About admin extensions

Admin action and admin block extensions enable you to seamlessly integrate your app's functionality into the Shopify admin. These extensions enable your app to embed workflows and UX on core admin pages while automatically matching the Shopify admin's look and feel. By giving merchants access to your app's functionality, without the need to navigate away from their current task, these extensions help merchants be more efficient and productive.

You can create actions and blocks by writing extensions with UI Extensions and targeting the appropriate extension target. For the full list of admin pages that you can extend, refer to the extension target reference.

Admin actions

Anchor link to section titled "Admin actions"

Admin action extensions enable you to create transactional workflows within existing pages of the Shopify admin. Merchants can launch these extensions from the More actions menus on resource pages or from an index table's bulk action menu when one or more resources are selected. After the extensions are launched, they display as modals. After they're closed, the page updates with the changes from the action.

Admin print actions

Anchor link to section titled "Admin print actions"

Admin print actions extensions are a special form of action extension designed to let your app print documents from key pages in the Shopify admin. Unlike a typical admin action extension, these extensions are found under the Print menu on orders and product pages. Additionally, they contain special APIs to let your app display a preview of a document and print it.

An example admin print action extension.

Admin blocks

Anchor link to section titled "Admin blocks"

Admin block extensions enable your app to embed contextual information and inputs directly on resource pages in the Shopify admin. When a merchant has added them to their pages, these extensions display as cards inline with the other resource information. Merchants need to manually add and pin the extension to their page in the Shopify admin before they can use it.

With admin block extensions, merchants can view and modify information from your app and other data on the page simultaneously. To facilitate complex interactions and transactional changes, you can launch admin actions directly from an admin block.

An example admin block extension on the product page showing created issues.

Getting started

Anchor link to section titled "Getting started"

Follow the getting started tutorials to learn how to build admin action and block extensions. These tutorials are designed to be completed together to illustrate how admin action and block extensions complement each other and can be used together to build features for your app.