Glossary

The terms used across these docs, in plain language. Where a term has its own guide, the definition links to it.

App block - A Shopify theme block named Swatches that you drag into a section to place the product-group widget at an exact spot. Online Store 2.0 themes only. See product page widget.

App embed - A Shopify theme toggle that loads a Color Swatches widget and places it automatically. There are two: Product swatches and Collection swatches. See installation.

Automation - A rule that builds and keeps product groups in sync from Shopify collections or product metafields, so you don’t add products by hand. Advanced plan and up. See automations.

Collection filters - Color filters on collection pages, drawn by Shopify’s Search & Discovery app from metafields Color Swatches writes. Advanced plan and up. See collection filters.

Combined Listings - Shopify’s native way to group variants under one listing. Product groups are the more flexible alternative and don’t require Shopify Plus. (Shopify term.)

Displayed on - The setting (display_for) that controls whether a group’s swatches show on product pages, collection pages, or both. See CSV format.

Filter color - The base color (Red, Blue, Multicolor) each swatch maps to so shoppers can filter a collection by color. Many swatch names can map to one filter color. See collection filters.

Linked groups - Two or more separate product groups shown together as labeled rows on the same product page, for example “Core” and “Limited”. Advanced plan and up. See linked groups.

Multi-option groups - A single group covering two or three options (like Style and Color), where each swatch row filters the next. Advanced plan and up. See multi-option groups.

Option - A Shopify product option read from your variants, like Color or Size. Used by variant swatches only. Not the same as an option name, which is a label you set on a product group.

Option name - The label shown above a row of swatches, like Color, Style, or Size.

Option value - A single value inside an option, like Red or Medium. Each value can be linked to a swatch. See set up variant swatches.

Product group - A set of separate Shopify products linked together so a row of swatches appears on each one. The core of the app’s first feature. See product groups.

Public metafields - An optional setting that exposes group data under the pl_swatches.groups key for your theme code, the Shopify Storefront API, and other apps. See public metafields.

Section - Two distinct features share this word. For product groups, sections are labeled rows created with linked groups. For variant swatches, sections group an option’s values under headings, set up on the option itself. See variant sections.

Show only unique swatches - A group setting that displays one swatch per name, used to avoid duplicate pills when several products share a value. See display options.

Swatch - The visual element a shopper clicks or hovers: a color circle, an image, or a text pill.

Swatch style - How a variant option renders as a whole: color or image swatches, variant image thumbnails, or pill buttons. Set per option for variant swatches. Not the same as a swatch type, which describes one swatch. See choose a style for each option.

Swatch type - How a single swatch renders: one color, two colors, custom image, product image, image with text, or pill/button. Not the same as a swatch style, which applies to a whole variant option. See swatch types.

Swatches Library - The central list of every swatch you’ve created. One swatch can be reused across groups and option values; editing it updates every place it appears.

Sync - Writing the latest group and option data to Shopify metafields, where your storefront reads it from. Shoppers only see what has been synced. See changes not appearing.

Variant swatches - Visual selectors that replace Shopify’s default variant dropdowns on a single product. The app’s second feature. See variant swatches.

Widget - The app’s on-storefront UI. There’s a product-group widget and a variant swatches widget, each with a product-page and a collection-page form.