Author: Nadali. Prepared using AI.
On October 28, 2026, Shopify added three simulation goals to SimGym: the entire shopping journey, product discovery and add-to-cart confidence. Recommendations gained numbered page markers and links to explanations and replays of AI shoppers’ visits.
In brief: a small online-store owner can select a specific question to investigate, rather than only compare two themes. However, simulation produces hypotheses to check, not evidence of increased sales.
Access and limitations
Shopify’s help page requires a Liquid storefront, active plan, enabled Shopify Network Intelligence and an eligible product published to the Online Store sales channel: not a gift card and priced above zero. Hydrogen, headless storefronts and permanent password pages are unsupported. Private mode alone does not prevent simulations.
A monthly simulation allowance is included, but the help page does not specify its size. After it is exhausted, a successful additional single-theme simulation costs US$0.75; a comparison costs US$1.50. The price requires approval before launch. Bot protection can interrupt an AI shopper’s journey, and simulated behavior may differ from real behavior.
The app listing labels it AI Research Preview, lists English and gives December 8, 2025 as the launch date. This news therefore concerns the October update, not SimGym’s initial release.
Using results without fooling yourself
Our editorial recommendation for store owners:
- Write down one question before starting: for example, whether product sizing is explained clearly enough. This is an illustrative example, not a result from our testing.
- Open the explanation and visit replay for a specific recommendation. Compare them with the current page: confirm a suspected problem rather than simply repeat the AI’s conclusion.
- Separate a bot-access failure from confusing design. Do not automatically disable store protection to obtain a more complete report.
- Select one confirmed problem, agree on a change with the responsible person and retain the previous version. After the fix, also assess real enquiries and orders; simulation results cannot replace those data.
The takeaway: focused goals can narrow a storefront investigation. A decision to change the store should rest on a verified problem, not merely the existence of a recommendation.
Sources read November 1, 2026. Nadali has not run simulations or measured sales. Cover: a reused Nadali AI illustration, not Shopify’s interface or a photograph of a test.
