The so-called Boring Edition is out! Shopify has released its Winter ’25 Editions, introducing over 150 updates designed to improve productivity, revenue and customer satisfaction in the long term. These updates aren't about introducing brand new tools - they are about making everything you already use work better, faster, and smarter. 

This blog post covers some of the most important changes and highlights that can significantly impact your e-commerce business and make your day-to-day smoother.

What’s new across Shopify?

Here’s a quick overview of what’s been improved:

• Draft Orders: Now support more features! Any customizations you’ve built with Shopify Functions or checkout UI extensions will now also apply to draft orders. This ensures a consistent experience across all order types.
• Shopify POS: Product bundles can now be published to POS systems, while offline payments allow you to keep accepting card payments even if the internet is down. Payment details are processed as soon as your network is back online.
• Search & Discovery: You can now combine parent and child product listings, use custom metafields for categories, and create smart collections based on product attributes like material and color.
• Sidekick AI Assistant: This AI-powered helper is now available to merchants globally, designed to make running your store easier. The more you use it, the better it gets.
• Cart and Checkout Speeds: Customers experience faster load times in the cart (up to 50% faster) and for checkout buttons (nearly 59% faster), leading to a quicker shopping experience.
• Shop Campaigns: This new marketing tool lets merchants acquire customers at a fixed cost and pay only when those customers convert (available in the US and Canada).

Each update is designed to save you time, improve the customer experience, and increase your sales.

Customer accounts that work for you

Shopify has introduced new features to make customer accounts more useful. Now, customers can manage subscriptions, access loyalty programs, and enjoy a simpler navigation experience through improved account headers. Store owners can match branding from the login page to the checkout and even customize account features to fit specific needs.

Faster checkout, faster cart

Speed matters, and Shopify has made significant improvements here. Cart loading speeds are now up to 50% faster, while checkout buttons like Shop Pay, PayPal, and Apple Pay load nearly 59% faster. Customers can interact with checkout pages more quickly, thanks to updated animations and better loading processes.

For those who want more control, Shopify’s Checkout Blocks app lets you tweak thank you and order status pages - no coding needed. And for businesses using draft orders, checkout customizations with Shopify Functions and extensions now work in those workflows, too.

Product Bundles - A better way to sell more

Bundles are a popular way to increase sales, with 86% of businesses reporting higher average order values. Shopify has improved its Bundles app to provide better performance insights, more intuitive layouts, and the ability to use bundles directly with Shopify POS for in-store sales.

Better tools for managing orders and payments

• Offline payments: Shopify POS now supports offline payments, so you can process sales even when your internet connection drops.
• Fulfillment logic: Managing inventory and routing orders is now easier with updated tools that work across all platforms.

AI assistant: Meet Sidekick

Shopify’s new AI assistant, Sidekick, is here to help you get more done. Sidekick can handle a range of tasks and is designed to adapt based on your feedback. While it's available only in English for now, it’s a handy tool that will grow with your business.

Smarter analytics for better decisions

Data is key to running a successful store, and Shopify has made its analytics tools faster and more detailed. These updates make it easier to understand what’s working in your store and where you can improve.

Simplifying daily tasks 

Shopify Flow has been updated to support automated workflows for exchanges, returns, marketing tasks, and segment triggers. It also integrates with metafields, giving you more control over repetitive processes.

New marketing opportunities

Shop Campaigns are a new way to reach customers. This program lets you pay only when a customer makes a purchase, reducing risk while expanding your audience. Currently, it’s available for merchants in the US and Canada.

Improved product management with Taxonomy Tools

Shopify has introduced more ways to organize and customize your products. You can now create collections based on product attributes, assign custom metafields to specific categories, and decide how parent or child products appear in searches.

Local and global improvements

Shopify now supports natural language search in more languages, making it easier for customers worldwide to find what they need. Merchants in Europe and Japan also get better translations and a more localized experience in the admin panel.

Other handy updates

• Tap to Pay: Now available on Shopify POS in more regions.
• Chat Apps in Checkout: Embed chat tools in checkout and thank you pages to interact with customers directly.
• Centralized Finances: US merchants can manage taxes, expenses, and bills directly in Shopify.
• Smart Collections: Automatically organize products based on attributes like material or color.

These updates are all about making your Shopify store work better for you and your customers. Whether it’s speeding up checkout, offering new customer account features, or improving how you manage products.

Why All This Matters

Shopify’s Winter ’25 Edition pushes the boundaries of what e-commerce platforms can offer. With updates spanning from checkout optimization to improved B2B tools and operational efficiency, merchants now have a more powerful toolkit to grow their businesses. Whether you're an independent retailer or a global enterprise, these features offer ways to stay ahead of the competition.