Shopify checkout.liquid sunset (Aug 2024 → Aug 2025 → June 30 2026) — unmigrated customizations will be DELETED

Claim: Shopify is forcibly sunsetting checkout.liquid customizations on a cascading schedule:

• August 13, 2024 — Information/Shipping/Payment steps (Shopify Plus only)
• August 28, 2025 — Thank You / Order Status pages + Additional Scripts + script-tag apps (Plus)
• August 26, 2026 — Same for non-Plus stores
• April 15, 2026 — New Shopify Scripts cannot be edited or added
• June 30, 2026 — Shopify Scripts fully deprecated (deadline extended from Aug 2025 in April 2025)
• After January 2026 — Shopify auto-upgrades remaining Plus stores

Quote (Shopify Help Center, Plus upgrade guide):

"All customizations using additional scripts, apps with script tags, or checkout.liquid on the Thank you and Order status pages will be lost."

Sources: shopify.dev; changelog.shopify.com; help.shopify.com Plus upgrade guide.

Confidence: Verified.

Why this is a clean lock-in case study: Plus merchants who built custom checkouts over years got roughly 18 months from announcement to forced migration. Rebuilds run $2k-$10k with 4-8 week timelines (see Shopify checkout customization rebuild: $2k–$10k per shop, 4–8 weeks for complex Scripts). Shopify decides when customer-paid extension code expires. Use as the lead example in the public article — see Research brief: Owning your stack — why agency-managed platforms cost more than they save (piece 4 of 15) editorial direction.