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Libraries and templates

Use an app template to scaffold a working app in minutes with Shopify CLI, then choose from Shopify's official API libraries or community-maintained options to suit your language and framework.


App templates give you a fully working Shopify app out of the box, including OAuth, billing, and webhooks. Use Shopify CLI with the --flavor flag to scaffold from a template.

Shopify recommends the React Router template for most new apps. It uses the @shopify/shopify-app-react-router package and is actively maintained.

TemplateDescription
React Router templateRecommended for most apps
Extension-only templateFor custom-distribution apps with no developer-hosted backend. Extension-only apps can have a page in App Home by using an App Home UI extension.
Express templateExpress, Node.js, and React
Ruby templateRuby on Rails

Sample apps demonstrate common patterns and integrations. Use them as a reference or starting point for your own project.

AppDescription
Shopify QR Code appA full-featured example app with QR code generation, built with Node.js and React Router.

Anchor to Official API librariesOfficial API libraries

Shopify's official libraries handle authentication, versioning, and request management so you can focus on building your app's logic.

For PHP and Python apps, there isn't an app template. Scaffold your own project in your framework of choice, then compose the shopify-app-php or shopify-app-python primitives into it. Each package's README documents every primitive, so you can hand the README to your AI coding tool as context when you scaffold the project.

LibraryLanguageDescription
shopify-api-rubyRubyRuby gem for the Admin API. Handles OAuth, webhooks, REST, and GraphQL.
shopify_appRuby / RailsRails engine that adds Shopify app scaffolding, session management, and webhooks to a Rails app.
shopify-apiNode.jsLibrary for the Storefront and Admin APIs, OAuth, webhooks, and billing.
admin-api-clientNode.jsLightweight library for making Admin API requests directly, without the full app framework.
shopify-app-phpPHPFramework-agnostic package for building apps. Handles request verification, token exchange, and GraphQL Admin API calls.
shopify-app-pythonPythonFramework-agnostic package for building apps. Handles request verification, token exchange, and GraphQL Admin API calls.

Anchor to Third-party API librariesThird-party API libraries

These community-maintained libraries cover additional languages and frameworks. Shopify doesn't officially maintain them, but they're widely used by the developer community.

LibraryLanguageDescription
Shopify-api-nodeNode.jsNode Shopify connector
shopify-node-apiNode.jsOAuth2 module for Shopify API
php-shopifyPHPPHP SDK for Shopify API
Basic-Shopify-APIPHPPHP API wrapper using Guzzle for GraphQL
laravel-shopifyPHP / LaravelLaravel integration for building Shopify apps
go-shopifyGoGo library for Shopify
ShopifySharp.NET.NET library for Shopify

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