Public vs private app. Pick the path.
How to choose between a public Shopify app (app store, reviewed, distributable) and a custom app (single merchant, unlisted, faster). Cost, distribution, review, and the edge cases.
Two paths, different economics.
A public Shopify app is built for the app store: reviewed by Shopify, distributable to any merchant, priced as a SaaS subscription, and requires 5 to 8 months from kickoff to launch including review. A custom app is built for a single merchant: installed via unlisted install link, no app store review, priced per project by the merchant, and ships in 4 to 12 weeks. Shopify removed the older "private app" category in 2022 and replaced it with custom apps using the same OAuth model as public apps. The decision rests on the tax test: if five or more Shopify stores would pay for the functionality, it is a public app candidate; if only one merchant will ever use it, it is a custom app. Between those poles sits custom-distribution, which lets agencies distribute a custom-built app to a known list of client merchants without app store review.
Public, custom, custom-distribution.
Shopify's 2026 taxonomy has three categories. Public apps are listed on apps.shopify.com, reviewed for technical quality and merchant trust, billed through Shopify's billing API, and available to any merchant. Custom apps are installed on a specific store via an unlisted install link, bypass the app store and its review, and have no built-in billing (the developer invoices the merchant directly). Custom-distribution apps are a variant of custom apps: the same code can be distributed to multiple specific merchants via separate install links per store.
The "private app" category existed from 2017 through early 2022 as a simpler single-store app type that used API key / password authentication instead of OAuth. Shopify deprecated it because it created security tradeoffs and because the custom app model covers the same use cases with better security. Any reference to "private apps" in 2026 documentation is legacy context; new development is public or custom.
The Built for Shopify designation is an orthogonal distinction that applies only to public apps. BfS is Shopify's premium-tier badge for public apps meeting elevated standards on performance, accessibility, Polaris design adoption, and deep Shopify integration. See our app submission checklist for the full BfS criteria.
Public is a business decision, not a technical one.
A public app is a SaaS business. The technical build is 30 to 50 percent of the work; the remaining effort is app store listing copy, screenshots, marketing, support, billing ops, and ongoing maintenance across hundreds or thousands of merchants. The cost structure is front-loaded development (3 to 6 months) followed by per-merchant support overhead that grows linearly with installs. The revenue model is a subscription that starts at 9 to 29 dollars per month for basic apps and can reach several hundred per month for enterprise-tier apps.
The breakeven math is sobering. A 19 dollar per month app with 100 paying merchants generates 1,900 dollars per month; after Shopify's revenue share (15 percent for apps below 1M annual, 20 percent above), that is around 1,600 dollars per month. Development cost for a mid-complexity app is 40 to 120K depending on scope. The math says: break even at around 250 paying merchants, profit meaningfully at 1000+. Most public apps never reach that number. The successful ones reach it because they occupy a defensible niche (specific merchant segment, specific integration depth) that incumbent apps do not serve well.
The upside: a successful public app compounds. Top apps (Klaviyo, Recharge, Gorgias, Loox) have built 100M+ businesses on top of Shopify's distribution. The app store provides discovery, billing, and trust that would cost 10x more to build standalone. For developers with a specific merchant-pain insight and the runway to sustain 12 to 18 months before breakeven, public is the path that creates real enterprise value.
Custom is faster and cheaper.
A custom Shopify app solves a specific merchant problem for a specific merchant. No app store listing. No review. No SaaS billing integration. The engagement is priced per project: 10K to 50K for a narrow-scope custom app (single integration, single workflow), 50K to 200K for a broader custom app (multi-step workflow, embedded admin UI, third-party API integrations). Timeline is 4 to 12 weeks depending on scope.
The use cases that justify custom. One, a merchant has an internal process that existing public apps do not cover cleanly (a retailer's proprietary fulfillment logic, a B2B merchant's tiered pricing rules, a brand's specific subscription mechanic). Two, the merchant needs integration with an internal system (a custom ERP, a custom warehouse management system) that no public app targets. Three, the merchant wants IP ownership of the code, not a license. Four, the merchant is on a compressed timeline (3 to 6 weeks) that app store review would not accommodate.
The tradeoff: no distribution. The code lives on one store. If the merchant changes platforms later, the investment evaporates. If the merchant's team wants to hand off the code to a new developer, the documentation burden is on the original developer. And because custom apps do not use Shopify's billing API, the developer or agency invoices the merchant directly, which creates its own operational overhead. All of that said, for most agency-built Shopify functionality, custom is the correct path: the economics of a one-time build against a one-merchant need beat the SaaS model for work that does not serve a broader market.
The agency middle path.
Custom-distribution is the often-overlooked path that fits most agency and platform work. The same custom app codebase is distributed to multiple specific merchants via separate install links per store. Each merchant installs independently; the app is not on the app store; there is no review. But the developer can maintain one codebase serving N merchants, which is meaningfully cheaper than building one custom app per merchant.
