How to Add Custom CSS in Shopify?

Tired of your Shopify store looking generic and bland? Want to give it a unique and professional touch? If so, you’ve probably considered customizing your store’s appearance. While Shopify offers a range of customization options, sometimes you need more granular control over your store’s design. That’s where custom CSS comes in.

Custom CSS allows you to add your own style rules to your Shopify store, giving you the freedom to tweak every aspect of its appearance. So through this blog, I’ll explain how the Shopify experts add custom CSS to customize the design of the store. Let’s begin with what CSS is.

What is Custom CSS? (And Why Use It?)

Custom CSS is a powerful tool that allows you to tailor the look and feel of your Shopify store to your exact specifications. By writing custom CSS code, you can override the default styles and create a truly unique online shopping experience.   

Why Use Custom CSS?

There are a few reasons to customize your Shopify store with CSS:

• Complete Control: You have full control over the design and layout of your store.
• Unique Branding: Create a distinctive brand identity that sets you apart from the competition.
• Pixel-perfect Design: Achieve precise control over the placement and styling of every element in your store.
• Enhanced User Experience: A visually appealing and well-organized store can improve user engagement and conversion rates.
• Future-proof Your Store: Stay ahead of design trends and easily adapt to future changes.

Whether you want to add a custom header, change the color scheme, or even create a unique page layout, custom CSS would be the way to go.

Preparation for Adding Custom CSS in Shopify

Before working on creating and adding custom CSS for your Shopify store, there are a few prerequisites to consider. Here’s what you need to do:

Back Up Your Shopify Theme

First of all, you need to backup your Shopify theme, so there’s a way to restore your store in case anything goes wrong.

• Go to Online Store > Themes.
• Locate your active theme and click Actions > Duplicate.

The duplicate theme will serve as your fallback if anything goes wrong.

Understand Your Theme Structure

Shopify themes are built on Liquid (Shopify’s templating language), HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. CSS files are located in the Assets folder of your theme. Most themes include a main CSS file (e.g., theme.css or styles.css).

Basic Understanding of HTML and CSS

While you don’t need to be a coding expert, a fundamental knowledge of HTML and CSS will help you grasp the concepts and write effective custom CSS.

With these prerequisites, you’re ready to start customizing your Shopify store’s appearance.

How to Add Custom CSS in Shopify?

CSS is key to creating visually-stunning and engaging online shopping experiences. Here’s how you go about creating the custom CSS and adding it to your Shopify store.

Access Your Shopify Theme Files

To make customizations, you’ll need to access your theme’s code. You can do so via the Shopify theme editor.

Step 1: Log in to your Shopify admin panel.

Step 2: Go to Online Store > Themes.

Step 3: Locate your active theme and click Actions > Edit Code.

The code editor will open, showing a list of folders like Layout, Templates, Sections, Snippets, Assets, and more.

Create a Custom CSS File

To keep your custom styles separate from your theme’s core files (making future updates easier), it’s best to create a dedicated CSS file.

Step 1: In the Assets folder, click Add a new asset.

Step 2: Select Create a blank file, and name it custom.css. 

Step 3: Click Add asset. A new, blank file will appear under the Assets folder.

This will allow you to write your custom CSS rules in a clean and organized manner.

Link Your Custom CSS File to the Theme

Once you’ve created the custom CSS file, you need to ensure that your Shopify store loads it.

Step 1: Open the theme.liquid file in the Layout folder.

Step 2: Locate the </head> tag (usually near the top of the file).

Step 3: Add the following line just before the closing </head> tag:

<link rel="stylesheet" href="{{ 'custom.css' | asset_url }}">

Step 4: Save the changes.

This line tells the browser to load the custom CSS file you created.

Add Custom CSS Rules

Now that your custom.css file is linked, you can start writing CSS rules.

Step 1: Open the custom.css file in the Assets folder.

Step 2: Add your custom CSS. For example:

• Change the background color of the header:

.site-header {
    background-color: #000000; /* Black background */
    color: #ffffff; /* White text */
}

• Increase the size of product titles:

.product-title {
    font-size: 24px;
    font-weight: bold;
}

• Hide the search bar:

.search-bar {
    display: none;
}

You can use CSS selectors to target specific elements on your page and apply styles to them.

Save and Preview Changes

After adding your custom styles, click ‘Save’. Go to your store’s live site and refresh the page to see the changes. Use your browser’s developer tools (right-click > Inspect) to test additional changes in real-time before finalizing them in the custom.css file.

Organize and Optimize Your CSS

To make your CSS file easier to maintain, follow these best practices:

• Use Comments: Add comments to label sections of your CSS file.

/* Header Customizations */
.site-header {
    background-color: #333;
}

• Group Similar Styles: Keep related rules together, e.g., all header styles in one section.
• Minimize Overrides: Use specific selectors to avoid conflicts with existing theme styles.

These practices can help you write cleaner, more maintainable CSS.

If you need further help with CSS enhancement for your Shopify store, opt for our eCommerce design services. We will analyze your store design requirements and go about the coding implementations accordingly.

But is there another way, a more efficient way to add custom CSS to Shopify? Well, there’s the theme editor.

How to Add Custom CSS via Shopify Theme Editor?

If your theme supports it, you can add CSS directly through the Theme Editor. Here’s how you do it.

Step 1: Log into your Shopify admin panel.

Step 2: Navigate to Online Store > Themes > Customize.

Step 3: Check for a section like Additional CSS under theme settings.

Step 4: Add your custom CSS directly here:

.button {
    background-color: #ff0000;
    color: #ffffff;
}

Step 5: Save and preview your changes.

But understand that this option may not exist in all themes and offers limited organization compared to using a dedicated file.

FAQs on Adding Custom CSS in Shopify

Let’s Summarize

With custom CSS, you can transform your Shopify store into a visually stunning and unique online shopping experience. By adding custom code excerpts, you can take control of your store’s design and implement your create vision effectively.

Remember, while custom CSS offers immense power, make sure you use it responsibly. Always test your changes thoroughly and be mindful of potential conflicts with your theme’s existing styles.

If you’re new to CSS, don’t be afraid to experiment and learn. Or you can connect with us for your Shopify store today!