Yes. Free and open-source under the MIT license. No paid tiers or premium features. Costs come from Shopify platform plans (stores) and the Shopify Partner program (free to join). Your agent uses every CLI feature at no cost.

How do you install Shopify CLI?

For apps, `npm init @shopify/app@latest` scaffolds a new project with the CLI included. For themes, `npm install -g @shopify/cli @shopify/theme`. Also available via `brew tap shopify/shopify && brew install shopify-cli` on macOS. Requires Node.js 22+.

What is the difference between Shopify CLI 2.0 and 3.0?

CLI 3.0 is a complete TypeScript rewrite (previously Ruby). Installs as an npm package, supports app extensions natively, and integrates Hydrogen storefront development. CLI 2.0 is deprecated. All documentation targets 3.x. Your agent should always scaffold with the latest version.

Does Shopify have an MCP server?

Yes. Shopify provides official MCP servers for dev, customer account, and storefront integration. Community-built options also exist. Your agent can use CLI for development workflows (build, deploy, test) and MCP for store data access. Both paths work with AI agents.

Can you use Shopify CLI with multiple stores?

Yes. For themes, pass `--store my-store.myshopify.com` to target a specific store. For apps, the CLI manages store connections through Partner Dashboard configuration. Your agent switches between development stores as needed for agencies managing multiple clients.

Shopify CLI

622 stars

official open-source Has MCP Cross-platform macOS Actively maintained

Shopify's official command-line interface. Initialize, build, dev, and deploy Shopify apps, extensions, themes, and Hydrogen storefronts from your terminal.

Shopify CLI has both a CLI and an MCP server. See when to use each

Part of the Shopify CLI tools for AI agents

What your agent can do

The old theme development workflow: edit Liquid templates in the Shopify admin's code editor (no syntax highlighting, no autocomplete, no Git), save, wait for the page to reload, refresh the storefront, check if it looks right. Each CSS iteration takes 30+ seconds. Your agent runs `shopify theme dev` and starts a local development server connected to the live store with hot reload. Edit locally, see changes instantly against real store data. `shopify theme push` deploys. `shopify theme pull` syncs. Git-based version control for everything.Your agent scaffolds Shopify apps from scratch. `npm init @shopify/app@latest` creates a complete project with correct structure, dependencies, and configuration. `shopify app dev` starts a local dev server with an authenticated tunnel to your development store. No ngrok setup, no OAuth configuration. Your agent tests the app inside the Shopify admin while you work on business logic. `shopify app deploy` pushes configuration and extensions in one step.For Hydrogen custom storefronts, the CLI provides local development, deployment to Oxygen (Shopify's hosting), and Storefront API access. Your agent manages the full headless commerce development cycle from the terminal.Extension scaffolding is where the CLI saves the most setup time. Shopify Functions, checkout UI extensions, admin UI extensions. Your agent generates the correct boilerplate with `shopify app generate extension`, connects it to your app, and handles the Partner Dashboard configuration that would take multiple clicks to set up manually.Getting a development environment configured manually takes 1-2 hours: Node.js version, CLI installation, tunnel setup, dev store creation, API key registration. Your agent handles all of this. The Shopify CLI abstracts away the Partner Dashboard complexity that blocks developers from writing code.

Limitations

Developer tool only. Store administration (products, orders, shipping) stays in the Shopify admin dashboard. Shopify-specific, with no cross-platform e-commerce support. Teams consuming the Admin API or Storefront API from an external backend can call those APIs directly without the CLI. Requires Node.js 22+.

Key Commands

shopify app dev Start a local development server for your Shopify app with hot reload and a tunnel for real-time testing

shopify app deploy Deploy your app configuration and extensions to Shopify

shopify theme dev Start a local development server for a Shopify theme with live preview

shopify theme push Upload your local theme files to a Shopify store

shopify theme pull Download a theme from your Shopify store to your local environment

shopify app generate extension Scaffold a new app extension from a template

shopify hydrogen dev Start a local Hydrogen storefront development server

GitHub Stats

repo Shopify/cli

stars 622

language TypeScript

license MIT

last commit Mar 13, 2026

Links

Official documentation (Apps) shopify.dev/apps/tools/cli Official documentation (Themes) shopify.dev/docs/storefronts/themes/tools/cli Official documentation (Hydrogen) shopify.dev/docs/custom-storefronts/hydrogen/cli GitHub repository github.com/Shopify/cli Release notes github.com/Shopify/cli/releases Community forums community.shopify.dev/c/shopify-cli-libraries/14

Alternatives

tool	description
Shopify CLI	current tool
Shopify Theme Manager (stm)	A Go-based CLI tool for simplified Shopify theme workflows with multi-store configuration management.

FAQ

Is Shopify CLI free?: Yes. Free and open-source under the MIT license. No paid tiers or premium features. Costs come from Shopify platform plans (stores) and the Shopify Partner program (free to join). Your agent uses every CLI feature at no cost.
How do you install Shopify CLI?: For apps, `npm init @shopify/app@latest` scaffolds a new project with the CLI included. For themes, `npm install -g @shopify/cli @shopify/theme`. Also available via `brew tap shopify/shopify && brew install shopify-cli` on macOS. Requires Node.js 22+.
What is the difference between Shopify CLI 2.0 and 3.0?: CLI 3.0 is a complete TypeScript rewrite (previously Ruby). Installs as an npm package, supports app extensions natively, and integrates Hydrogen storefront development. CLI 2.0 is deprecated. All documentation targets 3.x. Your agent should always scaffold with the latest version.
Does Shopify have an MCP server?: Yes. Shopify provides official MCP servers for dev, customer account, and storefront integration. Community-built options also exist. Your agent can use CLI for development workflows (build, deploy, test) and MCP for store data access. Both paths work with AI agents.
Can you use Shopify CLI with multiple stores?: Yes. For themes, pass `--store my-store.myshopify.com` to target a specific store. For apps, the CLI manages store connections through Partner Dashboard configuration. Your agent switches between development stores as needed for agencies managing multiple clients.