You open your Shopify admin to set up a weekend flash sale. Twenty minutes later, you’re still toggling between the discounts page, the collections editor, the email campaign builder, and your analytics dashboard. The sale hasn’t launched, but your coffee is already cold.
This is the daily reality for 5.5 million Shopify merchants worldwide. Too many tabs, too many clicks, too much time spent on admin tasks that should take seconds.
Shopify Sidekick changes this. Instead of clicking through menus, you type what you need in plain English. “Create a 15% off code for returning customers, valid this weekend only.” Done.
In this guide, you’ll learn exactly what Shopify Sidekick is, what it can do for your store, and the specific prompts that save merchants hours every week.
What Is Shopify Sidekick?
Shopify Sidekick is a free AI assistant built directly into your Shopify admin that lets you manage your store through conversation. You type or speak requests in natural language, and Sidekick executes tasks, answers questions, and provides data-driven recommendations based on your store’s actual performance.
Think of it as having a store manager who knows every Shopify feature, remembers your sales history, and works 24/7 without a break.
Sidekick is powered by large language models trained specifically on Shopify’s commerce knowledge. It first launched in beta in July 2023 and became widely available in December 2024. Shopify completely rebuilt it for the Winter ’26 Edition, introducing over 150 new features that turned Sidekick from a basic Q&A tool into something closer to an actual AI co-worker.
How Sidekick Differs from Shopify Magic
Merchants often confuse Sidekick with Shopify Magic. Here’s the simple distinction:
- Shopify Magic is a collection of AI features embedded across Shopify. It powers things like auto-generated product descriptions, email subject lines, and image editing. You interact with Magic inside specific tools (product editor, email builder, etc.).
- Shopify Sidekick is a conversational assistant that sits on top of everything. You chat with Sidekick from anywhere in your admin, and it can orchestrate tasks across multiple areas of your store in a single conversation.
They complement each other. Magic handles point tasks inside specific tools. Sidekick coordinates work across your entire store.
Both are completely free, included with every Shopify plan from Basic to Plus.
What Shopify Sidekick Can Actually Do
The gap between marketing promises and actual functionality is wide in most AI tools. Here’s what Sidekick genuinely delivers today, tested and verified.
Manage Your Store Admin Through Chat
Sidekick can complete form-related tasks across your Shopify admin. Creating products, setting up discount codes, building collections, adding customers. Instead of navigating menus and filling in fields manually, describe what you need.
Example prompt: “Create a new collection called ‘Spring Essentials’ with all products tagged ‘spring-2026’ and set it to appear on my homepage.”
Sidekick fills in the fields and shows you the result before saving. Nothing changes until you approve it.
Generate and Edit Content
Product descriptions, blog post drafts, email campaigns, and marketing copy. Sidekick uses your store context to write content that actually matches what you sell.
Example prompt: “Write a product description for my organic cotton t-shirt. Highlight that it’s sustainably sourced and available in 8 colors. Keep the tone casual and under 100 words.”
It also generates images from text prompts and can edit existing product photos with studio-quality AI tools built into the file editor.
Analyze Your Store Data
This is where Sidekick stands apart from generic AI tools like ChatGPT. Because Sidekick has access to your actual Shopify data, it can answer questions that external tools simply cannot.
Example prompt: “Show me my top 10 products by revenue over the last 90 days, and compare that to the previous 90 days.”
Sidekick generates the right ShopifyQL query behind the scenes, runs it, and displays the results as charts or tables. You can then export reports to CSV, Parquet, JSONL, or XML formats.
According to Shopify’s AI statistics, 87% of retailers using AI report positive revenue impact, and data-driven decision making is a major driver of that number.
Customize Your Theme Without Code
The Winter ’26 update introduced conversational theme editing. Tell Sidekick what you want changed, and it modifies the appropriate theme settings instantly.
Example prompt: “Make the announcement bar background dark green and change the font to something more modern.”
This works for global styles, individual block settings, and section layouts. You can see the changes in real-time and undo anything you don’t like.
