Publishing pushes your layout from Instant to your connected Shopify theme. Once published, the layout is live on your storefront.
Prerequisites
Shopify connected with status Connected.
At least one layout in the builder.
A plan that allows publishing your layout type (see plan requirements below).
Instant Embed enabled on your theme — Instant prompts you if it isn't.
Publish a layout
Open the layout you want to publish.
Click Publish in the header. (The button is disabled until the project has a layout.)
In the Publish to Shopify menu, review the layout and, under Advanced options, the target theme. Click Change to publish to a different theme.
Click Publish {layout type} (for example, Publish page).
If Instant Embed isn't enabled, follow the prompt to enable it, then click Verify & Publish — or choose Skip & Publish.
Watch the progress steps complete:
Preparing to publish
Optimizing Liquid, CSS & JS
Deploying to Shopify
When the status shows Published, your layout is live.
What happens when you publish
Instant converts your layout into Shopify-compatible Liquid, CSS, and JavaScript, then uploads it to the theme selected in Settings → Shopify. The layout's status in Layouts & layers changes to Published.
After a successful publish, the menu offers next steps for the layout type — for example View live page, Open theme editor, or Assign products / Assign collections for a template. See After you publish and How publishing works.
Plan requirements
You can build and preview every layout type on any plan. Some layout types need a paid plan to publish:
Layout type | Minimum plan |
Home page | Starter |
Product or collection template | Starter |
Header or footer (navigation) | Starter |
Cart drawer | Pro |
Publishing to a draft theme also requires Pro or higher. When you try to publish a gated type, Instant shows an upgrade prompt with the exact plan required. Your plan's limits always appear in Settings → Plans.
On the Free plan, layouts publish with a Built with Instant badge on your storefront. Upgrade to remove the badge. Compare tiers in Compare plans.
Tips
Enable Instant Embed before your first publish for the best storefront performance.
Re-publish after edits — Instant doesn't update Shopify until you publish again.
Troubleshooting
The Publish button is disabled
Create a layout first, and open it in the builder.
Publishing asks me to upgrade
The layout type needs a higher plan. Upgrade to the plan shown in the prompt, then publish again. See Upgrade your plan.
"App embed not enabled" error
Enable Instant Embed in your Shopify theme editor and click Verify & Publish. See Enable the Instant app embed.
The published page looks different from the builder preview
Confirm you're viewing the correct theme and that Instant Embed is enabled, then re-publish. See Publishing troubleshooting.