Beyond the theme

Backline shapes how your store looks and feels. A handful of important settings, though, live in Shopify itself and apply across every theme. When you need one of these, the Shopify Help Center is the best and most up to date place to look.

Here is what sits outside the theme, and where to find it:

• Custom domain. Connect your own web address in Settings → Domains. See the Shopify domains guide.
• Checkout, payments, and taxes. Your checkout, payment providers, and tax settings are handled by Shopify for security and reliability. See payments and taxes and duties.
• Shipping and delivery. Rates, zones, and delivery options live in Settings → Shipping and delivery. See the shipping guide.
• Customer accounts. Turn accounts on or off, and choose how they work, in your Shopify settings. See customer accounts.
• Store policies, email, and notifications. Your refund policy, sender email, and order notifications are all Shopify settings.

Note

The theme presents these parts of your store and hands off to Shopify to run them. That split is what keeps your storefront fast and your checkout secure, and it means these settings carry over even if you change themes.

If you are ever unsure whether something is a theme setting or a Shopify setting, a simple rule of thumb helps. If it changes how the store looks, it is usually in the theme editor. If it changes how the store operates, it is usually in your Shopify settings.