Product type · Updated
Help center for Shopify apps
Shopify app developers answer the same merchant questions over and over: how to turn the app on in a theme, why a block isn't showing, what each plan includes, what happens on uninstall. Most are documented somewhere, and most of that documentation is a release behind. usedocs keeps it current and answers from it.
TL;DR
Short answer
A help center for a Shopify app has to answer merchants fast, because support experience shows up in your App Store reviews. usedocs answers merchants from your help center with a link to the source, proposes edits when a merged pull request changes a setting or a step, and turns the questions merchants ask that your docs can't answer into drafted articles. You approve everything in one queue.
Who this is for
Founders and small teams building apps for Shopify merchants, usually one to ten people, often answering support themselves across time zones. Typical shape: a short FAQ or a Notion page, setup that depends on each merchant's theme, billing handled through Shopify, and frequent releases as the platform and merchants' needs change. Best fit for apps with a setup flow merchants complete on their own.
Problems this solves
- Merchants install at all hours and ask setup questions while you're asleep, and a slow reply can turn into a low App Store review.
- Setup depends on the merchant's theme, so one generic install article leaves many merchants stuck at the same step.
- You ship a change to the app's settings and the help articles still describe the old screen for weeks.
- Billing runs through Shopify, so merchants ask how charges, plan changes, and trials work, and the answers live in your head.
- You know which questions repeat, but never get time to turn them into articles.
How usedocs works for this job
Import what you have Point usedocs at your current help pages, FAQ, or Notion. Articles arrive as drafts, with redirects from old paths when the old site is on your domain.
Connect your app's repository Install the GitHub app. When a merged pull request changes a setting, a step, or a plan limit an article describes, you get a proposed edit with the change attached.
Answer merchants with sources Add the widget to your app's admin pages or link Ask AI from your App Store listing. Merchants get answers with a link to the article, and an honest no when the docs don't cover it.
Fill the gaps merchants find Questions the assistant couldn't answer become ranked gaps with drafted articles, so the next merchant who asks gets an answer.
What you get
Setup articles that match the current app
Edits are proposed when your code changes the screens and settings merchants follow during setup.
Answers around the clock
The assistant answers documented questions any time, with sources, and hands off by email when it can't.
Drafts for theme specific questions
Questions about particular themes or setups turn into ranked gaps, so you can write the variations merchants actually hit.
A help center on your domain
Docs layout, custom domain or subfolder, translations for merchants outside English speaking markets, and llms.txt, on one $99 plan.
Write setup for the themes merchants use
Start with one install article that works for most themes, then let the assistant's unanswered questions tell you which themes and setups need their own notes. Merchants describe their theme by name, so title those articles the same way. When a release changes how the app appears in a theme, the proposed edit lands in your review queue before the next merchant installs.
Answer the uninstall question honestly
Merchants want to know what happens to their data and their storefront if they uninstall. Write it plainly: what's removed, what stays, and how long you keep data. It's one of the questions that most affects trust, and an assistant that cites a clear article handles it far better than one that guesses.
Why teams pick usedocs
- Built for small app teams without a support department
- 7 day free trial with no card, then one plan at $99 a month
- Answers cite the article they came from, and refuse when the docs are silent
- Works next to the support inbox you already use
Not for you if
Skip this if your app is a simple one click install with almost no settings, where a short FAQ answers everything. Also skip it if you need a full helpdesk with ticket routing and SLAs; usedocs is the help center and the answers, and it hands off to your inbox.
FAQ
What should a Shopify app help center include?
A quick start for installing and turning the app on, theme specific setup notes, plan and billing answers, troubleshooting for the most common problems, and what happens on uninstall.
Can the usedocs assistant answer merchants inside my app?
Yes. Embed the widget in your app's admin pages, or link the hosted help center with Ask AI from your listing and settings screens.
How does usedocs keep Shopify app docs current?
It reads your merged pull requests and proposes edits to the articles they affect, and checks every live article against your code on a schedule.
Will it answer billing questions?
Public ones, like what each plan includes and how plan changes work, from your billing article. Questions about a specific charge should go to you.
Can I translate the help center for merchants in other countries?
Yes. Growth includes four extra languages, translated automatically or by hand, and kept in step when the source article changes.
What does it cost?
One plan, Growth at $99 a month, with 2,000 AI conversations, 5 seats, and a custom domain, after a 7 day free trial with no card.