Connecting your Shopify store to AI tools

You can connect your Shopify store to third-party AI tools by using a Shopify app or the Shopify command-line interface (CLI) connector. Connecting an AI tool to your store lets the tool access the data that you authorize and take actions on your behalf, such as updating products or changing prices.

By using either integration, you agree to the Shopify API Terms. Before you activate a connection, review what you're authorizing, what data is shared, and what you're responsible for.

How AI tool connections work

You can link your Shopify store to a third-party AI tool through a Shopify app or CLI connector that supports the integration. For example, you can install a Shopify app directly from the AI tool, or you can use the Shopify CLI to connect an AI tool to the Shopify API from your local device.

In either case, the AI tool can access the store data that you authorize during setup. The scope of that access depends on the permissions that you grant.

Connecting and switching stores

When you use the Shopify app for ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity, you can connect one store at a time, even if your stores are in the same organization.

To switch stores, ask the AI tool to connect to a different Shopify store. The tool disconnects the current store, and then starts a new authorization for you to choose the next store.

Use the official Shopify app for each AI tool rather than setting up a custom connector.

Authorizing access to your store

Connecting an AI tool involves three main steps. Each step requires its own confirmation.

Steps:

Install the Shopify app in ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity, or set up the CLI connector by using the links in AI tools available for connecting to Shopify. The third-party tool connects to Shopify and you're redirected to the Shopify admin to authenticate.
On the install page, review and approve the data access level for the third-party AI tool to ensure that you agree with the data access levels before installing. This step delegates access to your store to the tool, so make sure that you're comfortable with the level of access that's granted before you accept it. If the AI tool requests a higher data access level for a later request, then you're asked to authorize the increase in data access.
After the AI tool has access, the tool can interact with your store. When you ask questions in the tool, the tool reads and edits data in your store, limited by the access that you've granted and by your user permissions.

You control the level of data access for each authorized user or staff member in your admin. An AI tool can only access data, or make changes to your store, within the tier that you've granted to the user.

You control the level of data access that the tool has in two ways:

App access: You decide what access the AI tool has. When you install the app or upgrade the app's access, you're asked to approve access. Some access is read-only, which lets the tool view data but not change it. Other access includes write access, which lets the tool edit data and take actions on your behalf. If you don't want to give the tool the requested level of access, then you can decline the request.
User permissions: Users who interact with the AI tool are limited by their user permissions. For example, a user who can read product data but can't edit product data can't give the tool the ability to edit product data.

After you authorize sharing your data with the third party, the data that you selected is passed to the AI tool. At that point, your data leaves the Shopify environment and is governed by that provider's terms and privacy policy.

Review each permission before you confirm it, because you can't decrease the data access scope after you approve it without uninstalling the app entirely. You can revoke access at any time by uninstalling the app or connector from your admin settings.

Data that you share through an AI tool-connected feature is processed by the third-party AI tool company and is subject to that company's terms and privacy policy. AI outputs can contain errors, so review any information or action that you ask the AI tool to take to confirm its accuracy.

Under Section 9.9 of the Shopify Terms of Service, you're responsible for your use of third-party services, including the data that you share with any third-party tool, and for meeting your own obligations to your customers under applicable laws. Applicable laws include, but aren't limited to, privacy laws such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

After you provide access to the third-party AI tool, that data is no longer processed by Shopify. Shopify can't control how the third-party AI tool uses, retains, or processes data after the data is shared.

When you connect an AI tool, you take on the following responsibilities:

Reviewing the terms and privacy policy of the AI tool that you connect to before activating the integration.
Ensuring that your use of connected AI tools meets your obligations to your customers under applicable laws.
Monitoring your store for any changes that a connected AI tool makes.

Actions that AI tools can take in your store

Some AI tools can make changes to your store, including updating product listings, changing prices, and modifying store settings. Before you complete setup, confirm whether the tool requires write permissions and whether the tool prompts you for confirmation before making a change.

If an AI tool makes an incorrect change to your store, then you're responsible for that change. Shopify doesn't review or approve actions that connected AI tools take on your behalf.

AI tools available for connecting to Shopify

Each integration has its own setup flow and scope of access. The Shopify apps for AI tools aren't available on the Shopify App Store. You install each one directly from the AI tool by using the links in the following list. You can connect your Shopify store to these AI tools:

The Shopify app for ChatGPT: A Shopify app that lets you preview, claim, and manage a Shopify store from within ChatGPT. You can use the Shopify app for ChatGPT to connect your store.
The Shopify app for Claude: A Shopify app that lets you preview, claim, and manage a Shopify store from within Claude. You can use the Shopify app for Claude to connect your store.
The Shopify app for Perplexity: A Shopify app that lets you manage a Shopify store from within Perplexity. You can use the Shopify app for Perplexity to connect your store.
The Shopify CLI connector: A connector that authorizes an AI tool on your local device to access the Shopify API. You can use the Shopify AI Toolkit documentation to set up the Shopify CLI connector.