In this guide · 8 sections
- 01What Shopify keeps and what is up to you
- 02What CSV exports cover, and what they miss
- 03Back up your theme before every change
- 04Backup apps: what they add and what they cost
- 05Restore limits to know before you need them
- 06A backup routine for a small Shopify store
- 07Do it yourself or get help?
- 08Frequently asked questions
Short answer
Shopify says it doesn't offer a store data backup, so deleted products can't be restored by Shopify. Export products, customers and orders to CSV regularly, duplicate your theme before changes, and for a busy store use a backup app (Rewind from US$19 a month, October 2026) that can restore items.
What Shopify keeps and what is up to you
Shopify hosts and maintains the platform, so you don't back up servers or databases the way a WordPress site owner does. But your store's data is your responsibility. Shopify's CSV files help page is blunt: Shopify does not offer an option to back up your store data, and if you delete all the products in your store, there is no way to restore them.
Shopify's backups and duplication page says you can export CSV files and combine them with a copy of your theme to create a backup, and points to backup apps in the Shopify App Store for a fuller backup.
What CSV exports cover, and what they miss
Shopify can export several types of data to CSV from the admin. The CSV page lists products, customers, inventory, admin and POS users, orders (export only) and discounts (export only).
| Data | Export? | Import back? | Gaps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Products and variants | Yes | Yes | Image files aren't in the CSV; only links to them |
| Customers | Yes | Yes | Check which fields your export includes |
| Inventory | Yes | Yes | Per location |
| Orders | Yes | No, not through the admin | Only via apps or the API |
| Discounts | Yes | No | Shopify says discount codes can't be transferred |
| Theme | Duplicate or download | Upload | Download excludes products, pages, blog posts and Content > Files |
| Pages, blog posts, menus, settings | No CSV | Manual | Copy and paste or rebuild |
Shopify's export products page explains that product images aren't included in the CSV, and that imported products only get their images if the originals are still viewable on a public site. So if the old store is gone, a CSV alone won't bring your photos back. Keep your original product photos in your own cloud storage.
Back up your theme before every change
Shopify's duplicating themes page recommends making a copy before you customise, so you can discard changes and start again.
Duplicate the live theme
Online Store > Themes, open the actions menu on the theme and click Duplicate. The copy appears as 'Copy of' plus the theme name.
Rename the copy with a date
For example 'Backup 2026-10-21 before menu change', so you know which one to roll back to.
Edit the copy, not the live theme
Preview it, then publish when it works. The old live theme stays as your fallback.
Download a copy for off-store storage
Shopify notes a store can hold 20 themes; download older backups before deleting them, because deleting a theme is permanent.
Know the limit of Timeline
Shopify's theme code page says Timeline restores one existing file at a time, can't recover deleted files, and its history is finite.
Our guide to what Shopify store maintenance needs covers theme updates and app clean-up in more detail.
Backup apps: what they add and what they cost
Backup apps connect to your store and copy data automatically, then let you restore individual items or in bulk. That is the main difference from CSVs: a CSV is a snapshot you have to re-import yourself, and it can't restore orders.
- Rewind Backup + RestoreUp to 300 orders a month; daily and real-time backups, 365-day historyUS$19/month
- Rewind Protection SuiteUp to 600 orders a month; adds QA testing, downtime tracking, stagingUS$99/month
- Manual CSV routineYour time each month, plus your own cloud storageFree
Approximate, as of October 2026, from Rewind's Shopify App Store listing (billed in USD every 30 days; higher order tiers cost more). Other backup apps exist; compare restore features, not only price.
The listing is at apps.shopify.com/backup. Before installing any app, check what it can restore (products, collections, theme files, metafields, customers), how long it keeps history, and what it costs at your order volume. Our Shopify app costs audit guide helps keep the monthly app bill in check.
Restore limits to know before you need them
- Orders can't be re-imported through the admin. Shopify says moving orders needs apps or the API, which it doesn't support itself.
- Discount codes and issued gift cards can't be transferred, according to Shopify's backup page.
- Product IDs and URLs can change if products are recreated, which can break links from ads, Google Merchant Center and marketplace feeds.
- Images must still be available somewhere public, or re-uploaded from your own copies.
- Apps and settings (taxes, shipping, checkout, payments) are rebuilt by hand on a new store.
This is why a regular export routine matters even if you use an app: it gives you a second, independent copy you control.
A backup routine for a small Shopify store
This takes about 20 minutes a month for a store with a few hundred products.
Shopify backup checklist
Do it yourself or get help?
The CSV routine and theme duplicates above are easy to do yourself; the key is doing them on a schedule and keeping copies outside Shopify.
If you are building a new store, our Shopify Store package (S$1,890) sets up the theme, up to 30 products, payments, shipping and policies, and the owner walkthrough video covers exports and theme copies. For an existing store, our Backup & Ransomware Recovery (S$290) sets up a daily off-site backup and retention plan for your website and Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, with a tested restore and a one-page recovery guide. Backup app or service fees are billed to you.
Frequently asked questions
Shopify runs and maintains the platform, but its help centre says it doesn't offer an option to back up your store data, and that if you delete all your products there is no way to restore them. You need your own backups, using CSV exports, theme copies and, for busier stores, a backup app from the Shopify App Store.
In the Shopify admin, go to Products, click Export, choose All products and a CSV format. Shopify's help notes that image files aren't included, only links, so keep your original photos in your own storage. Store the CSV in a dated folder, and export again before any bulk edit or new app install.
Not through the Shopify admin. Orders can be exported to CSV, but Shopify's backup page says they can't be imported into a store through the admin, only with third-party apps or the API, which Shopify doesn't support itself. A backup app is the practical way to protect order data you might need to restore.
As of October 2026, Rewind's Shopify App Store listing shows Backup + Restore at US$19 a month for up to 300 orders a month, and Protection Suite at US$99 a month for up to 600 orders, billed in USD with higher tiers for more orders. Compare what each app restores and how long it keeps history.
Go to Online Store, open the actions menu on your theme and click Duplicate, then edit the copy. Rename backups with the date. Shopify allows up to 20 themes per store and deleting one is permanent, so download older copies first. A theme download doesn't include products, pages, blog posts or files.