Skip to main content

Contextualizing Content Per Market

Shopify Markets lets you tailor your store experience for customers in different countries—not just by language or currency, but by customizing content itself.

With market contextualization, you can:

  • Show a different slideshow image for customers in Japan vs. France
  • Feature a locally relevant product on your homepage in Germany
  • Highlight a region-specific collection in your “Featured” section for the U.S.

🌍 Prerequisites​

Before using market contextualization:

  1. You must have at least two active markets set up in Shopify Admin > Settings > Markets.
  2. Ensure your theme is published (contextualization only works on the live theme).

📘 Learn how to set up markets: Shopify’s Markets documentation

✏️ How to Customize Content Per Market​

  1. Open the Theme Editor (Online Store > Themes > Customize).

  2. At the top of the editor, use the market picker to select the market you want to customize (e.g., “France – EUR”).

    Market selector in Shopify Theme Editor

  3. Edit any section or block as needed (e.g., change an image, swap a product, update text).

  4. Once saved, a small green icon 🟢 will appear next to any contextualized element, indicating it’s customized for that market.

    Section in Market

✅ Changes apply only to the selected market—the default market and other markets remain unaffected.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions​

I made changes, but they don’t appear on my live store. Why?​

This is a common issue! Here’s why:

  • The Theme Editor always shows the default market by default.
  • Your live store shows the contextualized version for your current location (based on IP or manual selection).
  • If you’ve customized a market, changes to the default market won’t sync automatically to contextualized versions.

✅ Solution:
After editing the default market, repeat the change in each contextualized market where you want it to appear.

🔍 Tip: Use private browsing or a VPN to preview your store as a customer in another country.

What’s the difference between translation and contextualization?​

FeatureTranslation (e.g., via Translate & Adapt)Contextualization
PurposeTranslate existing content into other languagesCreate different layouts or content per market
Use case“Add to cart” → “Ajouter au panier”Show winter coats in Canada, swimwear in Australia
ComplexityLow — content stays synced across marketsHigh — each market becomes independent
MaintenanceEasy — one source of truthHard — changes must be applied per market

✅ Best Practice:

  • Use translation for language-only changes.
  • Use contextualization sparingly—only when you need truly different experiences (e.g., product assortment, promotions, imagery).

Can I delete a contextualization?​

Yes. If you no longer need market-specific content:

  • In the Theme Editor, switch to the contextualized market.
  • Click the “Reset to default” option (usually appears near the green contextualization icon).
  • This removes the override and reverts the section/block to match the default market.

📘 Full instructions: Shopify’s guide to managing contextualized content

⚠️ Important Considerations​

  • Performance: Each contextualized market increases management overhead—avoid overusing it.
  • SEO: Ensure localized content includes relevant keywords for each market.
  • Testing: Always preview your store in each market to verify accuracy.

🌟 Final Tip: Start with translation + minor contextualization (e.g., hero banners). Only expand to full page overrides if your business truly requires it.