Build Custom Apps by Describing Them
One of the more surprising capabilities: Sidekick can create custom admin apps for your specific business needs. No developer, no app store, no monthly subscription.
Example prompt: “Build me an app that shows a returns eligibility checker. When I enter an order number, it should check if the order is within the 30-day return window and display the result.”
Sidekick builds the app right inside your Shopify admin. It won’t replace complex third-party apps, but for simple internal tools, it eliminates the need for custom development.
Automate Workflows with Plain English
Sidekick integrates with Shopify Flow to create automated workflows through conversation.
Example prompt: “Create a workflow that automatically tags customers as ‘VIP’ when they place their third order.”
It builds and visualizes the entire automation flow for you. No dragging blocks, no configuring triggers manually. Just describe the logic, and Sidekick constructs it.
Voice and Screen-Share Support
Sidekick supports voice mode on both desktop and mobile. Speak your requests instead of typing, and it automatically detects your language and responds accordingly. It supports 20+ languages.
You can also share your screen with Sidekick and ask it to help with what you’re currently looking at. It’s similar to having a support agent walk you through solutions in real time.
Sidekick Prompts That Save Hours Every Week
The difference between a useful Sidekick session and a frustrating one comes down to how you phrase your prompts. Here are proven prompts organized by what merchants need most.
Sales and Performance Analysis
- “Based on my last 60 days of traffic and sales, what 3 actions should I take to increase conversions on my best-selling product?”
- “What are my weakest sales days over the past 90 days, and how should I plan campaigns to boost revenue on those days?”
- “Show me the sales, costs, profits, returns, and discounts for my top 100 products.”
Marketing and Campaigns
- “I’m planning a holiday campaign. What discount strategy makes sense for my average order value and repeat purchase rate?”
- “Draft an email campaign announcing a weekend flash sale with 20% off everything. Subject line, preview text, and body.”
Store Management
- “Create a 10% off discount code for first-time customers that expires at the end of this month.”
- “Update all products in the ‘Winter Collection’ collection to show a ‘SALE’ badge.”
Prompt Writing Tips
Be specific with data ranges: “Last 60 days” works better than “recently.”
Include context: “For my average order value of $45” gives Sidekick something concrete to work with.
Save your best prompts: Sidekick Skills lets you save up to 25 prompts as reusable shortcuts. Instead of retyping the same analysis request weekly, save it as a skill and trigger it with a single command.
What Sidekick Can’t Do (And What to Use Instead)
Sidekick is genuinely useful, but it’s not a replacement for every tool in your stack. Here are the real limitations.
No customer-facing support: Sidekick works inside your admin. It can’t chat with your customers, answer “Where is my order?” questions, or handle returns conversations. For customer support AI, you’ll need a dedicated tool.
No third-party app management: Sidekick can’t configure or interact with apps installed from the Shopify App Store. It only manages native Shopify functionality.
No changes without approval: By design, Sidekick never modifies your store without explicit confirmation. It presents options for you to review and approve. This is a feature, not a limitation, but it means you can’t set it to run tasks autonomously.
Accuracy isn’t perfect: Like any AI tool, Sidekick occasionally makes errors. The SalesHunterThemes team noted occasional accuracy gaps during testing. Always review the output before confirming changes.
English works best: While Sidekick supports 20+ languages, the experience is most refined in English. Complex requests in other languages may produce less accurate results.
For the gaps that Sidekick doesn’t cover, check out our guide to AI tools that work on Shopify for tested alternatives across every category.
How Shopify Sidekick Fits into AI-Powered Commerce
Sidekick handles the admin side of your store. But AI is reshaping the customer side too.
With agentic commerce, customers are increasingly shopping through AI assistants like ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, and Microsoft Copilot. Shopify reports a 7x increase in AI-driven traffic and an 11x increase in AI-driven orders since January 2025.
The Winter ’26 Edition introduced Shopify Agentic Storefronts, which let you control how your brand and products appear when AI assistants recommend them to shoppers.
