How to Use Shopify Sidekick in 2026: Step-by-Step Guide
AI commerce assistant built into Shopify that helps merchants manage their store, understand analytics, write product descriptions, and take actions through natural language.
Shopify Sidekick is the AI assistant built into the Shopify admin for merchants. Launched in 2023, it allows merchants to interact with their store through conversational AI — asking questions about their business data, getting help with store tasks, and taking actions through natural language.
What Shopify Sidekick Does Well
Store operations assistance handles questions merchants have every day: "Show me my best-selling products last month," "How many orders are unfulfilled?" "What's my conversion rate this week compared to last week?" Sidekick answers using the merchant's live store data without requiring them to navigate to specific reports.
Action execution goes beyond answering questions. Sidekick can create discount codes, add products to collections, update store settings, and perform other admin tasks through conversational instructions. Instead of clicking through multiple menus, merchants describe what they want to change.
Copywriting assistance helps write product descriptions, email campaigns, meta descriptions, and store content in the merchant's brand voice. Merchants describe the product or tone and Sidekick drafts the content.
Business insights surface patterns the merchant may have missed: "Your cart abandonment rate increased 15% this month — most abandoned carts include product X." These proactive insights help merchants act on data they might not have the time to analyze manually.
Who Shopify Sidekick Is For
Sidekick is available to Shopify merchants on all plans (Basic and above) — it's included with the Shopify subscription, not a separate purchase. It is most valuable for merchants who manage their store without a dedicated analyst or operations team. More technical merchants may find the available actions limited compared to direct admin use.
What You'll Need
- A Shopify Sidekick account (starting from Included with Shopify)
- A modern web browser or the Shopify Sidekick app
- Payment method for paid features
Getting Started
Create Your Account
Visit https://www.shopify.com/magic and sign up for a subscription account. You'll need an email address to register.
Start Your First Conversation
Once logged in, you'll see the main chat interface. Type a question or task in the input box and press Enter. Shopify Sidekick supports store-management, analytics-insights, copywriting, action-execution, ecommerce-ai — start with a simple text prompt to get familiar.
Pro Tips
- Be specific: The more context you provide, the better the response. Instead of "write an email," try "write a professional follow-up email to a client who hasn't responded in two weeks."
- Iterate: If you don't get what you need, ask for clarification or refinement: "Make it shorter" or "Use a more formal tone."
- Use examples: Show Shopify Sidekick what format you want by including an example in your prompt.
- Save useful conversations: Most platforms let you name and revisit conversations — organize by project or topic.
Common Use Cases
Finance & Business
AI assistants for financial planning, business strategy, market analysis, and accounting.
Browse Finance & Business chatbots →Marketing & SEO
Chatbots specializing in content marketing, search engine optimization, and digital advertising.
Browse Marketing & SEO chatbots →Troubleshooting
- Responses seem generic or unhelpful
- Add more context to your prompt. Specify the audience, tone, length, and format you need. Try starting over with a clearer description of your goal.
- The tool isn't responding or is slow
- AI chatbots can experience high traffic. Refresh the page and try again. Check the service's status page if issues persist.
- Output is too long or too short
- Explicitly specify the length: "in 100 words," "as a brief summary," or "in detail with examples."
Get Weekly Chatbot Tips
Not sure which AI tool is right for you? Our newsletter covers reviews, tutorials, and comparisons weekly.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Shopify Sidekick free to use?
- Shopify Sidekick requires a paid subscription, starting from Included with Shopify.
- Do I need an account to use Shopify Sidekick?
- Yes, you need to create an account to use Shopify Sidekick.
- What can I use Shopify Sidekick for?
- AI commerce assistant built into Shopify that helps merchants manage their store, understand analytics, write product descriptions, and take actions through natural language.
Related Guides
Know a tool we're missing? Submit it free →