Shopify Hydrogen

Hydrogen is Shopify's React-based framework purpose-built for headless Shopify storefronts. It ships with built-in Storefront API hooks, server-side rendering, streaming, and tight integration with Shopify's commerce primitives - cart management, product queries, collection pages, and search.

Hydrogen runs on Oxygen, Shopify's global edge hosting platform, which means deployment is a git push and your store serves pages from edge nodes worldwide. SSL, CDN, and scaling are handled automatically.

The main advantage over general-purpose frameworks like Next.js is reduced boilerplate. The commerce primitives are built in, so your team spends time on the storefront experience rather than wiring up API integrations. The trade-off is that Hydrogen is optimised for commerce paths - if your project has significant non-commerce functionality, it can feel constraining. See our Hydrogen vs Next.js comparison for a detailed breakdown.

Think: the React framework that speaks Shopify natively.

Frequently asked questions

What is Shopify Hydrogen?

Hydrogen is Shopify's React-based framework purpose-built for headless Shopify storefronts. It includes built-in commerce hooks for cart, product queries, and checkout, plus server-side rendering and streaming out of the box. It runs on Remix under the hood.

What is the difference between Hydrogen and Next.js for Shopify?

Hydrogen ships with Shopify commerce primitives built in, reducing boilerplate. Next.js is a general-purpose framework that requires manually wiring up Storefront API integrations. Hydrogen deploys to Shopify's Oxygen hosting; Next.js typically deploys to Vercel. Choose Hydrogen for pure commerce, Next.js for projects with significant non-commerce functionality.

Does Hydrogen require Shopify Plus?

Hydrogen works with any Shopify plan that has Storefront API access. However, Oxygen hosting is included with Shopify Plus. Non-Plus stores can build with Hydrogen but need to host on Vercel, Netlify, or another platform.

Related terms: Shopify Oxygen, Storefront API, Headless Commerce. For hands-on help, see Flux's headless Shopify team.