Migrate Customers to Shopify: What Transfers (Passwords, Orders, Reviews and More)

You've decided to move your store, and the worry isn't the new design. It's whether your customer list, order history and reviews make it across, and whether shoppers will be locked out of their accounts on launch day. This guide shows how to migrate customers to Shopify and what happens to every other kind of store data on the way.

Short answer: Products, customers, historical orders, gift cards, blog posts and pages can all move to Shopify through CSV files, migration apps or Shopify's APIs. Customer passwords can't be migrated, discount codes can't be imported with Shopify's CSV tools, and reviews move through your new review app's import.

Disclosure: this post contains an affiliate link for Shopify. If you sign up through it, Meghbalika Tech may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Key takeaways

• Shopify says customer passwords can't be migrated from another online store with a CSV file, because they're encrypted outside Shopify.
• Shopify's CSV import covers products and customers, while historical orders need a migration app or Shopify's API, and discount codes can only be exported to CSV.
• Shopify recommends importing products first, then customers, then historical orders, so imported orders connect to the right products and customers.
• A customer CSV file imported into Shopify must be 15 MB or smaller, so larger lists need splitting into several files.
• Shopify's GiftCard API lets a migration set each gift card's code, so customers' existing gift card codes can keep working after the move.

What transfers when you migrate to Shopify?

Most store data transfers, but by different routes, and a few things don't transfer at all. Shopify's migration guide lists CSV files, migration apps and the Admin API as the main routes.

Data	How it moves	Watch out for
Products, variants, images	Product CSV, Store Migration app, migration apps	Up to 3 options per product; images re-downloaded from their URLs
Collections	Migration app, or rebuild by hand	Check rules and sort order after import
Customers	Customer CSV, Store Migration app, migration apps, API	15 MB file limit; email consent column
Passwords	Don't transfer	Customers sign in again
Historical orders	Migration apps or API (no CSV import)	Staff get a new order email per imported order
Gift cards and store credit	Migration apps or API	Keep the same codes so customers' cards still work
Reviews	Your new review app's import	Export them from the old platform first
Blog posts and pages	Migration apps or API; copy and paste a few pages	Rebuild images and internal links
Discount codes	Recreate, or use an app or API	No CSV import in Shopify
URLs	URL redirect CSV import	Needs a redirect plan

Shopify's free Store Migration app moves product and customer data from Square, WooCommerce, Etsy, Wix, Amazon, eBay, Clover and Lightspeed R/X (Vend), either from a CSV file or, where supported, by connecting your old account. That covers simple Amazon and eBay listing imports too. Orders, gift cards and reviews need other routes. Platform-specific steps are in our guides to WooCommerce to Shopify and Wix to Shopify.

How do you migrate customers to Shopify?

You migrate customers to Shopify by exporting them from the old platform, matching the columns to Shopify's customer CSV template, and importing them after your products. Shopify's customer import page has the template and the rules.

1. Export customers from your old platform, including addresses, tags and marketing consent.
2. Map the columns to Shopify's template. The Accepts Email Marketing column takes only "yes" or "no", so mark "yes" only for customers who actually opted in.
3. Split large files. Customer CSV files must be 15 MB or smaller.
4. Import in order: products first, then customers, then orders.
5. Tag the import (for example, "migrated") so you can build a segment and contact these customers later.
6. Leave overwrite off unless you mean it. Shopify warns that overwriting replaces all of a matching customer's data, including tags.
7. Spot-check 10 to 20 profiles against the old store: name, email, address and consent.

What happens to customer passwords?

Customer passwords don't transfer to Shopify. Shopify says you can't migrate customer passwords from another online store with a CSV, because they're encrypted outside Shopify.

That matters less than it used to. With Shopify's customer accounts, shoppers enter their email and receive a one-time 6-digit code, and a password isn't required. Shopify says legacy customer accounts are deprecated. On a store still using them, Shopify's import page says to invite imported customers to create new passwords.