The fit is agencies building tools for their client portfolio. A Shopify agency with 40 active DTC clients can build a "client dashboard" app (multi-client reporting, onboarding workflows, agency-specific integrations) and distribute it to the 40 clients without publishing on the app store. Each client gets a unique install link; the agency maintains one codebase. Total cost across 40 installations is 10 to 20K for the build plus hosting; alternative (40 one-off custom apps) would cost 400K+.
The limits: each merchant needs an install link from the developer, which makes the model unsuitable for truly public distribution. The developer is still responsible for billing arrangements with each merchant (Shopify's billing API is not available to custom-distribution apps as of 2026). For a tool serving a known, finite merchant list, custom-distribution is the sweet spot. For a tool intended for any Shopify merchant who finds it, the public-app path remains the only option.
Three questions, one answer.
Question one: how many merchants will use this? One: custom. A known list of up to 100: custom-distribution. Any merchant who finds the app store listing: public. The answer to this question alone picks the category in 80 percent of cases.
Question two: what is the revenue model? Merchant pays a per-project fee: custom or custom-distribution. Merchant pays a recurring subscription through Shopify's billing API: public. The revenue model determines whether app store review is worth the overhead (for subscription revenue, yes; for project revenue, no).
Question three: what is the timeline? 4 to 12 weeks: custom. 5 to 8 months: public. The timeline sets an upper bound; if the merchant needs the tool live in 6 weeks, public is off the table regardless of revenue model. For related reading see our GraphQL Admin API guide for the technical layer that both app types use, and embedded vs standalone app architecture for the UI decision that follows the distribution decision.
Six answers.
What is the difference between a Shopify public and custom app?
A public app is listed on the Shopify App Store, goes through Shopify's review process, and can be installed by any Shopify merchant. A custom app is installed by a single merchant from the Shopify admin, does not appear on the App Store, does not go through full review, and cannot be reused across stores without reinstallation. Shopify deprecated the older 'private app' category in 2022 and replaced it with the custom app model, which uses the same OAuth and API patterns as public apps but without distribution. For 2026, the choice is almost always public-vs-custom, not public-vs-private.
When should I build a public app vs a custom app?
Build a public app when the functionality is generic enough to serve many merchants and you want recurring revenue from app store subscribers. Plan for 3 to 6 months of development plus 2 to 8 weeks of app review, so 5 to 8 months total before launch. Build a custom app when the functionality is specific to one merchant's operational needs, the budget comes from that merchant rather than a SaaS model, and you need to ship in 4 to 12 weeks. The tax test: if five other Shopify stores would also pay for it, it is a public app candidate. If only this one store will ever use it, it is a custom app.
What is Built for Shopify and should I pursue it?
Built for Shopify (BfS) is Shopify's premium-tier designation for public apps that meet elevated standards on performance, accessibility, Polaris design system adoption, and deep Shopify integration. BfS apps get priority placement in the app store, a Built for Shopify badge, and higher merchant trust. The review process is stricter: performance benchmarks, a11y audit, design review, and technical integration depth checks. For a public app planning to compete in a crowded category (email marketing, reviews, upsells), BfS is worth the 2 to 4 additional weeks of prep. For a niche or early-stage public app, skip BfS for v1 and earn it later once the app has traction.
Can a custom app be converted to a public app later?
Yes, though not trivially. The technical work is moderate: a custom app is OAuth-compliant so authentication translates directly, but public-app distribution requires billing integration, installation flows, uninstallation handling, and privacy webhooks that custom apps can skip. Expect 3 to 6 weeks of additional engineering. The bigger question is whether the custom app's scope actually serves multiple merchants. Most custom apps are built for one merchant's operational quirks; generalizing them for public distribution typically requires rewriting 30 to 50 percent of the business logic to accommodate use cases the original merchant did not have.
How long does public app review take in 2026?
Standard app review cadence is 2 to 4 weeks for first-time submissions, 1 to 2 weeks for subsequent submissions from established developers. Built for Shopify review is an additional 2 to 4 weeks on top of standard review. Resubmission after a failure adds another 1 to 2 weeks per cycle. Realistic calendar planning: allow 6 weeks between code-complete and launch for a first-time public app submission, 3 weeks for an experienced developer's follow-up app. The most common review failures are missing required webhooks (GDPR data requests, app uninstalls), unclear pricing descriptions, and Polaris design-system deviations that Shopify flags as jarring for merchants.
What does custom-distribution mean?
Custom-distribution is a subset of the custom app path. A custom app is installed on one merchant's store via OAuth; a custom-distribution app is a custom app distributed to multiple specific merchants via unlisted install links. Each installation is one-to-one and does not go through app store review, but the developer can share install links with a list of chosen merchants. This fits agency-built tools that serve a client portfolio (10 to 100 merchants, all known to the agency) without the overhead of app store review. For public distribution to any Shopify merchant, only full public-app status works.
Apps are software.
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