> How to speed up a Shopify store: read Shopify's performance reports, then deal with apps, the theme, the top of the page, added code and fonts, in order. - Canonical: https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/how-to-speed-up-a-shopify-store/ --- # How to speed up a Shopify store A Shopify store gets faster when it carries fewer apps, a current theme and less at the top of each page. Shopify names the theme, the apps and added third-party code as the biggest factors in a store's speed, so the seven steps below work through those, with a measurement before and after. Updated 6 October 2026 ## 1. Read the performance reports Shopify’s web performance reports show how real visitors experienced the store on three measures: how fast the main content loaded, how stable the layout was, and how quickly the page responded. Note the figures for the home page, a collection page and a product page. Our guide to [why a Shopify store is slow](https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/why-is-my-shopify-store-so-slow/) explains the causes behind them. ## 2. Audit the apps List every installed app and what it does for a shopper. Shopify’s advice is to check that each one creates enough value to make up for its cost in performance. Uninstall the ones that do not. ## 3. Clear what removed apps left behind An uninstalled app can leave its code in the theme. Look through the theme for snippets and scripts belonging to apps that are gone, or have a developer do it. Leftover code loads on every page for nothing. ## 4. Update or change the theme A theme several years old carries code written for an older Shopify. Update it to its latest version, or move to a current theme. Shopify says its own current themes are free and optimised for performance. ## 5. Lighten the top of the page The first screen decides how fast a page feels. Replace a slideshow or an autoplaying video with one image and a heading. Shopify resizes and compresses images automatically, so the gain here is in having fewer of them, not smaller ones. ## 6. Remove old code Tracking pixels, chat widgets and embedded feeds added by hand over the years all load on every visit. Remove the ones no longer used. Keep one analytics tool, not three. ## 7. Cut the fonts, then measure again Use two font families at most. Then return to the reports. The real-visitor figures take about a month to reflect a change in full, so judge the result then, and compare it with a competitor’s product page tested in Google’s PageSpeed Insights. ## If the store is still slow A store that has been through all seven steps and is still slow beside its competitors is limited by its theme’s design. A lighter theme, or a storefront rebuilt for speed, is the remaining step. Our guide to [whether Shopify is bad for SEO](https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/is-shopify-bad-for-seo/) covers what else decides how a store ranks. ## Questions people ask ### How do I increase my Shopify store's speed? Remove apps that are not earning their place, use a current theme, replace sliders and video at the top of the page with one image, and clear out old tracking code. Measure with Shopify's web performance reports before and after. ### What happened to the Shopify speed score? Shopify now reports web performance through the Core Web Vitals, measured from real visitors: loading speed, layout stability and responsiveness. Those are the same measures Google uses. ### Does the Shopify theme affect speed? Yes. Shopify lists the theme first among the factors, and advises an up-to-date, optimised theme. Its own current themes are built for performance. ## Free competitor gap report A faster store still has to be faster than the stores it competes with. Name up to three and we run their product pages and yours through the same speed tests, then send you where you stand once the work is done. 1. Speed and technical health, side by side 2. On-page SEO and site structure 3. The content they are found for and you are not 4. Who holds the searches that matter in your market 5. A prioritised list of what to fix first [Request your free report by email](mailto:contact@hadalmedusa.com?subject=Competitor%20gap%20report%3A%20Guide%3A%20How%20to%20speed%20up%20a%20Shopify%20store&body=Website%3A%0D%0A%0D%0AWhere%20you%20compete%20(area%2C%20country%20or%20countries)%3A%0D%0A%0D%0ACompetitors%20to%20compare%20against%20(up%20to%20three)%3A%0D%0A%0D%0AAnything%20else%20we%20should%20know%3A%0D%0A%0D%0A) - **Address** — contact@hadalmedusa.com - **Include** — your site; up to three competitors; where you compete ## More in this series - [Why your Wix site is so slow, and what to do about it](https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/why-is-my-wix-site-so-slow/) - [Can you move a Wix site to another host?](https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/can-you-move-a-wix-site-to-another-host/) - [Why your Squarespace site is so slow, and what to do about it](https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/why-is-my-squarespace-site-so-slow/) - [Is Wix bad for SEO?](https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/is-wix-bad-for-seo/) - [Is Squarespace bad for SEO?](https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/is-squarespace-bad-for-seo/) - [How to speed up a Wix website](https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/how-to-speed-up-a-wix-website/) - [How to read the Wix Site Speed dashboard](https://hadalmedusa.com/guides/wix-site-speed-dashboard/) - [Wix site still slow after the fixes? 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