Shopify Development

Mar 3, 2023

Is It Worth It to Create Your Own Custom Shopify Theme for Your Online Store?

Is It Worth It to Create Your Own Custom Shopify Theme for Your Online Store?

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Mad Brains Technologies

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Why do prebuild Shopify themes suck?

Shopify is an online store that helps business owners to give a look and feel to their brand online. This look and feel are called a theme. Shopify themes are different from shades and grades. You can use a theme for a pre-build custom for your store.


Types of Shopify Themes

Shopify store owners have two options for their customers. One is a pre-build template, and the other is a custom theme. Both have their own features, advantages, and disadvantages.


Let’s take a look at both types of themes.

Pre-build Templates

A Pre-built theme is called a template theme. It is available on the Shopify theme store. These function on a “plug-and-play” model. When you get the template then, simply install it on your website and plug in your store details in place of preset dummy content.

The Shopify theme store contains a wide range of variety of pre-built templates for online businesses. Some templates are free while others are paid.


Pros


Ease of use

The pre-built template is easy to use because never need to know how to code before your Shopify online store. Some of the templates come with features that are not useful for your online store.

You can make some edits and play with the settings of the templates. There are several videos are available online on the Shopify theme store.


Affordability

The best way to get your business online on Shopify without investing too much money is to go with a pre-built template. Some of the templates are available for free on the Shopify theme store.


Quick Set-up

If you want to get your store published online in the shortest time period then a pre-built template is best for you. When you got your pre-planned content, you can easily set up it and within a week you go live for your customers.


Cons


Generic

Yes, it’s a big fear of using a template theme for your Shopify business because there are several other business owners doing the same. The probability is high that your site and other sites would look similar for products and services. 


Limited Functions

In pre-built templates, functions are limited designed and you cannot cater to the needs of your businesses. The pre-built template is not specific for any business type. Even if you get a suitable template for your business but it’s impossible that you get the features you desire for it.


No Updates for Modifications

The hardest things about a pre-built template are if you modify the theme of the code base feature you won’t be able to update it from the developer. It means the maintenance of your site is only dependent on yours.


Custom Themes

According to the name, the custom themes are specifically made for your business. It shows your creativeness and how creative your designer and your developer are, and you can get any feature live on your Shopify store using a custom theme.


Functionality

The biggest benefit of a custom theme is that you can get the best ratio of features for your site. It means your online store has features that are objective for your business and help your customer usability.


Aesthetics

When you visit the online store of any major brand, then you would notice that they used color of the theme, the functions, and the features, all match the brand’s image in the same sense. That is what aesthetics means for an online brand the designs and layouts that make them stand out. This is greatly achieved using a custom theme.


Cons


Cost

It is the most demanding part of running the custom theme for your Shopify store. It requires big capital investment to set it up. And, you have to spend more on its maintenance and key feature updates.


Time spent

When you start your journey timing is a problem. You have to give at least four weeks to it for completely designed with features properly functioning. Also it takes months for run your project on your store.


Pre-Built Templates & Custom Shopify Theme

This section is to help you make an informed decision that which one is fit for your store custom shopify theme or pre-built template.


Pricing

The cost of custom shopify theme is more than a pre-built theme for set up. The pricing is depends on the technical details that are implements in a custom-made theme. And, the most important question is that how should price affect your shopify store?

Shopify theme is the form of investment that you spent your online business. That is why the amount you spend on it determined based on the ROI expect to generate.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it all depends on your Shopify store’s goals and needs. If you looking for a quick and easy you can purchase a pre-built Shopify theme. However, paid themes are flexible to do cool things. You can update and take it to the next level.

Last updated:

Jun 24, 2026

The mad brains logo
The mad brains logo

Mad Brains Technologies

Enterprise UX & Product Strategy Team

Mad Brains is an enterprise UX and product consultancy focused on reducing product risk and accelerating growth. Through UX audits, conversion-led design, and full-stack development, the team helps organizations build scalable digital platforms that drive measurable business outcomes.

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