Which programming languages does Shopify use?

Shopify's core platform runs on Ruby on Rails, and its themes are built with Liquid, an open-source templating language Shopify wrote in Ruby. The admin interface, CLI, and developer tooling now run on TypeScript and Node.js, and Shopify has invested in YJIT, a just-in-time compiler for Ruby built on Rust, to keep Rails fast at its scale.

What does this stack mean for a Shopify project?

The language mix maps directly to the type of work involved. Theme customization and storefront design depend on Liquid alongside standard HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Backend features, checkout logic, and platform-level changes sit in Ruby on Rails. App development and third-party integrations are usually written in JavaScript or TypeScript on Node.js, or in Python, calling into Shopify's GraphQL Admin API or Storefront API rather than touching Rails code directly.

Where does each language apply?

• Liquid handles theme rendering and storefront templating across Shopify themes and the Online Store 2.0 architecture.
• Ruby on Rails powers the core commerce engine, including checkout, inventory, and order processing.
• TypeScript and React drive the Shopify admin UI and the Shopify CLI, which was rewritten from Ruby to Node.js to simplify the developer toolchain.
• React, through Shopify's Hydrogen framework, is used for headless custom storefronts deployed on Shopify's Oxygen hosting.
• GraphQL, via the Admin and Storefront APIs, is the standard interface for reading and writing store data from external apps.

For teams planning custom work, the right skill set depends on the layer being touched: a theme developer needs Liquid and front-end fluency, a platform or app developer needs Ruby or Node.js and TypeScript plus comfort with GraphQL, and a headless storefront build calls for React and Hydrogen experience specifically. Go and Rust also appear in parts of Shopify's internal infrastructure, but they are not languages merchants or app developers typically write against.