Test Types & Use Cases

Shogun A/B Testing provides several flexible options for experimenting with your Shopify storefront. Whether you're refining the layout of a single product page or running broader theme-wide changes, you can tailor your tests to suit your goals. Below is an overview of the various test types available and their corresponding uses.

Page Testing

Page-level testing is the most straightforward type of experiment. It allows you to test specific, standalone pages, such as your homepage, a landing page for a seasonal promotion, or a particular product or collection page.

This test type is ideal when you want to isolate a change on a single page, such as swapping out the hero image, rearranging sections, or testing new messaging. Because the changes affect just one page, results are easy to interpret and implement without impacting the rest of your store.

Template Testing

If you want to test changes across multiple pages that share the same layout, such as all your product pages or all collection pages, template testing is the best approach. In this setup, you’re modifying the page template itself rather than an individual page.

This is especially useful for brands with an extensive catalog, where optimizing a single product page layout can scale improvements across dozens or hundreds of pages. Every day use cases include repositioning the product description, adding trust badges above the fold, or adjusting the layout for mobile users.

Theme Tests

Theme-wide tests allow you to experiment with elements that appear across your entire store, such as the header, navigation, footer, announcement bars, or site-wide popups. These tests are broader in scope and can influence the entire customer journey.

Use this approach when testing global features, such as adding a free shipping banner to the header, trying a new navigation structure, cart experience, or changing fonts and colors store-wide. These types of tests may take longer to reach significance, but they’re great for measuring the impact of larger branding or UX changes.

Split URL Testing

Split URL testing works differently from the other types; instead of creating two variants of a single page or template, you pair two existing pages against each other. Traffic is directed to each URL independently, and performance is measured between the two.

This is useful when you already have two different versions of a page (such as an original product page and a new version built in a separate template or app) and want to see which performs better.

💡 Split Test Redirect Behavior

If you’re running or planning to run a Split test, you’ll see an option to set the redirect behavior when you start the test.

The default setting is Redirect Once — meaning visitors are redirected only on their first visit. After that, they can freely access both URLs.

Alternatively, you can choose Redirect Every Time, which forces visitors to always be redirected to their assigned variant URL, preventing access to the other version.

Which type should you use?

If you're just getting started, page testing is a great entry point; it's quick to set up and provides clear insights. As you grow more confident, template and theme tests can help you scale improvements across your site. For more advanced needs or campaign-specific comparisons, split URL testing gives you full flexibility.

Each test type is designed to support different goals and workflows, and many merchants use a combination over time to optimize their store experience continuously.