Is Your Shopify Plus App Stack Slowing You Down? How to Audit and Optimize

Introduction

Shopify’s App Store makes it easy to add new features in minutes.
But over time, many Shopify Plus stores become bloated with apps they don’t need, don’t use, or that conflict with each other.

The result?

• Slower site speed

• Higher operating costs

• Complicated tech debt

• Lower customer experience scores

In this post, you'll learn how to audit and optimize your app stack — so your store runs faster, cleaner, and smarter.

Signs Your App Stack Needs Help

• Store speed scores are dropping

• Checkout feels clunky or slow

• Admin dashboard is confusing

• Paying for multiple apps that overlap in features

• Apps are conflicting with each other (causing bugs or broken functionality)

• You’re not sure which apps are mission-critical anymore

How to Audit Your Shopify Plus App Stack (Step-by-Step)

1. List Every App Installed

Go to your Shopify admin > Apps > See all installed apps.
Make a spreadsheet with:

• App Name

• Purpose

• Monthly Cost

• When Last Used

2. Categorize Your Apps

Organize them into categories like:

• Core functionality (checkout, payments)

• Marketing (email, SMS, loyalty)

• CRO (upsell, cross-sell, reviews)

• Operations (inventory, shipping, ERP)

• Analytics

3. Identify Overlap and Redundancies

Are two apps doing basically the same thing?
Are some apps offering features that Shopify Plus itself now covers natively (like B2B, markets, etc.)?

If yes — mark them for review.

4. Test Site Speed with and without Apps

Use Google PageSpeed Insights or Shopify's analyzer.
Try disabling heavy apps temporarily (on a clone theme) to measure impact on load times.

Quick Win:
Apps that inject a lot of scripts often hurt speed most.

5. Decide: Keep, Replace, or Remove

Ask for each app:

• Does it drive measurable revenue or operational efficiency?

• Is it well-reviewed and built for Shopify Plus?

• Can a better solution (or native feature) replace it?

If the answer is no → it’s time to replace or remove.

Bonus Tip: "Spring Cleaning" Your Tech Stack Annually

Schedule a full app review once a year (minimum).
New Shopify features come out constantly — staying lean means staying competitive.

Final Thought

Apps should accelerate growth — not create tech debt.
A smaller, smarter, faster tech stack means:

• Better conversion rates

• Lower operational costs

• Fewer customer complaints

• Easier scaling

Simplify now. Thank yourself later.

Call to Action

Want expert help diagnosing tech bloat and hidden growth blockers?
Take the free Merchant Success Plus Assessment to get a full store evaluation.