Here’s how the pieces fit together:
| AI Layer | What It Does | Who Uses It |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify Sidekick | Manages your store through conversation | You (the merchant) |
| Shopify Magic | AI features embedded across Shopify tools | You (the merchant) |
| Agentic Storefronts | Makes your products discoverable to AI shopping assistants | Your customers (via AI) |
This is the full AI commerce stack. Sidekick runs your store more efficiently. Magic handles content creation. Agentic Storefronts put your products in front of AI-powered shoppers.
84% of ecommerce businesses already rank AI as their highest priority. And 97% of retailers plan to increase their AI spending in 2026. The merchants seeing results are the ones using these tools together, not in isolation.
Understanding how AI agents differ from chatbots and simple automation helps you make smarter decisions about which tools to invest time in. Sidekick sits somewhere between a chatbot and a full agent. It understands context, takes action, but still keeps you in the driver’s seat.
How to Start Using Shopify Sidekick Today
Getting started takes about 30 seconds. No setup, no configuration, no installation.
Step 1: Find Sidekick in Your Admin
Look for the Sidekick icon in the top navigation bar of your Shopify admin. It’s a small icon near the search bar. Click it, and a chat window opens on the right side of your screen.
You can also access it on mobile through the Shopify app.
Step 2: Start With These 3 Quick Wins
Don’t try to use every feature on day one. Start with these three high-value tasks:
- Ask about your sales: “Show me my total revenue and top products for the last 30 days.” This immediately shows you Sidekick’s data analysis capabilities with your real store data.
- Create a discount: “Create a 10% off code called WELCOME10 for first-time customers.” This demonstrates task execution and lets you see the review-before-save workflow.
- Get a recommendation: “Based on my store data, what’s one thing I should focus on this week to improve sales?” This tests Sidekick’s ability to analyze your data and provide strategic advice.
Step 3: Save Your Best Prompts as Skills
Once you find prompts that deliver consistent value, save them as Sidekick Skills. You can save up to 25 skills and trigger them with a single command instead of retyping the full prompt.
This is especially useful for weekly reports, monthly analyses, or any recurring task that uses the same prompt structure.
Shopify Sidekick FAQ
Is Shopify Sidekick free?
Yes. Shopify Sidekick is free for all Shopify merchants regardless of plan. It’s included with Basic, Shopify, Advanced, and Plus subscriptions with no additional fees.
Can Sidekick make changes to my store without my permission?
No. Sidekick never modifies your store without your explicit approval. It presents suggestions and fills in fields, but you always review and confirm before anything is saved.
What languages does Shopify Sidekick support?
Sidekick supports 20+ languages and automatically detects which language you’re speaking in voice mode. However, English provides the most accurate and refined experience for complex requests.
Can Sidekick replace my customer support team?
No. Sidekick only works inside your Shopify admin. It cannot interact with customers, answer their questions, or handle support conversations. It helps you manage your store, not serve your customers directly.
How is Shopify Sidekick different from ChatGPT?
The key difference is data access. ChatGPT knows nothing about your specific store. Shopify Sidekick has access to your actual sales data, products, customers, and store settings. It can analyze your real performance and execute tasks directly in your admin. ChatGPT can only offer general advice.
Making Shopify Sidekick Work for Your Store
Shopify Sidekick does its best work when you treat it less like a search engine and more like a team member who needs context.
The merchants getting the most value from Sidekick are the ones combining it with the rest of Shopify’s AI capabilities. Use Sidekick for strategic analysis and task execution. Let Shopify Magic handle content generation inside specific tools. And set up agentic storefronts so your products reach AI-powered shoppers.
The AI-enabled ecommerce market is projected to reach $10.8 billion by 2026. Merchants who build AI into their daily operations now will have a significant advantage over those who wait.
Sidekick is free, already inside your admin, and ready to use right now. Open it. Try the prompts from this article. And see how much time you get back.
About Akash Radadiya
