What is Checkout Extensibility?

Checkout Extensibility is a suite of platform features designed to make customizing the checkout process easier, safer, and more efficient whether you’re making no-code customizations with apps and branding tools or leveraging Shopify’s collection of components and APIs for bespoke experiences.

The Benefits

Switching to Checkout Extensibility offers numerous advantages over the traditional checkout.liquid approach:

• Performance: Enjoy faster interactions and page transitions, with checkouts running twice as fast on average, boosting conversion rates by over 1%.
• Integration: Seamlessly integrate your customizations with Shop Pay, benefiting from its 4X faster checkout experience.
• New Features: Access advanced checkout features like one-page checkout, stackable discounts, and Shopify’s bundles offering.
• Security: Benefit from enhanced security through a sandboxed environment.
• Upgrade-Safe: Unlike checkout.liquid, there's no need for future upgrades, as new features are automatically available.

Key Features

• Checkout Editor: Customize your checkout's appearance and functionality with ease.
• Checkout Apps: Add new functionality with UI extensions, custom logic, post-purchase pages, and pixels.
• Customer Events: Manage pixel tracking for your store and checkout from one location.
• Checkout Branding API: Transform your checkout to match your store’s style.
• Custom Business Logic: Use Shopify Functions to validate cart and checkout information and customize payment and delivery methods.
• Components for Custom Apps: Develop custom apps with Shopify Functions and various extensions for a tailored checkout experience.

Updated Deadlines

August 13, 2024

• Upgrade Required: Information, Shipping, and Payment pages must transition from checkout.liquid to Checkout Extensibility.
  
  

Since checkout.liquid has not been updated since 2021 and is less secure under new regulations like PCI DSS v4, it will be phased out.

Post-Deadline Impact: Customizations on checkout.liquid will be locked and uneditable. Changes to payment methods will be disabled. Fraud risk indicators will be unreliable, delaying Shopify Payments payouts by up to 5 days.

From January 6, 2025, Shopify will begin auto-upgrading non-compliant checkouts:

• Pages will revert to default settings, losing checkout.liquid customizations.
• Default checkout will use theme editor brand settings but exclude custom JavaScript and CSS.

August 28, 2025

• Final Deadline: Plus merchants must upgrade the Thank you and Order status pages from checkout.liquid to Checkout Extensibility.
• App Updates: Replace apps using script tags with alternatives, and transition additional scripts to Checkout UI extensions and Shopify Pixels.
• Shopify Scripts: These will be shut off, and merchants should replace them with Shopify Functions before this date.

Take Action Now

To avoid disruptions and leverage the full benefits of Checkout Extensibility, it’s essential to meet the August 13, 2024, deadline for upgrading your Information, Shipping, and Payment pages. Start planning your transition now to ensure a seamless, secure, and high-performing checkout experience for your customers. For Plus merchants, mark August 28, 2025, on your calendar for the final phase of upgrades.

Go here for the latest updates from Shopify.