Shopify is easy to use, but its "App Store" culture is a double-edged sword. Every app you install adds code to your theme—and uninstalling the app often doesn't remove the code.
1. The Problem: "Ghost Code"
When you install a popup app, it injects JavaScript into your theme's `theme.liquid` file. When you delete the app, that script often stays behind, trying to load a resource that no longer exists. We call this "Ghost Code," and it haunts your site's speed.
App Overdose: The average Shopify store has 6 apps installed. If you have 15+, your site is almost certainly failing Core Web Vitals due to excessive JavaScript execution.
Identifying Liquid Bloat
Go to your Shopify Theme Editor > Edit Code. Look at `theme.liquid`. Do you see lines of code referring to apps you deleted years ago? That is dead weight. It forces the customer's browser to pause and process nothing.
2. Treatment Plan
DIY: Manually backup your theme and carefully remove script tags related to old
apps.
"Code Audit." Cleaning this bloat can improve load times by 1-2 seconds instantly.