How to Add Social Media Links to a Shopify Store

Connecting your social media profiles to your Shopify store is one of the quickest ways to build brand trust and turn one-time shoppers into a loyal community. This guide will walk you through exactly how to add those social media links and icons, using your theme’s built-in settings and a few other simple methods. We’ll cover the most common way to get it done in minutes, plus solutions for adding links to other parts of your store like the header or specific pages.

Why Adding Social Media Links Matters for Your Shopify Store

Before we get into the steps, it's worth taking a moment to understand why this small task has such a big impact. It’s not just about filling empty space in your website’s footer. Linking your social profiles is a strategic move that helps you build a stronger, more resilient brand.

• Builds Trust and Authenticity: When a new visitor lands on your site, they're looking for signs that your brand is legitimate and credible. Active, professional-looking social media profiles act as powerful social proof. They show that there are real people behind the brand and a community of followers who already trust you. It says, "We're a real business, here to stay, and you can see what we're all about."
• Grows Your Audience Organically: Not every visitor is ready to make a purchase on their first visit. By giving them an easy way to follow you on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook, you’re providing a low-commitment way for them to stay connected. This turns a potentially lost visitor into a warm lead. You can then nurture that relationship through your social content until they’re ready to buy.
• Creates a Cohesive Brand Experience: Your brand isn't just your website, it's the entire ecosystem of touchpoints a customer has with your business. Linking your social platforms creates a seamless path for users to move between your store and your content hubs. This reinforces your brand identity, messaging, and visual style, creating a memorable experience that keeps you top-of-mind.
• Drives Re-Engagement and Repeat Business: Social media is one of the most effective channels for retargeting and re-engaging past customers. When a shopper follows you, they're giving you permission to appear in their feed with new product announcements, special promotions, and engaging content that reminds them why they loved your brand in the first place.

Step 1: Gather Your Full Social Media URLs

First things first: you need the right links. This might sound obvious, but it’s a common point of error. You need the full, complete URL for each of your social media profiles, not just your username handle.

Using the incorrect format is the number one reason why icons sometimes don't appear after you've added them. Go to each of your profiles in a web browser and copy the entire URL from the address bar.

Your links should look like this:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yourpagename
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yourusername
• X (formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/yourusername
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@yourusername
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/yourusername
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/yourchannelname
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/yourcompanyname

Save these links in a text document so they’re ready to copy and paste. Double-check them for any typos!

Step 2: Add Social Links Using Your Theme Customizer (The Easiest Method)

Most modern Shopify themes, including the default Dawn theme and popular options like Debut, Sense, and Ride, have a built-in section for adding social media links. This feature will automatically place correctly styled icons in a designated spot, which is typically the footer of your store.

Here’s how to find and use this setting:

1. Navigate to the Theme Editor

From your Shopify Admin dashboard, go to Online Store in the left-hand navigation menu, then click on Themes. Find your current theme and click the green Customize button. This will open the visual theme editor.

2. Find Your Theme Settings

Once you're in the theme editor, look at the menu on the far left. You should see an icon that looks like a paintbrush or a gear. Click on this to open the overarching Theme settings. This section controls the global styles of your store, like colors, typography, and, of course, social media links.

3. Locate the 'Social Media' Section

Inside the Theme settings, scroll down until you see an option called Social Media (or something similar, like "Social Profiles" or "Social Links"). Click to open it.

4. Paste Your URLs

You’ll now see a list of fields for different social platforms like Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and more. This is where you’ll paste the full URLs you gathered in Step 1. Copy each link and paste it into its corresponding field.

Pro Tip: Only fill in the fields for the platforms you are actively using. If you paste a link into a field, the theme will automatically display its icon. Leaving a field blank means no icon will show up for that platform.

5. Save Your Changes

Once you’ve added all your links, click the Save button in the top right corner of the editor. Now, visit your live website and scroll down to the footer. You should see beautiful, clickable icons that lead directly to your social media profiles!

Method 2: Adding Social Links to Other Parts of Your Store

What if you want your social media icons somewhere other than the footer? Perhaps you want them in the header for more visibility, or on a specific "About Us" page. Here’s how to handle those scenarios.

Adding Social Icons to Your Header

Some, but not all, themes have an option to show social media icons in the header as well as the footer. To check if yours does, follow these steps:

1. In the theme editor, instead of clicking "Theme Settings," look for the Header section in the main left-hand panel.
2. Click on it to open the header settings.
3. Look for a checkbox that says something like "Show social media icons." If it's available, check the box.
4. The theme will use the same links you already entered in the "Social media" section under Theme Settings, so you don't need to add them again.
5. Remember to click Save.

If you don’t see this option, your theme doesn't support header icons out of the box. You'd need to edit the theme code, which is an advanced step, or use an app from the Shopify App Store that can add this functionality.

Adding Social Links to Pages or Product Descriptions

Sometimes you might want to invite people to follow you on a specific page, like your order confirmation page ("Thanks for your order! Follow us for updates!") or an "About Us" page.

You can easily add text-based links anywhere you have a rich text editor:

1. Go to the page, product, or blog post you want to edit.
2. In the content editor, type out a call-to-action, like "Follow us on Instagram for behind-the-scenes content."
3. Highlight the text you want to turn into a link (e.g., "Instagram").
4. Click the Insert link icon (it looks like a chain link) in the toolbar.
5. Paste your full social media URL and give the link a title for SEO if you wish.
6. Click Insert link and then save the page.

This is a great way to contextually promote your social channels where it makes the most sense for your customer journey.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Running into problems? Don’t worry. Here are the fixes for the most common issues people face when adding social media links to Shopify.

"I've added the links, but the icons aren't showing up."

• Check the URL Format: This is the culprit 99% of the time. Make absolutely sure you have pasted the full URL, including the https://www. part. Pasting just a username like "@mybrand" will not work.
• Clear Your Cache: Sometimes your browser might be showing you an old, cached version of your site. Try clearing your browser cache or opening your store in a private/incognito window to see the freshest version.
• Theme-Specific Quirk: Some older or less common themes might require an extra step, like enabling a "Show social icons" toggle in the footer settings. Go back to the theme editor, open the Footer section, and look for any related settings.

"The icon for a specific social media platform is missing or wrong."

Shopify themes come with a pre-set library of social media icons (like Font Awesome). If a theme hasn't been updated in a while, it might not have an icon for a newer platform like Threads or a rebranded platform like X.

• Update Your Theme: The best solution is to ensure your theme is updated to the latest version. This will usually refresh the icon library with modern logos.
• Contact Theme Support: If updating doesn’t help, the next best step is to contact your theme's developer for support. They can often provide a quick fix or guidance on how to update the icons manually.

Final Thoughts

Adding your social media links to your Shopify store is a fundamental step in building a complete and trustworthy online brand presence. By using your theme's simple customization settings, you can connect with your customers across multiple platforms, build a community, and drive repeat business without needing to write a single line of code.

Now that visitors can easily find your social profiles, the real work begins: filling those feeds with fantastic content that represents your brand. At Postbase, we built a modern social media management tool precisely for this next step. We wanted something that makes it easy to visually plan your content calendar, schedule posts across all your platforms (especially short-form video), manage all your comments and DMs in one unified inbox, and track what’s working. It helps you keep your new followers engaged without letting social media management become another full-time job.