apps

Shopify Apps Development

Expert guidance for building Shopify Apps with modern architecture, authentication patterns, and best practices based on current Shopify documentation.

Core Capabilities

This skill provides expertise in:

1. App Architecture & Setup - Initialize apps, configure authentication, set up development environment
2. GraphQL API Integration - Admin API and Storefront API queries/mutations with proper patterns
3. App Extensions - Build checkout UI extensions, theme extensions, product subscriptions, POS UI extensions
4. Embedded App UI - Create embedded admin interfaces using App Bridge and Polaris
5. Webhooks & Events - Implement webhook handlers, manage event subscriptions
6. App Distribution - Prepare apps for submission, handle billing, manage app listings

Prerequisites & MCP Integration

Shopify Dev MCP Server: This skill assumes the Shopify Dev MCP server is available and connected. The MCP server provides:

• Access to latest Shopify documentation at https://shopify.dev
• Up-to-date API references and examples
• Current best practices and patterns

When documentation is needed, use the MCP server to fetch the latest information from Shopify's official docs.

Quick Start Workflows

Creating a New Shopify App

1. Choose your stack: Remix (recommended), Next.js, or other Node.js framework
2. Initialize with Shopify CLI:

   npm init @shopify/app@latest
   # or
   shopify app init
   

3. Configure OAuth scopes in shopify.app.toml
4. Set up database for storing session tokens and app data
5. Deploy to a publicly accessible URL (required for OAuth)

Authentication Flow

Modern Shopify apps use Session Tokens (for embedded apps) and OAuth (for authorization):

// Session token validation (embedded apps)
import { authenticate } from './shopify.server';

export async function loader({ request }) {
  const { session, admin } = await authenticate.admin(request);
  // session contains shop, accessToken, etc.
}

// OAuth installation flow
// Handled automatically by Shopify App Remix/CLI templates