Either way, tell customers before they try to sign in. Here's a simple message plan:

1. One week before launch: a short notice that the store is moving and accounts are coming across.
2. Launch day: how to sign in now (enter your email, use the code) and where to get help.
3. One week after: a reminder for anyone who hasn't signed in yet.
4. Four weeks after: review support emails for sign-in problems and fix what keeps coming up.

Keep these as service notices. Shopify's import page reminds you to send marketing emails only to customers who have opted in.

Does order history transfer to Shopify?

Order history can transfer, but only through a migration app or Shopify's API, not a CSV import. Shopify's migration guide describes these as historical orders, meaning orders that have already been fulfilled.

Before you import orders:

• Turn off staff order notifications. Shopify notes that staff set to receive new order notifications get an email for every imported order.
• Check customer emails are off. The order API can send order and shipping confirmations, so confirm your migration app won't email customers about old orders.
• Ask how inventory is handled, so old orders don't reduce today's stock counts.
• Keep the old payment account open. Payments for old orders were taken by your previous provider, so keep that account until refunds and disputes on those orders are settled.

What about gift cards, reviews and discount codes?

Gift cards and reviews can move with the right tools, while discount codes have to be recreated. Each needs a separate step in your plan.

• Gift cards: Shopify lists migration apps and the GiftCard API. The API lets you set the gift card code, so a careful migration keeps customers' existing codes and balances working.
• Reviews: Shopify's migration guide doesn't list a route for reviews, so they move through the import tool of the review app you choose. Export reviews from your old platform before you close it, and check the new app's file format and how it matches reviews to products.
• Discount codes: Shopify's CSV tools export discounts but don't import them. Recreate the codes still in use, especially any printed on packaging or shared with partners.
• URLs: URL redirects can be imported from a CSV, up to 100,000 per store (20,000,000 on Shopify Plus). Plan them page by page, because old links only work if you redirect them.

What can't a migration carry over, and when can you do it yourself?

A migration can't carry over passwords, reviews you never exported, or the quality of the original data. Duplicate customers, messy variants and missing images all move across unless someone cleans them first.

You can usually handle it yourself if:

• You have a few hundred products and one customer list.
• Your old platform is supported by Shopify's Store Migration app.
• You don't need order history in Shopify.

Help is worth paying for when you need order history, gift card balances, several data sources, or a tight cutover with no downtime. Our Shopify migration cost guide shows what drives the price, and our list of product CSV import errors covers the problems DIY imports hit most.

Want to test the move first? Open a store through Shopify's free trial and run a sample import of a few products and customers. You'll see which fields arrive cleanly and which need cleanup before the full migration, whoever does it.

FAQ

Can I migrate customer passwords to Shopify?

No. Shopify says customer passwords can't be migrated from another online store with a CSV, because they're encrypted outside Shopify. With Shopify's customer accounts, shoppers sign in with their email and a one-time 6-digit code, so they don't need a password. Stores on legacy customer accounts, which Shopify says are deprecated, need to invite customers to create new passwords.

Does my order history transfer when I move to Shopify?

It can, but not through a CSV import. Shopify lists migration apps, the Order API and the Transaction API as routes for historical orders. Import products and customers first so orders link correctly, and turn off staff order notifications, because Shopify sends one for every imported order. Keep your old payment account open while refunds on those orders are still possible.

How do I move product reviews to Shopify?

Export your reviews from the old platform as a file before you close it, then import them into the review app you'll use on Shopify. Shopify's migration guide doesn't cover reviews, so the new app's import tool sets the rules. Check its file format and how it matches reviews to products, then spot-check a few product pages after the import.

Plan your move

Meghbalika Tech, a Shopify service partner that builds, migrates and redesigns stores, offers Store Migration starting at $800 on Shopify's Partner Directory, and final quotes depend on scope. Tell us about your store and get a quote, including which data you need to keep.