Shopify’s AI Sidekick Gets a Major Upgrade (2026 Update Explained)

Shopify has been quietly improving its AI tools over the last year, and the 2026 Sidekick update is easily the most useful so far. As someone who runs a Shopify store myself, I can genuinely say this update makes everyday tasks faster, simpler, and far less overwhelming.

This isn’t flashy AI for headlines — it’s practical AI that helps you actually run your store.

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What Is Shopify Sidekick?

Sidekick is an AI assistant built directly into the admin area of Shopify.

Instead of searching help articles or watching tutorials, you can just ask Sidekick questions in plain English, such as:

• “Why were sales down last week?”

• “Write a product description for this item”

• “Help me set up a discount”

• “Explain this report simply”

  
  

Because it has access to your real store data, the answers are personalised and actually useful.

Shopify Sidekick instantly shows your best-selling products using real store data.

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What’s New in the 2026 Update?

The latest update focuses on making Sidekick more helpful and more hands-on.

Smarter explanations

Sidekick now explains analytics, reports, and store performance in clear, simple language. You don’t need to understand ecommerce jargon to know what’s going on.

Faster content creation

Product descriptions, emails, FAQs, and page copy are quicker to generate and need less editing. This alone saves a lot of time if you regularly add products.

Step-by-step help

Instead of just giving advice, Sidekick now guides you through tasks like:

• Creating discounts

• Improving product pages

• Understanding what to optimise next

  
  

Less switching between tools

Because Sidekick lives inside Shopify, you don’t need separate AI tools, tabs, or plugins. Everything happens in one place.

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Why This Matters (From My Own Store)

Running a Shopify store means wearing a lot of hats — products, marketing, emails, analytics, customers.

Since using Sidekick:

• I spend less time on admin

• I get quicker answers without Googling

• Writing copy feels easier

• Analytics feel far less intimidating

It honestly feels like having a built-in assistant that understands my store and is available whenever I need it.

My store, This Little Gift — built on Shopify, made easier with Sidekick.

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💲Shopify Pricing (Sidekick Included)

Sidekick is included with Shopify plans, so there’s no separate AI fee.

Here’s a simple overview of Shopify pricing (UK-based, approximate):

• Starter – around £5/month: Best for selling through social media or simple setups

• Basic Shopify – around £25/month: Ideal for new stores and solo founders

• Shopify – around £65/month: Good for growing stores that need more reports and features

• Advanced Shopify – around £344/month: Designed for scaling businesses with deeper analytics

• Shopify Plus – from around £2,000/month Enterprise-level solution for large brands

  
  

All core plans include access to Sidekick and other Shopify AI tools.

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⭐Shopify Sidekick Score: 91/100

After using it in a real store, here’s my honest score:

• Very easy to use

• Huge time saver

• Great for content and admin

• Strong analytics explanations

Final score: 91/100

There’s still room for improvement, but for a built-in AI tool, it’s one of the most useful I’ve seen.

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Final Thoughts

Shopify’s 2026 Sidekick update turns AI into something genuinely practical. If you already use Shopify, this upgrade makes running your store simpler and less stressful. And if you’re thinking about starting a store, Sidekick is a strong reason to choose Shopify.

👉 If you want to try Shopify with Sidekick included, click here